Twelth Night, usually marked on January 6, is the traditional day for taking down all the festive decorations. But packing away Christmas usually involves throwing a lot of it away. This year think about what can be saved and then upcycled to give you a head start on Christmas 2013.
Last year’s Christmas cards for year-round inspiration
There are loads of beautiful things you can create from greetings cards and not just for next Christmas. The obvious ones are gift tags and name cards for table settings, but they can also be upcycled into the most amazing gift boxes as well as into next year’s decorations. Christmas card inspiration
Wrapping paper gets a whole new lease of life
Wrapping paper can be reused. Even torn paper can be upcycled and is great for decoupage. We’ve got a range of projects to inspre you.
Check out how to make the beautiful 3D letters shown on the left
You can decoupage furniture – like this chest of drawers
Even a lampshade can get a decoupage makeover
Revamp old Christmas decorations and create your own news ones
Instead of throwing away tired and unloved Christmas decorations (or even other stuff around the house), why not think about upcycling what you have into new look decoration?
This not only saves money but comes with a built in feel good factor! Rather than wait until next winter, start some of these projects now and then store your revamped decorations carefully until needed. Look at these ideas:
How to get cheap decorations – recycle, upcycle and refresh
How to revamp Christmas decorations
We’ve also shared some of our seasonal upcycling ideas with Hallmark Cards, who created a special Christmas Advent calendar and step by step downloads, which you can still download. Take a look at our ideas for tealight holders on December 5, Christmas Stars on December 23 and gift boxes on December 24
Just save it
Each year I save beautiful scraps of Christmas paper, cracker bits and pieces and ribbons. They live in my special Christmas box (itself, saved from a Christmas present many years ago).
Sometimes, ribbons reappear every year, sometimes they disappear for good. But I know I can produce cards, beautiful and original wrapping and decorations from a huge variety of colours and textures. If your house hasn’t got one, why not start a box now – this year. It’ll stay with you for years.
And use a little less
MIAMI subscriber A Masson is a real believer in upcycling and shares her ideas of what to do with with all those cards and wrapping paper in an article she wrote specially for Make it and Mend it. Less paper next Christmas
Britons throw away over 200,000 miles of wrapping paper (enough to wrap the world 9 times over) and bin a billion gorgeous-looking greetings cards each year. This year think outside the bin…
