Upcycling Old Christmas Cards - Tacky? Frugal? Creative?

I always feel sad when I toss old Christmas cards. I feel as if I am somehow tossing the person who sent it... or the sentiment (care, thoughtfulness) with which it was sent. I know I'm not. And yet I still feel vaguely sad and a touch guilty. As if the Christmas Card Police are going to break down my door and arrest me for not appreciating the season!

We've received some Christmas cards this season and already... I look at the cards and wonder... Will we toss? Not toss? Toss? It feels like such a waste of paper.

Some are easy. Like the one pictured here. It's from the paving company so there is zero emotional attachment. But it's also a card with "glitter" all over it which means it is most definitely NOT recyclable. So it is destined for the garbage. Which seems like such a waste.

And then I wonder... could we not reuse these cards? If nothing is written on the inside cover of the card... could we not cut it away from the back and then... glue it to some new card stock and make a brand new card?

Or is that considered tacky? And will Miss Manners now break down my door with a scandalized cry of "Sooooo tacky!!!" I don't think it's tacky. But that's me... I tend to think it's creative, eco-friendly, frugal, thrifty, and just makes good sense.

So I went to ChatGPT and asked if it was tacky... and the response was... it depends. On the recipient. While some people might appreciate the eco-conciousness behind the gesture, others would prefer new store-bought cards.

Ummmm... is it not the thought that counts? I know, I know... that's a loaded term. But... seriously? Some folks prefer new, store-bought cards? Well... that's not us. And if some of our card recipients are huddled under that umbrella... all I got to say is... tough noogies (basically... "too bad").

I am not going to buy cards based on the preferences of the recipients. And who even knows the preferences of their Christmas card recipients? It's not like my address book has a note that says "prefers new, store-bought card" or "do not send a card purchased in a Dollar Store or thrift shop".

Meh. I am in development with not living my life according to the opinions of others. And if others think less of us for receiving a re-used, upcycled Christmas card, then so be it. Maybe I'll put a little sticker on the back that says:

This card has been recycled, repurposed and upcycled.

Oh, and if anyone wants to send us an upcycled card... much appreciated!! And if it's a super crafty card... and you don't write on the inside front cover... we'll be happy to give it a second life next year and share it with someone else!

Look, I know some people go to town with their craft supplies... ribbons, sparkle, shaped hole punches... we don't have that. And I don't have the time for that. What I do have is a pair of scissors and a glue stick... let the cutting and pasting begin!

Orrrr... maybe it's just cutting? Why not just... cut off the front of the used Christmas card and turn it into a Christmas postcard?? No need for extra card stock. No need for glue sticks. No need for an envelope! Win, win, win!!!

Time will tell... but I'm eyeing these Christmas cards and weighing my options.

That's a Wrap! The Benefits of Recycling Gift Wrap

As we approach the Christmas gift giving season, I came across an intriguing display in our local grocery store... bows made out of paper rather than plastic! They come in a variety of fetching colours, and the reason they jumped out at me was that they looked "dull" compared to the normal shiny gift bows.

You know the bows I'm talking about... these ones... that look shiny and picture perfect. They come in bags of a dozen or two dozen and we've been using them since... well... since as long as I can remember.

Although... given that my Mom learned frugality during wartime/post-war shortages... we always reused our bows. We'd stick a bit of folded scotch-tape underneath the bow and tape it to the gift. On Christmas, we'd all carefully pull the bows off so they, and the paper, could be reused again.

But those shiny plastic bows are not recyclable. They are made out of some plastic/paper composite and... pretty as they are, they aren't good for the environment. Nor is most of the gift wrap - the shiny, sparkly paper that is also a composite... if it doesn't hold it's shape when it's scrunched into a ball... it's not pure paper.

And somehow... over the years, I lost the habit of saving wrapping paper. We no longer slide a paring knife under the tape to open the gift carefully. No... it's a rip-tear fest and the paper gets tossed in the garbage. Which goes against my eco-heart.

Now... we haven't bought "new" gift wrap for years. We just go to the thrift store and buy rolls there. We aren't fancy about our wrapping paper. Although... back in my 30s... I read a minimalism book which had some interesting suggestions. But white wrapping paper (new) and then use different coloured ribbons and bows to add some pizz-azz to the gift. The white paper and ribbons could be used for birthdays, bridal showers, Christmas... any occasion really. And I did that for a while... until it became too hard to find plain white paper.

