For some, wrapping gifts is a dreaded necessity, but for other it’s an art form. The paper, scissors, bows and tape can drown an armature but some find it to be second nature.

Norma Massey owner of Frederick’s Boutique, 1218 Washington St., has been giftwrapping practically her entire life. Taught by her parents and aunt and uncle, Massey has been giftwrapping for the past 50 years.

Her parents opened the shoe, dancewear and accessory store 65 years ago in 1950, and next door her aunt and uncle had a children’s clothing store called Koury’s.

“I grew up in here,” Massey said.

When her aunt and uncle sold their store, Frederick’s began selling children’s clothes in addition to their other children’s merchandise, and now Massey is the owner of the children’s boutique.

“My whole family has grown up in here doing it,” Massey said. “My granddaughter has been helping me, she’s in college now, and this one [referencing baby granddaughter] I’m sure one day will do it too.”

She has a rack of different colored paper for different occasions hanging behind the counter of the shop with spools of ribbon hanging beside them. It takes Massey no time to measure out the length and cut to precision.

Koury’s used to have a bow machine that would pre-make ready to use bows that saved a lot of time. All Massey had to do was fluff out the edges from their flattened state.

“They use to make their bows with a machine and do them up in advance,” Massey said.

She now uses the same technique of looping the ribbon around when making her own bows by hand. She just doesn’t have the machine anymore.

“I put it on the package and tie it off and then I open it up,” Massey said.

Now, she uses two different types of ribbon to make bows: flora satin ribbon and curling ribbon. Flora statin is a thick ribbon that opens up in large loops and curling ribbon is a thinner material looped in hand and curled with scissors. Usually only one type of ribbon is used per package.

“There are different techniques to the two kinds of packaging, but both depend on the paper and the occasion as to what kind you’ll do,” Massey said.

Sometimes she will incorporate a miniature trinket on top like a rattle for a baby shower, a jingle bell for a Christmas present or a little rubber duck for a birthday gift.

“A lot of times people will get different gift items to go on their gift, and they’ll say ‘attach this to the top,’” Massey said. “It makes it look cute.”

She wraps all of the gifts she gives to friends and family in between customers at the store, where everything is already set up, and then takes them home a few at a time. Even with a method she still has last minute holiday wrapping.

“Undoubtedly on Christmas Eve I’m up doing last minute stuff at home,” Massey said.

Large department stores sometimes charge for giftwrapping, she said, but most of the shops downtown provide free giftwrapping to their customers. She enjoys providing that service to her customers as a courtesy so they don’t have to do it themselves. There is no minimum purchase amount to receive giftwrapping.

“It’s a good reason to come downtown, for free giftwrapping,” Massey said. “Just another one of the pluses of coming here.”