How to ship Christmas gifts to US

This is my first Christmas in the UK and want to send a few presents to the children in my family in NY. I am just sending 3 tshirts, 3 earmuffs, cookies and a book. Should I wrap the presents or leave them unwrapped? Also should I send in one box or multiple? Regarding customs is the US as strict as UK regarding taxes? Any advice would be much appreciated!
Thank you 

You are encouraged to not wrap anything and if you do, the US customs officials reserve the right to unwrap them (and if they need to do so, it will delay delivery).  I've never had any of my family/friends in the US charged any duty or tax on anything I have ever sent. 

BTW, you've just missed the Royal Mail deadline (it was Friday) for delivery before the 24th to the US, but as they only have to go to NY, you may still be ok if you get things out today.

I didn't know they encouraged unwrapped presents! I've been wrapping presents and sending them back and forth across the Atlantic for decades!

I didn't know that they encouraged not wrapping your gifts as well! (not that I've even gotten that far yet with everything going on here!)  Something I think would be handy for this board is a list of items you can/can't ship! I keep meaning to look it up and print it off so that I don't send something I'm not supposed to!

I've just had really good luck with parcel2go, it cost me £50 to ship 8kg in a massive amazon box for 3 day DHL delivery to Texas. Royal mail quoted me £130 for 3 weeks, also they picked up at my office, yay couriers.
http://www.parcel2go.com/?gclid=CJrszoX2_KwCFcMMtAodshcGSQ

They have a list of stuff you can ship on there I've also wrapped everything every time, no problems so far, but I guess it depends on your box, it's luck basically if it gets unwrapped or not.

For the amount you have, I'd say one box would be better.

Perhaps I just got unlucky (wouldnt be the first time).  Two years ago, I sent a box to my dad with multiple individually wrapped presents inside and it arrived with all the packages unwrapped (and some of the chocolate out of a Thorntons box eaten!)  I called the USPS and they told me that the foil wrapping paper causes problems with the xray (?) and they always reserve the right to unwrap wrapped items.   

Last year, I sent stuff unwrapped two days before the US shipment deadline and the box didnt arrive until February. 

Needless to say, I do all Christmas purchasing on Amazon now

That's terrible, mirrajay!!

I guess I've just been really lucky. This year I posted my stuff to the US by surface mail, just missing the 19 October deadline by a few days. But, apparently, if there's room on a plane, they'll send it by airmail - even though you've only paid the surface rate. All of the presents I sent (to friends and family) got there embarrassingly early! Like in early November!!

Ive always wrapped with no issues and my family have been exchanging presents between the UK and the UK for over 40 years now. The worst that happened to us was in the 80s. Christmas presents arrived sometime around my birthday in March. Grandfather had connections at Royal Mail and was able to find out what happened with our gift. It was stuck in a bin that had been pushed into a dark corner of a shipping warehouse. 

To save on box size, take items of the packaging and then wrap.
Send by sea
Send EARLY

That's terrible, mirrajay!!

I guess I've just been really lucky. This year I posted my stuff to the US by surface mail, just missing the 19 October deadline by a few days. But, apparently, if there's room on a plane, they'll send it by airmail - even though you've only paid the surface rate. All of the presents I sent (to friends and family) got there embarrassingly early! Like in early November!!

Around this time last year, I sent Christmas cards to the UK.  They arrived in late January.  Similarly, a friend sent me a Christmas present from the UK, and it arrived in February.

This year I decided I'd better get it sorted early.  I sent two presents and all my Christmas cards in mid-November, and they got there within a week. 

Basically, I feel like I have the option of either ridiculously early, or ridiculously late delivery.

...(and some of the chocolate out of a Thorntons box eaten!)  I called the USPS and they told me that the foil wrapping paper causes problems with the xray (?) and they always reserve the right to...

Eat the chocolates from other people's gift packages?! 

Needless to say, I do all Christmas purchasing on Amazon now

All my US family gifts are sent via either Amazon or a US-based retailers for things like food hampers or flowers, etc.

I still have to send all my Christmas cards out - both there and here.  No telling when they'll get there!  At least it's not that many for the US. 

All my US family gifts are sent via either Amazon or a US-based retailers for things like food hampers or flowers, etc.

I think I will do the same in the future. I usually use etsy for birthday presents but bought a few things in London and thought the kids would love things that were noticeably English. I sent it yesterday and split it in 2 boxes one small one medium and it cost £46! Nearly what the gifts cost themselves. Hoping they get there on time

Ive always wrapped with no issues and my family have been exchanging presents between the UK and the UK for over 40 years now. The worst that happened to us was in the 80s. Christmas presents arrived sometime around my birthday in March. Grandfather had connections at Royal Mail and was able to find out what happened with our gift. It was stuck in a bin that had been pushed into a dark corner of a shipping warehouse. 

To save on box size, take items of the packaging and then wrap.
Send by sea
Send EARLY

I ended up wrapping them so your info is making me feel lots better!

I've just had really good luck with parcel2go, it cost me £50 to ship 8kg in a massive amazon box for 3 day DHL delivery to Texas. Royal mail quoted me £130 for 3 weeks, also they picked up at my office, yay couriers.
http://www.parcel2go.com/?gclid=CJrszoX2_KwCFcMMtAodshcGSQ [nofollow]

They have a list of stuff you can ship on there I've also wrapped everything every time, no problems so far, but I guess it depends on your box, it's luck basically if it gets unwrapped or not.

For the amount you have, I'd say one box would be better.

This is amazing advice..thanks! This route would have saved me a lot of money. I will def try this out

Thanks everyone for your advice!

I sent mine surface mail before Halloween and they all arrived absurdly early.  Have always wrapped with no problems (but not in foil paper).  Jiffy bags wherever possible.

Also, to save on posting Christmas cards individually (its not cheap) try seeing if someone back home will post them for you. I sent 7 cards out (pre-addressed) in a manilla envelope to my Mom for £3.30, she then stamps and posts from there. If I had sent them individually, it would have cost me about £2 each..

That's a great idea! Why haven't I ever thought of that??

What a great idea! Might do that next year