Postconsumerist greetings

I am sure that, by now, you are all totally convinced of the merits of postconsumerist gift giving. You're saving the planet one gift at a time by giving experiences or pre-loved gifts, by making presents, or by donating to charity. Aren't you? If not, read my previous post for inspiration.

But what about greetings cards? Are you still buying them?

Since I'm trying to buy nothing new this year, I have been trying to make greetings cards instead of buying them. It's actually been a lot of fun, even though I'm not a very crafty person. It feels like it's awakened a different part of my brain!

It obviously takes longer to make a card than to just pick one up from the store but, since the point of giving a card is to let the recipient know how much you care, I think it's totally worth it. I have also managed to use a lot of scrap paper, card, fabric and ribbons to make my cards, so that feels like it's a bonus for the planet. Less wasteful and less resource-intensive! 

I thought I'd share some of my recent successes and the websites that inspired me so maybe you'd feel motivated to give it a try too.

New home card

This was super simple to make. I cut the house shape out of scrap cardboard and the ribbon is one of those annoying little straps that are always inside the shoulders of new clothes. I save them all when I cut them out and have a huge jar full!

I used super glue to stick the house to some dark blue card because I thought that really made the colours pop. I stuck that coloured card in turn to a folded piece of white card, so it was easier to write the card with a regular pen. If you have a gold pen, you could probably skip the white card and write directly onto the darker card. 

I got the inspiration for this card here.

Baby cards

The first one was super simple to make. The hardest part was printing the text in the right place but, if you have better handwriting than me, you could probably do it by hand!

The pram handle is an unfolded paperclip, the wheels are buttons I had lying around, and the pram canopy is scrap material from some clothing repairs. I got the shape for the bassinet and the canopy by drawing around a tin of beans!

If you want to try this one yourself, follow the step-by-step instructions here.

I also made a version with a pleated canopy but that was a bit harder to stick down. The glue went everywhere and stained the paper. You might manage it better if you are more crafty than me though. 

Work in progress

I haven't been able to try these yet but, I think they are both gorgeous. If you are moving to a new home or expecting a baby, check your mailbox!

I have a lot of old buttons that I plan to use for the balloons. I just hope I can keep a steady hand to draw the house!

I think I'm going to cut up an old white towel to make the diaper for this card. And maybe replace the jewel with a tiny safety pin or a little bow, made from those same old ribbons.

Happy crafting!