Tea Towel Gift Wrapping for a Snack Box That Won’t Sit Still

Tea towel gift wrapping works best when the box is closed and the towel can reach around it without pulling the lid out of place. Give the towel a dry run before you tie anything. If the ends reach but won’t knot comfortably, a ribbon can finish the job.

Start with a clean, dry tea towel, a closed box and a length of ribbon you can cut after checking the fit. Keep the snacks in their original wrappers. If you’re assembling the box yourself, fill the gaps with a little clean packing paper so the contents won’t shift as you turn it. The towel should never have to hold the box together.

Do a quick fit test

Lay the towel face down, with its long edge running left to right. Set the box in the middle so its shorter dimension runs left to right, too. Bring the towel’s short ends up over the top. If they nearly meet, rotate the box a quarter turn and compare before giving up on that towel. You’re looking for full coverage with enough slack to fold the open sides inward.

Close the sides before you finish the top

With the box still flat, smooth the fabric up the two open sides and tuck the excess toward the center, as you would with the ends of a paper wrap. Hold the folds in place while you bring the long loose ends across the top. If there’s enough fabric, tie a flat knot: right end over left, then left over right. Stop when the cloth stays put without squeezing the box.

For a shorter overlap, lay the ends flat and slide a ribbon underneath the box. Bring the ribbon up and tie it over the seam. Give the folds a small nudge to check they stay in place, then carry the gift from underneath. Slip a tag beneath the ribbon or through the knot so the recipient can untie it without pulling off tape.

Choose the box first and let it set the size of the wrap. For a recipient who enjoys a surprise, compare Pop Snax’s mystery snack boxes, including The Plot Twist. If you’re still deciding what fits the person, our snack gift box guide starts there. The wrap gets its turn once you know what’s inside.