What do you do with all the Xmas cards you receive?
In pre-kid life I've used them as backgrounds for scrapbooking or even turned them into other cards. Now, most of the cards I get have someone's kids on them and I feel bad chucking them in the trash (or recycling).
I'm thinking DS might love to hang onto them as well, though he'll probably just play with them every once in awhile - not enough to deal with the mess they'll make in my playroom.
Any creative, but easy, ideas for what to do with all those picture cards?
Thanks for all the suggestions.
I decided to only keep the photo's of DS's friends (sorry old college friends, lol) and I scrapbooked them all onto a 12x12 page. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to put them in an album, or put it on poster board, laminate them and let DS play with them. I LOVE the idea of them being holiday placemats!
I did, however, find that I kept all of LAST years picture cards (DS and a lot of his friends 1st Xmas) so I was able to scrap those, too.
Thanks so much everybody!
Hi, Emma!
I always hang on to a few of them (great grandma's, an especially thoughtful hand-written card, etc), but for the most part, I cut them up and fold them to use as "tags" for next year's presents!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year :)
Hi There,
I usually recycle the cards, but the pictures, I often feel bad throwing away. This was my solution. My kids like pictures of their friends/cousins so I got little photo albums and slipped the pictures in, and add to it each year. It is fun for them to see the kids they know getting bigger. (We moved from NY to MA and still get cards from our old friends, and my daughter likes to look at them, even though she doesn't remember them much).
I cut out the pictures and put them in an album. If there is anything left of the card that is usable I make gift tags out of them.
During the Christmas season, as we receive pictures & picture cards, we add them to the tree as decorations. When it's time to put everything away, I scan all the pictures onto my computer in a folder for the year (Christmas 2009). That way they are saved without taking up physical space. Then you can save any favorites for scrapbooking, collage framed photos, etc. I have even seen people make picture globes with cutouts of favorite pics. Just cut into octagon shapes, bend in the edges, then staple, tape, or glue the edges together.
I cut them out in different shapes, then make a garland out of them. The garland, of course, gets longer and longer each year, and it's really cool to see how the kids have changed over the years.
Wow, great ideas! I have one. our nursery changing table is on a shelf, so I tape pics of family and friends to the shelf above her, so when I place her there to change her diaper she can look at all the people we know and love. I guess you can tape those there, just use packing tape, since our daughter pulled most off pretty soon with regular tape!
Hi Emma
Hope you had a Merry Christmas!
I would try a scrapbook. Not an elaborate one, but just one that will let kids look back and see their friends when they were small.
I however have no problem throwing away pictures of my DH's work associates kids' pictures. Where would I put them and why do I need them? They are cute and it is nice to have something to say at the annual Jan. spouse dinner meeting.
Hope you hear a great idea
K.
Get an inexpensive photo album stick them in with the year and each year add to it. It will be fun for your kids to see their friends as they change each year. It doesn't cost much and is something you cuould even let your kids "scrap"! without worry if they wreck them. A.
I cut out the pictures and put them on the fridge, my daughter plays with them until too beat up then I trash them. I just don't get sentimental about things.
Emma,
We only got one picture card this year with a great picture of my 2 year old son's little playmate on it. He has his own photo album that he loves to look at, so I put her picture in there and he was thrilled to find her in his book.
The rest of the cards I recycle. I have no room to get sentimental about cards. We will get more next year.
Happy New Year,
R.
I know some people pack them away with the gift wrapping then the next year they use them as name tags...cut out whatever part you want to use, hole punch it, tie a ribbon through and then attach to gifts...the picture cards, I have a friend who puts them in a photo album for her daughter so she can see who all her "friends" are throught the year.
Hi Emma, I do save the ones with pictures in a photo album. Sometimes I cut off the excess and write names on the back. The other cards I have torn off the part with the greeting and if there is no writing on the picture side I cut them into tags for next year. Some of the senior centers like to do this and punch a hole for next years gifts. Most I have to discard or they would pile up. I send and receive over a hundred each year. Grandma Mary
I keep them all in a gift bag and bring them out again next year.
I just cut out the pictures and recycle the rest. It's great to have pictures of family and friends. I then put them in photo albums and write on the back who they are. All other Christmas cards I recycle.
I've been keeping all the picture holiday cards in a holiday scrap book for as long as I can remember. The non-picture cards are usually recycled or cut up for border and images for the scrap book. My daughter now scrap books with me after every holiday season. We love to look through the book every year to see how kids have grown. I feel connected to distant friends and families because she always asks who they are again. It's a great tradition for the nostalgic types.
Just having a kid means you accumulate more than your fair share of STUFF-- don't be sentimental, chuck them out!!!
I had the same thoughts this year. In an effort to go back to making gifts and use up some of those years of cards, I searched online and found a really cool idea to make ornaments out of them. The basic idea is to cut out 20 small circles (I got a 2" circle punch at Michaels), fold up three equal edges of each circle (with the picture up, almost like you put an equilateral triangle in the center of each circle), glue 10 of them together in a strip with a glue stick, then glue 5 together for the top and 5 for the bottom. Once you get the hang of folding the triangles, it's a cinch. I probably made a dozen of them, just sitting and watching tv. I could do two an hour. My family also uses cards for gift tags. If you're feeling creative and have the time, you can really come up with some beautiful packages.
I put the photo ones in an old unused album, and let my 2-year old daughter play with it. It is nice because she loves to look at photos, but it also helps her remember who all our friends and family are that she doesn't see often!
We use ours to make an annual placemat. We have four now and the kids love seeing their friends at dinner time. It can often help when I'm slow getting dinner on the table. To make it, place a sturdy piece of cardboard on a flat surface. Make a colliage out of the photos, using plain x-mas cards to fill it holes (i.e. cut out a snowman, x-mas tree, santa from non-picture cards). I attach them two-sided tape, and then I laminate it. Have fun! The kids can even help with the cutting and arranging. I suggest an adult do the laminating since it can be difficult at times.
