Christmas card making: A simple guide
Forget expensive store-bought Christmas cards. Rope in the kids and make your own personalised holiday greeting cards instead.
Looking for something arty and crafty to do with the kids today? It’s surprisingly simple to make beautiful, personalised holiday greeting cards, and you don’t need an expensive computer graphics programme or colour printer to do it. All you need is a little imagination, a few readily available materials, and your child’s creative input!
Upcycle old magazines and old holiday cards
Your biggest task may be compiling the items you need to put together your cards. Old magazines and recycled holiday cards (either new or used) are probably the best sources for images, and of course, they’re basically free. Recycled paper, buttons, ribbon fragments, fabric remainders, and all kinds of odds and ends also offer excellent ingredients for your cards. Sometimes you can even get your hands on free address labels with holiday designs from companies you do business with. If that’s the case, you don’t even have to worry about addressing your cards by hand!
Supplies for your holiday card
You’ll need the following materials to make your holiday greeting card:
- Sheets of cardstock, construction paper, or scrapbook paper.
- Matching or contrasting paper for the envelope.
- Old or new holiday cards to recycle. Don’t have any? Ask your older relatives if they do – they may save this kind of stuff.
- Bits and pieces of ribbons, fabrics, trims, scrapbooking embellishments, etc.
- A bone folder, a tool made to help crease and fold paper. A tongue-depressor or large popsicle stick will usually do the job.
- Regular paper scissors and/or funky paper cutting scissors.
- A ruler and a pencil.
- Glittery or coloured pens to write your holiday message with (although basic black is always a good choice, especially if you have lots of colour on the page already).
- Glue sticks/pens. Use only scrapbook-safe, acid-free glue.
- Permanent glue dots to attach heavier objects such as ribbons, buttons, etc.
- Double-sided tape (optional).
- Return address labels
Get creative
Once you’ve gotten all your materials together, think a bit, and then use your resources to create your own original, unforgettable cards for your friends and family. The only limits are the limits of your imagination! Once you’ve finished your design, let your child write a holiday message inside your card.
Make your own envelope
How to make an envelope for your holiday greeting card in five simple steps:
- To make an envelope for your holiday card, use another sheet of matching or contrasting paper. Other cool materials you can use for your envelope include magazine pages, gift wrap, wallpaper, or stamped paper.
- Lay the card diagonally across it, and fold up the sides using your bone folder.
- Glue down the two sides and bottom fold to create the envelope.
- Seal your envelope with your glue stick, and put a cute sticker in the middle of the seal to help keep it closed.
- All you need to add the final touch is a festive holiday stamp from the post office, and there you have it: a homemade holiday card your recipient will treasure!
