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This is a super simple tutorial about how to reuse your Christmas Cards as next year’s gift tags.

This is what I do every year after New Year’s to clear up the mantle piece and throw out and recycle less.

A super easy upcycling idea!

Put simply I take a pair of pinking shears – the kind that cuts with a zig-zag edge – and cut out any images, words or pretty patterns on the Christmas Cards I’ve received and saved them in a box to use as gift tags for next year.

You can use a hole punch as well to create somewhere to string on a ribbon or piece of twine, or you can simply use a piece of sellotape to attach it to your gifts and have it be a ‘flappable’ gift tag.

That is usually what I do. You can see some examples of where I use these gift tags in this article about ways to reuse packaging as gift wrap.

Organise your gift tags for next year!

I save my gift tags in two boxes in the cupboard. One for Christmas and one for any other kind of gift.

Depending on the kind of cards you receive you may be able to cut out some images that are not overtly Christmas themed and save them for other gifts throughout the year.

For example the photo above of the vase tag. It’s still fairly Christmassy but I might be able to get away with using it as a birthday gift.

Sometimes I get cards in non Christmas colours or with different kinds of images on them. Where I can I cut those ones up too and put them in my separate ‘any other kind of gift’ box to use throughout the year for birthdays and the like.

As well as using Christmas Cards as gift tags I also use upcycled cardboard from the recycling to make gift tags & kraft tags.

Do you have other creative ways to use upcycled materials as Christmas gift tags?

I’d love to hear what they are – drop me a note in the comments!

How to Upcycle Christmas Cards as Gift Tags

Active Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Simple idea for reusing Christmas Cards and saving them for next year's gift tags!

Materials

Christmas Cards

Tools

Pinking Shears
Hole Punch - optional

Instructions

When you take down your Christmas Cards set aside some time to cut out images, text or patterns that could be reused as gift tags.
Use Pinking Shears to give your tags an attractive zig zag edge.
If you like you can use a hole punch to create a place to string a ribbon or twine to attach the tags to your gifts.
Store festive themed tags in a box for next Christmas and other tags in a 'year round' box for use on other gifts throughout the year.

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Pinking Shears

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how to reuse christmas cards as gift tags

If you are looking for more upcycled gift wrapping ideas try the Upcycler’s Guide to Gift Wrapping or 6 Ways to Reuse Packaging as Upcycled Gift Wrap (my Christmas Card gift tags feature heavily in this one!).