This one is for the perfectionists in the crowd. And we know who we are.

We want things organized. And pretty. If we can’t do both, it’s not worth doing either.

Remember the sock drawer from yesterday? Even after putting things in perfect order, it wasn’t awesome because the boxes didn’t match.

You could go and buy boxes to separate your categories, and small craft or photo boxes wouldn’t even be that expensive. But I Iike free. Maybe you do too?

So I resolved to cover these boxes in some wrapping paper that I bought just to make things pretty. You might remember that I covered batches of magazine files with adhesive shelf paper when I redid my office, but shelf paper is way too sticky and not easy to work with. So stick with regular wrapping paper. Target and TJMaxx are both good sources.

But as I sat there and tried to get my head around how to wrap the inside of the box, it just wasn’t coming to me. So I turned to that trusted advisor, YouTube.(edited: There was a really great tutorial on YouTube, but it looks like I’ll have to make my own for you!)
You can do this with stick glue, paste glue, or get your hands on some spray craft adhesive. Best stuff ever. But try your best to spray the box and not the paper, which just gives you more control. But be sure to protect your work surface, or you’ll end up with a sticky table, too!

We really want to wrap the inside bottom of the box, which is what you might see in your sock drawer. So here is the…

Formula to Calculate Amount of Paper Needed to Wrap the Inside of a ShoeBox:

• (Height of one long side x 4) + (width of the bottom of the box between the two long sides x 2) + 2 inches= length of paper to cut.
• You’ll need at least double the height of the short sides of the box on each end to cover the insides on the end.

The other thing to remember is that you’ll start on one long end with a smidge more than double the height of the box of free paper (from the bottom of the box. In the picture above, my box is 3″ high, so I left 7″ to wrap). But then on the other side, the free paper will be longer, to cover the outside side AND the inside side, AND the inside bottom.

OK, start on the long side, and make cuts that are just as deep as the box. Glue and spray that first flap to the inside of your box.

Then glue the bottom of the box (works better than gluing the paper), and roll the box onto the opposite long side.

At this point, your entire inside and outside of the long sides will be wrapped. Fold the paper up one of the Short sides, and you’ll carefully make cuts from the outer edge of the paper to where the corners of the box are.

Carefully fold the paper into the shorter side of the box, and neatly fold the remaining paper into triangular little “wings” on each corner. Because you’ve started with asymmetrical paper and wrapped the inside bottom, one of your wings will be waaaaaaay longer than the other. Trim both wings to no more than the height of the side before folding them inside and spraying down with glue. (Here my wings need to be cut to 3″ from the top edge of the side.)

Word to the wise, if you are using spray adhesive and working on your kitchen floor, you might want to lay down some newspaper. Just sayin’.

Only by the grace of God did I happen to get this pattern nearly centered, because I honestly wasn’t watching that. If you have a prominent pattern, you might want to measure for that, too.

Or not…

You can get organized for sure without making pretty little boxes like these, but it sure does look sweet if you do.

Now that I know the secret to making all boxes pretty, inside and out, I may never have anything in my recycling bin again.

If this helps us perfectionists to get more done, then I’ve done my job well. Will you try this trick to wrap the inside of a shoebox anytime soon?

This post is part of my 31 days of 30-minute Organizing Projects. Be sure to subscribe for daily emails  with projects you can complete in just a few minutes to start your New Year off right.