I know there are much simpler, more eco-friendly gift wrap ideas out there... use fabric... use newspaper... use brown paper... The temptation, always, I think... is to now go out and buy a roll of brown paper, and some fancy doodads to tie onto the gift... or make it fancy somehow with extras fancy string or whatever.

The key though, I believe... is to use what you have at hand. Use brown paper bags from the grocery store. Use old bits of string. It doesn't have to be fancy. It doesn't have to be store-bought...

In the meantime... we will continue to use up the rolls of gift wrap that we have and maybe... this Christmas... I can get us back in the habit of opening gifts carefully... so that we can save the paper for another day, another year.

Gifts that Mean Something and Make a Difference

When I was a kid, my sister and I always looked forward to the day that the Eatons and Sears Christmas wishbook catalogues arrived in the mail. There was nothing better than flipping through the catalogues and oggling over all of the cool toys!

We would mull over which ones we wanted and somehow, miraculously, at Christmas, we would find many of those gifts under the tree. Not all... of course... but many.

I was particularly fond of Legos and even now, as I flip through the digitally preserved images of the 1973 Sears Wishbook... I can almost smell the paper. Ahhh... those were the days.

Today, paper catalogues are generally a thing of the past, unless you are a Lee Valley subscriber. Everything has moved online and Amazon has muscled out Sears and Eatons. Christmas Wishbooks are a thing of the past... 

But every year, I still get asked by family... "what do you want for Christmas". I struggle to answer that. Because the truth is... I don't want for anything. I don't need anything. We are very blessed and we don't "need" anything. Not when you consider 90% of the rest of humanity.

And every year, I say "I definitely DO NOT want any chocolate!!" And every year... guess what... there is chocolate under the tree! Or in the Advent calendar. 

But... seriously. I don't want anything!!! No... not even a Starbucks gift card. Or chocolate.

No... wait... let me pull that back!!!

I DO want something. If someone really, really wants to give me a gift then let me direct you to some online Wishbooks and you can pick out something there that fits your budget. Let it be a surprise. Then send me a note or an e-card with a picture of it... 

Red Cross Canada Survival Gifts

Warm blankets, hot meals, infant supplies, food, water... they've got it all. Pick what you want, or pick an amount and let the Red Cross choose what is needed most. And... BMO (Bank of Montreal) will match whatever amount you donate... That's like BOGO (Buy One Get One for FREEEEE).

Chalice Canada

I used to sponsor an elder in Peru through this organization until he passed away. They have a wonderful gift catalogue of livestock, farming material, education, household, food, etc. Take your pick they'll even send an e-card to the person saying you are gifting a "goat" in their name. I think I still get the Chalice gift catalogue... maybe I'll leave that lying around the house with red stars next to my faves...

World Vision

Similar to Chalice, you can give all sorts of things and... some of them can be multiplied by matching contributions from the Government of Canada and other entities... up to 8 times!

Unicef

Same as Chalice and World Vision - a robust catalogue of different urgently needed survival gifts. Less emphasis on livestock and farming, and more emphasis on emergency supplies. 

SPCA - BC

If local is more your thing, then there are lots of options in the SPCA gift catalogue. And you can send an e-card to the recipient of your choice letting them know that you have gifted something in their name.

CanadaHelps

This is like the clearing house for charitable organizations in Canada. You can donate directly to the charity of your choice via CanadaHelps (and get a tax receipt). They also have an amalgamated gift catalogue that you can search by category or province or city or by amount you'd like to contribute.

Christmas Spending in Canada

Sooo... I was curious... how much does the average Canadian household spend on Christmas each year? Well... there's a statistic for that!

2022 Christmas Spending in Canada (From Statista)

Gifts - $1308
Decorations - $616
Food - $451

Total $2375

Say, 4 persons/household = $600/person... mmm... that's a fair bit? Isn't it?

It's interesting that there isn't a category for Christmas donations in that spending analysis. Or travel. Or entertainment...

Oh, and the average Canadian spends $33 on gifts or treats for their... pet. Seriously.

Christmas Spending in Other Countries

Oh, and this was an interesting site as well... how much the world spends on Christmas... Well. We are beating the USA and Germany and France... but I'm not sure that is a good thing. [PS - you can scratch Lebanon off the list - given its economic turmoil, the data used was not accurate.]

If you hover on the map on the website link (see image caption below), you can see how much the average annual household income is... Canadians spend 6% on Christmas... the USA... 2%. 

Average Christmas spending per country
(From World Remit site)

Yeah, we have a love affair with Christmas. But this year... I'm going to choose a different path. Beware adult family folks... some unconventional Christmas gifts are coming your way...