Cards are not gifts specifically, but are used to include with gifts. In this practical idea, I’m not referring to the heartwarming, handmade gifts that children make for parents and grandparents with plain paper and crayons. Of course, those are sweet and cherished on refrigerators almost everywhere (and should also be included with your gifts). However, what I’m referring specifically to here are recycled handmade cards.
Annual Christmas card mailing is an international tradition, but many people throw those cards away after the season has passed. I keep the cards for a few different reasons. I also keep the cards that I mailed out that got returned. First, to keep track of my Christmas card list. People move and lists change over time.
For the Christmas cards that get sent back, I take some time to check if the recipient moved (or, morbid as this sounds, died). This is a practical way to keep a regular mailing address book up-to-date on an annual basis, too. For the Christmas cards I receive, I have a foundational card list from which to work. This may sound cheap, but it is really more a matter of practicality. There are people who genuinely don’t care to send or receive Christmas cards. Should they be removed from a mailing list? Not necessarily - but for those folks, they are put at the end of the list in the event of extra or leftover cards.
Now for the fun part. After the list is made, cut out the thematic designs from the previous year’s received Christmas cards. This way, you can throw away the inside-facing section. Or for further use, put those throw-aways into a bag for your recycling bin or a local paper plant if there is one in your area. Another use for the inside-facing section of old cards is shredded filler. Many of us keep trash bin top shredders for a variety of reasons. Shredded paper is a lot more affordable than packing peanuts or bubble wrap sheets.
With the various thematic designs from old cards, you can create the front-facing designs for a few different card designs. Remember to only glue these designs on one half of your template, since cards are folded in half. Card stock paper costs a little more than standard copy or printer paper, but for what you pay for card stock, you will still save against purchasing boxes of pre-printed gift cards. Creating the actual cards for mailing requires a bit of practice, but the result is unique and lovely - and is a huge money saver.
Further, for the inside-facing section, there is a myriad of ways to share Christmas greetings with your friends and loved ones. Personally, I dislike mass-mailing styled "About our year" inserts that were trendy a few years ago and still wind up getting included in Christmas cards. Although they are a terrific way to get caught up on friends’ and family members’ goings on, they just wind up getting thrown away most of the time anyway. However, on the inside-facing section of a Christmas card, some bullet-point highlights can be included, as well as a family portrait - right on the card. Kids’ signatures, in their own handwriting, can be put into the card - and simply printed.
This is also a great way to teach your kids another way to recycle, while making fun memories, spending quality time, and fostering creativity in them. Further, the likelihood is quite high that most of your card list recipients will recognize and appreciate the uniqueness of the cards.
For envelopes, I have discovered a couple of frugal tips by accident while searching for odd-sized envelopes. Most craft stores and office supply stores sell boxes of card-sized envelopes of various dimensions - and most of them are affordable. However, at Wal Mart, Hallmark, and other stores that carry cards and stationery often overstock in envelopes, and talking with the owner or manager of one of these stores about purchasing some of their overstocked envelopes can be a terrific money-saver. When I made baby shower announcements, a local Hallmark manager gave me a stack of small blue envelopes that were the perfect size for the cards. I was not expecting to get them for free, and it was a pleasant surprise.
A final note: although this idea is being shared for Christmas specifically - this idea can be used to create cards year-round for other special occasions, too.
