How to Recycle Old Holiday Cards into Garland

comments (5) December 19th, 2008     

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Instead of throwing out old holiday cards, turn them into this pretty garland. It's simple enough to get the kids involved, too.

What you'll need:

• Assorted old greeting cards
• Circle craft punches (I'm using 1-inch and 1-1/4-inch sizes)
• Narrow satin ribbon
• Craft glue
  

A note on quantities: The number of cards and amount of ribbon you'll need will vary according to how much garland you'd like to make. By way of a gauge, I've made 6 yards of garland here, which required about 15 cards.

...And a note on punches: I'm using circles here, but the world is full of interesting punches! Imagine this garland made with leaf shapes, snowflakes, or flowers.

Begin by punching circles from your old cards.

The first step in this project is punching a whole lot of circles. Depending on the greeting cards you're using, you may be able to get lots of circles, as with this allover pattern card . . .

Some cards won't yield as many pretty circles, so punch carefully.

. . . Or, as with this illustrated card, you may only be able to get a few good circles. (You can always turn your circle punch upside down to get a better look at the area you're punching.)

Cut away the punched edge to create a fresh edge for more punches.

Here's a little trick: After you've punched your way across a card, you can cut the punched edge away with scissors. Now, you have a fresh edge to continue punching.

Lay out four or five circles face down. Glue ribbon to the circles.

Once you have a lot of circles, it's time to assemble the garland. Place four or five circles face down on your work surface. Put a medium spot of craft glue on each circle. Then, place a ribbon over the glue, spacing the circles fairly evenly. (Make sure some glue oozes out from each side of the ribbon.)

Glue more circles on top of the ribbon.

Then, place more circles face up on top of the ribbon. That oozing glue will hold the circles and ribbon together. (You may need to press them together with your fingers for a few seconds so they lie flat.)

Leave about 6 inches of ribbon uncovered at each end of the garland.

By the way, be sure to leave about 6 inches of uncovered ribbon at each end of your garland, in case you need to tie it to anything.

Continue this process, adding four or five circles at a time. It goes very quickly, and you can assembly-line things if you have a group. Some people can punch the circles, and some can glue them. Let the glue dry thoroughly before you use the garland.

Shorter pieces of ribbon will create pretty window dangles.

If you have some leftover circles, you can make some pretty icicle-style dangles to dress up a window.

posted in: paper, houseware, seasonal