Homemade Greeting Cards

Everyone has a few homemade greeting cards tucked away in a box somewhere. Why not display them?

You'll have fun pulling them out of your box and organizing those precious paper memories!

Someone dear to you, made a special effort in creating those homemade greeting cards.

So tell us, where are yours? Are they stuck in the back of a drawer? Did you bury them underneath some old bills? Are they in between the instruction manual from that new VCR and your first microwave oven?

Uh-huh! We thought so... Don't get us wrong! We have a few tucked away in some places that they shouldn't be, as well.

We are going to use this page as a friendly reminder. Go find your homemade cards! They are probably mixed in together with all of your other vintage greeting cards and Christmas postcards.

Let's sort though that pile and preserve some of those memories...before it's too late! Here's a couple of "very early" homemade Christmas cards.

	Here is a vintage homemade Christmas card from the early 1900's. It is very simple, yet typical of what "most" people would create. The inside was basically plain, with a handwritten message.
	Another example, from the same person. This one is of a candle, using stencils and hand colored. The artist is evolving from year to year. She was a friend of my grandmother and attended our local church.
	Yet, another example...from the same person. This time, there is a little more detail involved. By the way, this artist actually went on to become a real artist.

Are they Valuable?

First, remember this! What is valuable to you, may/may not be valuable to others. That is the case for many personal paper collectibles.

As with any paper collectible, age and condition are important factors to consider when estimating the value of your cards.

Are those homemade greeting cards from your kids? Are they yours, from your childhood years? Or, are they from your (grand)parents household. That's a big age difference. Perhaps, even 50-100 years.

If the older cards are dated (i.e. Happy New Year - 1923!) then you may be able to sell those types of cards to an antique dealer who collects vintage greeting cards. Or, perhaps, you may try an sell them on ebay.

Not sure? Try talking to a few antique shop owners and ask them what type of market that they may have, for your items. Most shop owners are happy to talk "shop", so to speak.

However, in most cases, you probably have what we have...family homemade greeting cards! But, we think those are valuable too!

It's Not Too Late!

Unfortuneately, this type of paper doesn't hold up to time very well. It has the tendacy to yellow, or fade quickly and break down over the years.

Ripped edges are common. Folds, creases, and other misc. damage is the norm...in many cases.

Repairing these homemade greeting cards to their original condition is not a very practical solution. Rather than attempting to repair the damage, let's focus on preventing further damage.

So what do you do to protect these paper memories from further detioration?

Hmmn! Good question! The answer is to preserve these paper memories as best as you can, now!

Use acid-free mounting corner mounts, when placing them in an album. Or, if your are storing them in a box, make sure to use acid-free polypropylene sleeves, buffer paper, and backer boards for more protection.

And don't forget about the box itself. A strong corrugated cardboard box, with reinforced corners works best. These types of supplies can be purchased through many arts/crafts supply stores.

For some additional tips, see our pages on paper preservation. and paper storage.

Create Your Own!

Put your creative scrapbooking knowledge to good use. You probably already have the proper scrapbooking supplies.

So, give it a try and surprise someone with an original homemade greeting card!

Random Notes

We realize that preserving each and every one of those homemade greeting cards is not practical for most people.

But why not use this opportunity to sort through the ones that you have saved. You saved them for a reason, didn't you?

Our Advice?

Pick out a select few that you cherish. Protect them from further damage by storing them properly.

Whatever the case, do it now, before it's too late!

Some are already approaching 25 years of age!

We think,
that's pretty cool!

Why not try this for some of your friends this year. Or, start now for next year's holiday season!

Making homemade greeting cards can be for anytime of the year!


Oh, and don't forget to check out our page on vintage greeting cards.

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