Not Your Average Card

This year, I wanted to give my co-workers something a little extra special with their Christmas cards. But what could I do without spending so much dough?

Ah ha! The apple pie I made a few weeks back was for our office pot luck, and since so many had requested my recipe, I figured, why not take this opportunity to include it in my card? In addition, I love to give ornaments. I found some great white glitter snowflakes on sale at Hobby Lobby.



Here's how you can make your own cards just a bit more festive.

Step 1: Find the perfect card. The best time to find cards is during after-Christmas sales. Target always marks their cards down 50 to 75 percent. Stock up while you can.



Step 2: Include a recipe. I have a friend who includes a recipe, with an accompanying story about that dish, every year in her Christmas card. It's a great tradition, and I look forward to her recipes every December.



Step 3: Using whatever holiday wrapping paper you have, cut thin strips, about 1" in width. I used double sided tape and taped down one end on the back side of the card, wrapped it around to the front, taped the ornament to the card but under the strip of paper, and then brought the paper around to the back of the card to meet the other end. Then, I taped the end down and cut off the extra. I was able to get two or three cards wrapped with one strip. It will depend on the width of your wrapping paper.




Step 4: With a circle cutter, I cut out a few circles in a coordinating color. I then placed a Santa sticker in the middle of each circle. (I got these stickers at Paper Source, but you can find plenty at craft stores.) Finally, I wrote the recipient's name around the edge of the circle, and using double-sided tape, I taped the circle to the front of the card.



And you're finished! A great way to make even a basic card really special!