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From Trash to Treasure
With loads of junk mail flooding your mailbox each day, it’s important to sort and recycle the unwanted pieces. But instead of tossing those brochures, magazines and offer letters directly into the recycling bin, try repurposing them into brand new sheets of paper that you’ll surely treasure and want to share.
To create your paper base, use only non-waxy, non-glossy junk mail and paper scraps. Just follow these easy downloadable instructions for Hand Pressed Paper to get started.
More Paper Recycling Tips
You can also try a few of these quick, no-hassle solutions for reusing and repurposing paper leftovers.
- Reuse: Create a new use for beautiful greeting cards, calendars or even magazines. Use a sharp craft knife to cut out colors, patterns or images you’d like to use for your new cards. You can even get creative and cut your images into hearts, flowers or geometric shapes.
Arrange your images on plain piece of folded cardstock or heavy paper and glue down your design using a glue stick or craft glue. Cut the cardstock down to your desired size (3.5” x 5” fits our envelope template below) and you have an instantly original card! Make a whole set of collage-style cards to give as a gift.
- Repurpose: Keep a collection of old envelopes to create your own pad of recycled paper. Just face a small stack of envelopes blank side forward and staple at the top of a small or hole punch and tie with ribbon or raffia. The wider the variety of colors, textures and types you use the better—it’s easy to cut down or alter the envelopes so your pad is a uniform size. Use the blank side of the envelopes to
write notes, take phone messages
or make a quick to-do list.
| Easy, Eclectic Envelopes
Next, design easy-to-make envelopes to match your recycled paper theme. For an eclectic, almost collaged look, pull from a variety of sources, such as leftover decorative paper, wrapping paper, maps, magazines and newsprint. Put your piece together and make construction a snap by downloading our instructions and Easy, Eclectic Envelope Template.
Gift Sets
After you’ve created your recycled paper and envelopes, consider packaging your pieces together in special gift sets for loved ones. Turn to your calendar and check for upcoming occasions,
like Mother’s Day or friends’ birthdays.
- Personalize: With these simple projects, it’s easy to tailor your pieces to reflect your loved ones’ personalities and interests; for example—repurpose songbook pages for a musical friend, collect maps from an atlas or old book for an avid traveler, or reuse pages from old cookbooks or food magazines for the master cook in
your life.
- Package: Compile four to six cards and envelopes for each stationery set, fastening your gift packs with a complementary ribbon. You can even package your items in an organized way that allows you to use even more paper scraps. Take a plain wooden desk organizer from drab to fabulous using wallpaper and decoupage glue. Use these helpful instructions and how-to video from our friends at Lowe’s Creative Ideas to put it together.
Once you’re done, fill the decorated desk organizer with recycled cards, envelopes, pads of paper and a few writing utensils so your friend can start corresponding in a beautifully organized way.
With simple steps and endless creative options, it’s easy and fun to repurpose paper clutter into beautiful paper goods for you and your friends.
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