Your work history will look less vulnerable when presented in a functional style, also called a skills style. The main idea is that you communicate up front what you can do in the future for an employer (rather than the traditional reverse-chronological listing of what you've done in the past).
Advice on repairing resume holes has become a cottage industry, but however you handle it, remember two powerful principles:
1. Present the time gap as a positive event.
2. Detail why it made you a better worker -- not a better person, but a better worker with more favorable characteristics, polished skills and mature understanding, all of which you're eager to contribute to your new employer's profit lines.
One approach: You can do the heavy lifting in a cover letter that accompanies your resume. You might say something like this:
"After completing college, fueled by my ability as a hard-working, analytical learner, I completed independent studies in --. I also traveled extensively to develop my understanding of the real world and how it works. Additionally, as my family had deferred home-maintenance costs to pay for my education, I cheerfully learned the basic purchasing and repair skills I needed to effectively pitch in on our successful home-renovation project."
As you cruise the Web for resume examples that illustrate gap-repair techniques, keep an eye out for the work of the late Yana Parker, who created some of the best.