Homemade Old-Fashioned Christmas Cards

Use a plain old paper bag to create your own old fashioned Christmas cards.

Making your own Christmas cards adds a beautiful touch to the holiday and lets your family and friends know that you care enough about them to spend time making a greeting. Recycle your paper bags and get creative with rubber stamps to design old-fashioned Christmas cards to send your love.

Things You'll Need

• Brown paper (ex. paper bag)
• Paper cutter
• Rubber stamps, Christmas themed
• Black ink pad
• Marker/felt tipped pen

Instructions

1. Use a paper cutter to cut a brown paper bag into a sheet measuring approximately 8 by 6 inches.

2. Fold the brown paper sheet in half to create a card that measures 4 by 6 inches.

3. Decorate the front of the card with rubber stamps in an old-fashioned Christmas theme. Examine images of vintage Christmas cards to come up with a truly old-fashioned card. Consider using stamped images of sparsely decorated pine trees, single candles, sleighs or holly--botanical images and snow scenes were common on early cards, according to the online Greeting Card Museum.

4. Use a marker or a felt tipped pen to write a greeting title, like "Merry Christmas" or "May Peace Be With You" on the front of the card. The very first professionally commissioned card, in 1843, had the greeting "A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You," notes the Greeting Card Museum.

5. Open the card and write a message such as a verse, prayer or poem on the inside. Sign your name, and the names of each member of your family, under the message.

Tips & Warnings

• Punch holes around the border or at the top of your card and run through a ribbon as an added touch--vintage cards often featured textile embellishments.

References

• All Crafts Only: Brown Paper Bag Ideas
• Enchanted Learning: Brown Paper Bag Cards
• Greeting Card Museum: Christmas Card History