Cardmaking, next to scrapbooking, was the paper craft that got me hooked to crafts and the DIY lifestyle.
When I started skipping greeting card racks at bookstores in favor of making my own cards, I was truly amazed with what a pair of scissors, glue, a couple of packs of cardstock -- plain and printed -- and embellishments can do.
And as a crafter, I'm constantly looking for ways to deviate from my comfort zone. So before the year ended, I attempted a challenge: I turned a scrapbook template into a greeting card.
(**DISCLAIMER: This post contains affiliate links. I'll collect a commission every time you click on those links and make a purchase.)
Free scrapbook template downloaded
As a designer, Kate Hadfield offers a lot of aesthetically pleasing scrapbook templates in her website, Kate Hadfield Designs.
The template above fits a 6" x 6", 8" x 8", 12" x 12", or 24" x 24" sheet of scrapbook cardstock. To suit a birthday card with a portrait orientation, I cut a 12cm circle out of a plaid, 6" x 6" sheet of scrapbook paper.
I then used a black, felt-tip pen to draw 2 pumpkins, leaves, and the rustic HAPPY BIRTHDAY greeting, and cut them. Finally, I glued everything together.
Christmas is just around the corner. Aside from shopping for gifts for everyone on your gift giving list, or making sure that you have enough craft materials for DIY presents, there's another aspect we have to deal with: wrapping presents creatively and aesthetically.
Ever Thought About Skipping on the Wrapping Paper?
Every new year ushers in brand new designs of wrapping paper, both matte and glossy, sold at the stationery section of large bookstores, specialty bookstores, office supplies chains, gift shops, crafts and hobbies stores, and even shops and kiosks with a selection of party supplies.
Image from freepik
But have you ever thought about taking the less wasteful, more meaningful route towards wrapping presents?
Why Look for Sustainable Ways to Wrap Gifts?
Wrapping gifts through sustainable ways is gentler on the environment.
It might come as a surprise, but sustainable gift wrapping reduces clutter while sending fewer and fewer waste in a landfill.
With enough planning, looking for sustainable ways to wrap gifts can be effective in honing your creativity.
Even if you decide to forego on silver or gold, or the usual, festive red or green wrapping paper, it's possible to come up with various designs and aesthetics when wrapping presents.
You can make your gifts look understated and elegant, or decorate it in a way that gives off vintage or whimsical vibes, or even shabby chic.
You can get your entire family involved.
Promoting sustainability must start with your family. You and your family members can bond over gift wrapping sessions during an entire afternoon.
This creative activity can also help wean your kids away from the screen, albeit temporarily.
Replacing wrapping paper can further reduce the costs of gift giving.
You may not think much about the cost of a sheet, or roll, of wrapping paper. But what if you have a dozen (or so) recipients on your gift giving list?
Also, you may have bought presents like toys that were packed in huge boxes, and they might require 2 sheets of gift wrapper. Add the extra expense of ribbons and gift tags, and the total could end up in an amount that could afford you another gift.
Want additional tips to reduce your Christmas expenses? Read --
Having mentioned all of these reasons to resort to sustainable gift wrapping, here are 7 sustainable ways that are gentle on the environment and budget:
(1.) Try colorful fabric.
If you're a crafter who's mainly into sewing, you can use any leftover fabric that you have, or repurpose old clothes. Learn the Furoshiki style, which is an extremely presentable way to wrap items when using cloth.
(2.) Make use of kraft paper.
A roll of kraft paper is relatively inexpensive compared to sheets of gift wrapper.
Image from freepik
Admittedly, the neutral colors (e.g. brown, black, etc.) in which kraft paper come can potentially dull the festive nature of gift giving.
This is where you can be as creative as possible in putting accents to jazz up the look of your presents.
Below isn't an exhaustive list of ideas, but just a few suggestions:
Tie a strip of leftover ribbon, twine, or colorful yarn all over your present.
Recycle old greeting cards into gift tags.
Get hold of your craft punches, and turn excess cardstock or scrapbook paper into star-shaped, pine-tree-shaped, or snowmen-shaped gift tags.
Materials like fake pine cones, chimes, or Christmas balls also make festive accents.
If you have a stack of old magazines, newspapers, comic books, or catalogues piled around the house, then you have a goldmine of replacements for wrapping paper.
There are old calendars that are just too pretty to be thrown away. An entire sheet can be upcycled into a gift bag, or colorful sections can be used to make gift wrapping bows.
(6.) Turn old greeting cards into gift boxes.
Have you accumulated greeting cards over the years? Then you can select the most colorful and glittery cards you have to craft gift boxes.
Gift boxes are ideal if you enjoy giving away accessories and trinkets, or kitschy items like keychains, phone straps, and bag charms.
(7.) Use decoupaged containers to hold presents.
If you think shoeboxes or empty cardboard boxes have minimal value, think again! A lot of crafters swear by a technique called decoupage to decorate and upcycle old containers.
