Janet Smith Crowned America's Most Gifted Wrapper

Janet Smith, a gift-wrapping guru from Willow Grove, Penn., was crowned "America’s Most Gifted Wrapper" for 2007 in a national gift-wrapping contest sponsored by the maker of Scotch brand tape. Amid throngs of holiday revelers at Rockefeller Center today, Smith out wrapped six other gift-wrapping experts in the eleventh annual Scotch Brand Most Gifted Wrapper Contest to earn the ultimate holiday prize: $10,000. With bows, ribbons and Scotch tape in hand, Smith and her worthy competitors elegantly wrapped the ultimate "Winter Wonderland” gifts – a pair of ladies ice skates, a snowboard with boots and bindings attached, and a 2008 Yamaha Phazer Snowmobile! Smith offers this advice to those who are getting ready to wrap their holiday presents: "My number one tip is always pre-measure and cut the paper before you begin to wrap a gift. If you’re not certain how much paper to cut, just use a piece of ribbon to measure the size of the gift.” The first runner-up, Vicky Mihara Avery, from Montara, Calif., received a $2,500 cash prize. The other five contestants received smaller cash prizes as well. Contestants were judged on three criteria: appearance, technique and speed. The judging panel consisted of experts in the art of gift-wrapping, including Christine Fritsch, author of Gifted Wrapping and the 2002 Scotch Brand Most Gifted Wrapper; Eleanor Leinen, known as "the celebrity wrapper,” whose coffee table book Uniquely Gifted was just released this month; Mark Ski, former producer for Martha Stewart Living and Kristine Solomon, an editor at Quamut, a new series of lifestyle how-to guides published by Barnes & Noble. Scotch is a trademark of 3M. About 3M - A Global, Diversified Technology Company Every day, 3M people find new ways to make amazing things happen. Wherever they are, whatever they do, the company's customers know they can rely on 3M to help make their lives better. Some of 3M's brands include Scotch, Post-it, Scotchgard, Thinsulate, Scotch-Brite, Filtrete, Command, and Vikuiti. Serving customers in more than 200 countries around the world, the people of 3M use their expertise, technologies and global strength to lead in major markets including consumer and office; display and graphics; electronics and telecommunications; safety, security and protection services; health care; industrial and transportation. For more information, including the latest product and technology news, visit www.3M.com. ©3M 2007