Turn Christmas Scraps Into DIY Greeting Cards for Any Occasion
Don’t just throw your leftover Christmas scraps in the waste bin after the holidays. Get crafty and turn them into DIY greeting cards that you can give to family and friends all year long.
Karen Kavett
After the holidays, we all end up with extra little bits of wrapping paper, fabric and generic cards. Generally, those leftovers have reserved seats on a first-class flight to the trash can — but not this year. HGTV Handmade’s Karen Kavett shares an easy way to turn Christmas scraps into DIY greeting cards to give all year long.
Materials + Supplies
- printable patterns
- card stock
- craft knife
- cutting mat
- ruler
- Christmas scraps
- glue stick
- scissors
Gather Supplies and Print Your Pattern
Gather all of your Christmas scraps to cut up; print the pattern onto card stock (Image 1 + 2). You could also draw your own design of any shape you want to make.
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Cut Out the Shape
Cut the paper in half to get a card template where the design will fold onto the inside of the card. Cut out that design (Image 1 + 2) and fold the card in half (Image 3).
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Cut the Backing
Cut a piece of card stock that is slightly smaller than the card.
Karen Kavett
Cut Out and Glue Strips
Cut your old cards and wrapping paper into strips of varying widths (Image 1). Use a glue stick to glue them onto the backing from the previous step (Image 2 + 3). Trim the excess (Image 4 + 5).
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Glue On the Backing
Glue the backing to the inside of the card (Image 1 + 2). Optionally, press it under a stack of books while the glue dries.
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
And There You Have It!
Once dry, write your message inside and get ready to give it away. You now have a cute, DIY greeting card made directly from your Christmas scraps.
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Try Other Designs
You can experiment with other shapes and colors to make any designs you can think of.
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
Tips for Using Letters on Your DIY Greeting Cards
If you’re going to be using text, be sure to print the text backwards so that the outlines are hidden on the inside of the card. After gluing the backing into place, glue the inside shapes of the letters back into place to give it a finished look.
Karen Kavett
Karen Kavett
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