Monday, January 05, 2009

Christmas cards


This post may be a little late, but if you're like me you still have pieces of Christmas floating around the house.  I've been slowly putting things away at the start of this new year, but I still have this stack of Christmas cards sitting on our table and so I'm wondering, What do you do with your Christmas cards?  After Christmas is said and done do they get tossed?  I've done several different things and I've heard of some great ideas, but I want to hear more!  

Last year a friend from Tennessee sent a 3x5 card with her Christmas card and letter.  On the card were recorded several dates and even some specific times.  In her letter she let me know that these dates and times were the times she prayed for me that year!  That was a blessing!  It also prompted me to use some of the cards I got as prayer cards.  This year I added some of the picture cards I got for Christmas to our missionary prayer box.  That worked pretty well.  I'll probably do that again.




I also try to keep up with a Christmas scrapbook.   I do a few simple pages on family and friends and that's a place to put photo pics as well.  It's fun to look through the years and see the changes in them and the new little additions to the families.



So, let me know what other fabulous ideas you have!

9 comments:

Janelle said...

I LOVE your scrapbook! I have to say it again - you just amaze me! How do you get everything done, and so great looking at that??? I've wanted to do some scrapbooking and have sort of started, but that's about as far as I've gotten. Maybe someday I'll stop being a "maybe someday" person and actually get some of these fun things done I've wanted to do!

As far as Christms cards go, at least this year, all the cards get thrown away and I put all the pictures on my refrigerator either until they send me a more recent picture or until next year. It helps me remember them and pray for them throughout the year. I usually just put last years in an envelope, but love the idea of putting in a scrapbook. Maybe someday! :) He He!

I almost forgot the main reason I was writing this - way back in college I saw this idea for one of my classes where you cut circles out of the cards in a nice looking spot and then fold over the edges either six or eight times to make straight edges (like a stop sign or hexagon) and then you glue the sides together to form an interesting looking ball in the end. Punch a hole in one of the glued-together edges and put a string through and it's either an ornament for the tree or hang from a window or somewhere like that. I hope that makes sense. Like I said I haven't seen it or done it since college, but the idea has stuck with me ever since and again, I've meant every year to try to do that again, but always find something more pressing to do with my time. I need to start saving the cards so that I can do it later in the year for the coming Christmas. Maybe I'll try to find the actual directions. That would probably help!

Janelle said...

http://jennyharada.com/fun-diy-christmas_card_star.html

I found this and thought it was a great looking idea too - similar, but I think the circles would be a little more simple. By the way, the tabs on the circle one go on the outside, not the inside like the star.

Sarah Stevens said...

Beth - my mom has a friend who crops the faces of the cards and attaches them to cardstock to make gift tags. They actually look very cute!
I have seen Janelle's idea done before too - it is beautiful actually - like a small souveneir from that year. The one I saw only had 3 folded tabs so more folds might make even more detail.

Leah C said...

A couple of years ago we made wrapping paper out of brown parcel paper. We used stamps, stencils, ribbons and old christmas cards to decorate. It was really cute, and you could customize the gift for the recipient. We had lots of fun. We did gift bags too. I even got one of my gift bags back this year.

Beth said...

I LOVE the star pattern, Janelle! thanks! I knew there must be one out there somewhere, but I haven't taken the time to search. I think I'm going to do that w some silver paper and make a tree topper (we've been searching the perfect topper!) thanks. that would be really neat to do with cards. The tag idea is great, Sarah. Sounds fun!!! Leah- hahaha you were re-gifted one of your own bags? :) I'm sure they were cute! wrapping paper sounds rather ambitious, but if I start earlier, maybe...

Rochelle said...

Great idea!

I always just end up tossing mine, but this is a MARVELOUS idea! And I love scrapbooking... derf, I can't believe it didn't cross my mind. Thank you for showing me the error of my ways. :) :)

Alyssa said...

My mom hangs up our Christmas cards on ribbons over our basement door. After Christmas is over, we take down the cards and pray for the people who sent the card to us :)
You can also cut out pieces of super cute cards to use for your scrapbook or for making cards!

AnneB said...

what great ideas...mine always hit the trash can b/c of my dislike of clutter...which is another reason i don't even send them out...I figured everybody just throws them away...but now...now I can see the light. The scrapbook idea is great! I'll never (or I doubt I will) do it, of course, but it is such a great idea:)

AnneB said...

Love the no whine sign.
Mark
--i need that for Titus these days