And what's even better is, you can tear or shred just about any waste paper for the 1st layer of your decoupaged container. Make use of old documents, magazines and other periodicals, or even flyers and junk mail.
For a vintage, shabby chic, or whimsical look, strategically place any flowers, embellishments, or craft materials of your desired style as a 2nd layer.
If you have boys and men on your gift giving list, cut out illustrations from low-value comic books, or images from video games, technology, automobile, or sports magazines.
If you have any old issues of comic books lying around the house, it would be best to upcycle them into comic book crafts.
Why Upcycle Old Issues of Comic Books?
For environmental and practical reasons
Upcycling helps reduce one's ecological footprint. Instead of old comic books piling up in a clutter at home or ending up in a landfill, upcycling can be a productive way to minimize waste paper.
Issues of low-value comics can be put to good use. Modern comic books and "filler" issues have low market value. Instead of selling them for a dime adozen, upcycling them into aesthetic crafts can be a better way of giving them value.
For creative and artistic expression
Crafters can take advantage of black-and-white and colorful matte pages, and glossy comic book covers.
For uniqueness and novelty
Pages from old comic books can be a good (and cheaper) alternative to paper craft materials like scrapbook paper. Comic book illustrations come in bold and bright colors. Pages can potentially rival scrapbook paper and printed cardstock. Even black-and-white pages can be made to look aesthetically appealing when used for DIY crafts.
Comic book crafts can be customized and tailored to suit one's tastes and preferences. It doesn't matter if you patronize superhero comic book powerhouses like Marvel and DC, or you used to be just a casual reader of the comics page of the Sunday morning newspaper.
Or, you may have preferred and collected timeless pop culture favorites like Archies, Peanuts, Garfield, or Disney.
And how about those copies for which you have lined up during Free Comic Book Day?
A few of the comic book crafts below can be tailored to suit your friends or colleagues. They can also be customized for your child's homeroom adviser, her best friend, a grandmother, an aunt or uncle, or a cousin.
Moldy, crumpled, or torn comic book pages can still be used. Lest you think that such pages are worthless, think again!
PLAID Mod Podge (Water-based sealer, glue and finish in assorted variants) by pocketsavers
There are reasons crafters swear by certain tried-and-tested techniques like papier mache or decoupage. With the help of a jar of Mod Podge and an old paintbrush, your only limit to creating is your imagination.
For frugality
Comic book crafts can be given away as attractive yet inexpensive gifts. And I'm not just talking about stocking stuffers or gifts for Secret Santa for your neighborhood block parties or church get-togethers.
You can DIY comic book crafts to give away as presents for occasions like birthday, anniversary, a housewarming, or a farewell party.
Should all of the reasons I have cited to upcycle convince you to try comic book crafts, here's a list of 9 DIY projects that are guaranteed to provide you with hours of fun:
(**DISCLAIMER: This post contains affiliate links, which means I'll be collecting a commission each time you click on those links and make a purchase.)
Preloved comic books Justice League (50% off) from The Mint Garage
(1.) Decorate a wine bottle. Forget about spending a ton just for a style upgrade for your home this holiday season.
Imagine having a quirky-looking vase next to a stack of randomly arranged books on your coffee table.
Just take an empty bottle of wine or champagne and old copies of black-and-white or color comic books, click on the tutorial above, and you'll have a worthwhile conversation starter at home in no time.
Pre-loved Spider-Man comic books by Roland's Comics, Roland Komiks
(2.) Make a set of coasters. You probably have more than a couple of people on your gift-giving list who enjoys a warm mug of hot chocolate or coffee, maybe with a batch of pancakes or a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast before heading off to work.
A hot beverage can be the best companion while reading a good book, or during an afternoon of knitting or needlework.
Men who crash out on their couch to watch a ballgame or Netflix on weekends, or tinker with their gaming equipment may wish to grab a cold beer nearby.
So why not make a dozen or more of these comic book coasters for them?
Since this upcycling project requires ceramic tiles, you should also plan a trip to the hardware store.
(3.) Are you too cool for school? Is note-taking in biology or algebra turning into a real bore? Are your notebooks and binders looking drab?
This tutorial from Autodesk Instructables utilizes old issues of fashion magazines. Feel free to substitute magazine covers with comic books.
Put some attitude into your school supplies by turning glossy comic book covers into notebook covers.
You can also arrange photos along with your selected comic book illustrations into a collage to decorate the front of your binder and its dividers.
Add embellishments like washi tapes, stickers, and die cuts, and school days will never be the same again.
(4.) Tote your own comic book clutch.
Have you run out of ideas on how to accessorize that little black dress or cocktail dress?
Also, think about those random or spur-of-the-moment errands, like a quick trip to the cafe to grab coffee and a sandwich, or the grocery store, or the salon for a trim or touch-up, where you only need to take small bills, a credit card, and your phone?
Make a comic book clutch (or 2, or half a dozen) to match a formal attire, or even an outfit that's semi-formal or business casual.
You can further modify this DIY project to decorate similar or larger clutch-style bags that you have thrifted, or rescued from going straight to a landfill.
