How to Make Thrifty Crafts Using Old Christmas Cards: Part 4

Recycle your old Christmas Cards into miniature houses, and decorate your Christmas tree or give as gifts. These Christmas ornaments are worth the time to make, and perfect for your next ornament exchange party.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Old Christmas Cards
• Scissors or X-acto knife
• Cardboard to trace and cut templates
• Pencil
• String for ornament hanger, or metal store purchased hanger
• Tacky Glue

1. 

   To begin, you will need the temple provided on-line. Visit the Web site, http://www.diyideas.com/howto/Decorate/cardornaments.html, to view and print the template to cut out your recycled card. You can also click on the link proved in resources below.

2. 

   Trace your pattern onto cardboard from a cereal box for your template. You can use card stock, thin packaging cardboard, a large cardboard food box, or a cereal box.

3. 

   Trace your template onto a Christmas card and cut out. A landscape card gives the ornament a more unique finished look. Look over all the cards you have a select one that contains a scenic picture. Follow the directions on your template of where to fold. Apply glue to the bottom of the house to secure to the cut portion it sits on per the template instructions (see photo at the top of the article).

4. 

   Attach an ornament hook, or simply sit the miniature house on tree limbs of your Christmas tree. Don't forget to write the date on the bottom.

Tips & Warnings

• Give as gifts
• Give as Holiday Party Favors
• Decorate your Christmas tree with these houses
• Donate to shut-ins, nursing homes, and retirement homes
• Make these and put one in your child's hope chest
• Give to neighbors and friends
• If children are helping, use precautions using scissors/X-acto knife
• There are three templates to the ornament and each one prints on a separate page when printing.

Resources

• Card Ornament Template

[vrogers]

on 4/1/2009 It has been ages since I heard anyone say anything about hope chests...yeah! I did not have one but my sisters did. Great idea! Thanks!

[vallain]

on 1/17/2009 I'll look through my cards, now that Christmas is over, to see if they would make nice little houses.