Every year, Australians exchange millions of birthday, Christmas and greeting cards – and most of them end up in the garbage. With a little creativity, however, you can repurpose your most treasured cards and let them live on in new ways.
Repurpose #1: Make a new card
This is a quick and easy craft project that you can do with the kids and will also save you money on buying cards in the future!
Materials:
- Birthday cards to recycle
- Cardboard and coloured paper
- Glue
- Scissors
- Stickers, stamps and glitter
Instructions:
- Cut up your old cards into various shapes and words.
- Fold a sheet of A4-sized cardboard in half and arrange bits and pieces of card and coloured paper on the page. Glue in place.
- Adorn with stickers, glitter and stamps until you’re happy with the end result!
Surprise and delight with these 5 Unique gift wrap ideas >>
Repurpose #2: Create new artwork
When you or your kids celebrate a birthday or a special milestone, you generally always receive one or two cards that you definitely want to keep. Instead of stashing them away in a drawer or folder, why not display them as artwork in your living room, home office or nursery? You can either frame one special card on its own, or cluster 3-4 cards in identical frames for an attractive visual statement. All you need is a frame and your card and you’re good to go!
Tip: Buy frames that come with matting to create a polished look. Cheap and cheerful frames with inbuilt mats can be picked up from discount retailers like Big W and Kmart for around $5 a piece.
Creative ways to display your child’s art >>
Repurpose #3: Add swing tags to gifts
Sometimes, filling an entire blank greeting card with sentiments and well wishes can be an intimidating prospect — such as when the recipient is your boss or a casual aquaintance rather than a close friend. On these occasions when you want to give a small gift with an accompanying note, rather than a full greeting card, a petite swing tag is the perfect solution. You can whip them up in a jiffy and they add a little personality to the whole affair!
Materials:
- Birthday cards to recycle
- Cardboard
- Glue
- Scissors
- Hole-punch
Instructions:
- Cut up your old cards into various shapes and words.
- Cut your cardboard into small rectangles, squares and circles.
- Select one or two small pieces of recycled card and arrange on the coloured cardboard shapes.
- Glue in place and then stamp a whole at the top using your hole-punch. To use, thread with ribbon and attach to your gift after scrawling a quick and heartfelt sentiment on the back.
More DIY craft projects
Craft projects made from recycled materials
DIY vinyl record clock
Craft projects to dress up a baby’s nursery
Leave a Comment