In no time, you'll have the convenience to choose among several clutches for your next errand.
(5.) Make decoupage containers.
As a crafter, I swear by the wonders of a technique called decoupage.
Even if you ended up with a pile of comic books with low-market value, or you're trying to figure out how to make good use of moldy, dusty, crumpled, or torn pages, you can turn to decoupage to use up and clear away your clutter.
Photo from Crafts by Amanda For full tutorial, click here.
While the tutorial above involves round containers, you can just as easily take an old shoebox or empty gift box and apply the same technique to decorate it.
(6.) Jazz up a plain picture frame. Since we're on the topic of decoupage, here's another upcycled comic book craft that shows how it can be done, but this time, to a plain picture frame.
Image from Autodesk Instructables Click here for full tutorial.
And don't even think about rushing to the store to get cheap frames. Why not take any old ones you have around the house, and make them look brand new with this comic book craft?
Archie's Pals 'n' Gals Double Digest comics (priced per piece) from Roland's Comics, Roland Komiks
(7.) Hold off on buying loot bags for your next party. You may wish to stock up on inexpensive loot bag items like sticker sheets, notepaper, or craft materials as giveaways for birthday parties, or any kind of party.
But wait! Refrain from shelling out extra cash for loot bags, and settle for paper bags crafted from comic book pages instead.
Whenever there's a need for loot bags for guests for any kind of party, the colorful and bold illustrations on comic book pages are more than enough to suit the bright and festive mood of your celebration.
Image from Red Ted Art For full tutorial, click here.
And why limit yourself to upcycling comic pages into loot bags? You can DIY your own gift tags, and even make party invitations and place them inside comic book envelopes.
(8.) Delight your bookworm buddies. Whether your friends are heavy on the classics, prefer self-help or inspirational bestsellers, go from contemporary page-turners one day to poetry the next, or lean towards graphic novels, surely they'll appreciate a bunch of old comics turned into bookmarks!
To add a personal touch to your bookmarks, you can tie a ready-made tassel, a strip of plain satin or printed ribbon, or utilize leftover yarn or embroidery floss.
Want to learn other styles of DIY bookmarks? Read --
Turn heads every time you go out, or jazz up a plain jeans-and-T-shirt combo by putting on a pair of colorful, artsy earrings made from comic book pages.
The video tutorial above shows how to make a basic pair. You can modify and shape your comic book earrings into diamonds, hearts, teardrops, fir trees, snowmen, top hats, and animals like cats, bunnies, bears, etc.
I have cited several reasons scrapbooks-in-a-jar can be better than traditional scrapbooking. It's not too far a stretch for dedicated hobbyists. And as crafters, they'd get to recycle more and use up the excess supplies from their craft stash faster.
Here are the remaining 4 scrapbooks-in-a-jar DIY themes:
(**DISCLAIMER: I have kept my local readers in mind for this 2-part blog post. I have inserted affiliate links to products that are easily accessible for the list of DIY scrapbooks-in-a-jar I have curated. I will collect a commission each time you click on those links and make a purchase.)
(6.) KPop-inspired Scrapbook-in-A-Jar
KPop-inspired scrapbooks-in-a-jar are so fun to make. Each group has its own official logo and colors, and lots of KPop-inspired merch, both official and fan-made, are available out there.
And even if you don't stan a group or aren't really into this genre of music, you can DIY a couple of these scrapbooks-in-a-jar as gifts for your KPop-loving friends.
Photo cards can also be bought at relatively cheap prices. You can then insert extras, like miniature stickers or flatback charms of popular Korean food and snacks.
Consider the group's official colors and logo, and let them be the focal point of your scrapbook-in-a-jar.
(7.) Spring-Themed Scrapbook-in-A-Jar
Painting flowers or incorporating insects like ladybugs or bees is perfect for this spring-themed DIY project.
This recycled spice bottle may be too small for a scrapbook-in-a-jar. You can take a bigger jar to accommodate a photo and other embellishments.
Gather any photos you have of your family enjoying nature. It could be your kids tending to a flower bed, or your latest visit to the zoo.
You could be having a picnic at the park, fishing by the lake, or enjoying s'mores or roasting marshmallows by a campfire.
Think about your friends who enjoy sewing or baking. For sewing enthusiasts, embellishments will come in the form of craft buttons, a piece of colorful fabric, a cute pin cushion, and needle minders.
Printed liners of cupcake molds and miniature baking equipment as embellishments, on the other hand, will suit the scrapbook-in-a-jar for baking enthusiasts.
Since the holidays are fast approaching, make sure to have at least a dozen of these handy for Secret Santa and stocking stuffers. Think pine cones, fake snow, artificial snowflakes, Christmas balls, and red and green ribbons.
You may have a family photo taken, where all members are decked in funny-looking pajamas or ugly sweaters. You may also have your child's picture taken with Santa Claus at a nearby department store.
The good news is while you may need to buy some of the craft materials, a lot of the ideas in the videos require everyday items that can be recycled instead of thrown away.
