How to wrap Christmas presents in 30 seconds: Japanese speed-wrapping technique

Nothing says Christmas like a gleaming pile of beautifully wrapped gifts beneath a twinkling tree.

It's just a shame the hours of wrestling with wrapping paper, ribbons, and awkwardly-shaped stocking fillers required to reach that point would test anybody's festive spirit.

But fans of this Japanese speed wrapping technique claim it can cut the time spent labouring over each gift down to under 30 seconds - all it takes is a steady hand, some diagonal folding, and three pieces of Sellotape.

In the video posted on YouTube, a man breaks down the speed wrapping technique - understood to have originated in a Japanese department store - slowly to give viewers a clearer idea of how it works.

Demonstrating on a cordless drill packaged in a rectangular box, he starts with a sheet of gift wrap that's just the right size to cover the entire surface area - without leaving too much paper overlapping.

He places the box on the diagonal across the paper, then flips it up so the narrowest side is flat on the paper.

Next, he folds one corner of the paper up over the box, and uses his index finger to fold the triangular flap created up too.

After securing it with a piece of tape, he repeats the process over the long side of the gift, then places the packet flat down on to his workspace and sticks down the remaining flap like the top of an envelope.

Finally; a wrapping method that's simple and - at least after a few practice runs - super quick.