Christmas card crafts

Some people dispose of the Christmas cards they receive after the season is over. I just can't do that. But I have plenty of the free cards that come in junk mail. Sometimes they are printed in ways that make them unsuitable for me to send, but the images are just too beautiful to throw away. So I keep them in a clip-art box and have come up with a few ways to make use of them with the kids.

(I haven't had a chance to try all of these yet, but my favorites might not be your favorites--so have at it!)

In the past, I have used old Christmas cards as gift tags or embellishments for gift wrapping. An angel cutout tucked underneath a bow or a ribbon-tied nativity vignette can really punch up a gift's presentation.

My kids and I have also decorated our own Christmas cards with cutouts from them, using card stock paper or blank note cards and other art stuff. Here are some great ideas.

When I was younger, we used Christmas cards to make ornaments by cutting out the picture we wanted using a circle template, glueing a thin fabric ribbon or other trim around it, and punching a hole at the top for a hook or string. Here are some variations using juice lids and bottle caps.

Here's another ornament possibility--Victorian icing cards.

These are gorgeous ornament balls--I love the thought put into them.

Here's a collection of projects to recycle Christmas cards. You can make gift bags, mobiles, card games, lacing cards, and more.

Another slew of ideas for reusing your cards, including bookmarks, placemats, and more ornaments.

More ideas (I especially like the serving tray).

Make Christmas card puppets!

Here are some cute Christmas angels from cards.

Here's a great art project for kids. They can make several, maybe with a theme, and group them together like a story!

Have fun, and let me see what you do!