Today we are going to get our “recycle” on and craft some cool postcards out of cereal boxes. We are getting close to Earth Day (April 22nd). So this week I am going to focus on reducing, reusing and recycling cereal boxes and other cardboard boxes. They are plentiful, easy to work with and make great postcards! And what kid wouldn’t want to receive or send one of these in the mail?
Supplies:
Cereal boxes or other packaged goods
Paper cutter or Exacto knife
Ruler
Permanent Marker
Optional: Corner Punch
1. Using a paper cutter or Exacto knife with ruler cut your postcards down to 4” x 6” rectangles.
2. Optional: Round the corners with a corner punch. I think this adds a nice little finishing touch.
3. Flip the card over and use a ruler and fine permanent marker to draw lines on it for the address and also to separate the address from the words.
4. Kids loving receiving and sending mail. Have them send a “recycled” postcard in honor of Earth Day to Grandma and Grandpa. Or tie a pack of them with some ribbon or twine to give as a gift.
Here are some of my favorites…
“Amazingly Smooth” Dr. Pepper Postcard
“Honey Bunches” Postcard
“Mr. Pringles” Postcard
For more Cereal Box Crafts…
Click here for Cereal Box Crafts: Notepads
Click here for Cereal Box Crafts: Kid’s Art Display
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Fantastic idea~! I have done this before too! I save every package or box that comes through the front door!
Brilliant minds think alike 😉
This is such a cute idea! I love how you used something colorful and used the cute sayings!
Yeah I am glad. It is fun little project and my kids are excited to send them out.
I love this! I have a question: When is the modge podge, paint brush, paint stir sticks and binder clips used? It’s in the list of items needed; but, I don’t see where it’s used. I’m an idiot when it comes to crafts like these! Please let me know what I’m missing. Thanks!
Tee hee…I am the moron. That is the tutorial for tomorrow. I changed it. Man I seriously need someone to edit my posts. Gah!
These are super cute and we have a bounty of cardboard boxes around here!!
Don’t we all? Anyone with little kids knows the value of a box of fruit snack or crackers 😉
This is one of the best ideas I have seen in a LONG time! I can’t wait to do this with my boys in the morning.
Take pictures I want to see!
Thanks Annie! Let me know if you make em.
Oh wow this is a SUPER cool idea — my kids will enjoy this 🙂
LOVE this idea! My husband always grunts that we have cardboard over flow that he always has to take to the recycling bin… If I use a few to make postcards, it’s just that many less he has to take! 😉 TFS!
Oh my goodness, what a clever idea! Super cute and thrifty too!
Great idea! Thanks for sharing!!!
I love cereal boxes, the cardboard is perfect for making oversized tags for packages, just cover in pretty paper and decorate. I love this idea 🙂 Too bad the only cereal boxes we ever have are for cheerios, might have to ask the neighbors for some fun ones to try this! Now, who wants to send me some mail, I would love to get home from work to such happy colorful post cards!
I love these because they show a great deal of the box. I saw another idea (maybe your blog? can’t remember) where they cut a thinner / longer piece, then punched a hole at the top and tied with ribbon and it was a bookmark. Fun ideas. Thanks for sharing!
beckie! too cute! LOVE these!
gail
ps good luck 🙂 break a leg???
Lady! I’m glad you are my friend…this is genius! Oooh, a t.v. star….I’m super happy for ya’!
You’re a blessing!
Blessings,
Lana @ ilovemy5kids
thanks Lana as in banana 😉
I love this idea. Especially tying them together and giving them as gifts. I am going to start using this a lot more. I have started recycling old books that the kids don’t use anymore as new (modpodged) scrapbooks…I am looking for all kinds of ways to recycle, and always hated throwing these colorful boxes away. This will stick with me forever. I think I might send a bunch to my daughters classroom too so the kids can send letters out.
Yeah I am so glad it is helpful. the possibilities are endless that is for sure.
Great idea! Thank you.
We already reuse the wax paper on the INSIDE of cereal boxes instead of buying wax paper, but
this is such a fun idea for the actual box!
THX
What a Fun idea!!! Love it!
love it..totally doing it!
These are so cute- I have mountains of cereal boxes stored up just waiting to be turned into projects like these. Thanks!:)
C:)
I’ve put together a round up of fun family activity projects on Craft Gossip today and included your post. 🙂 You can see it here
http://homeandgarden.craftgossip.com/6-fun-family-game-projects/
I love this! I featured it on my blog today. Feel free to grab a featured button!
Lois
I absolutely love this idea!! I loved it so much when I read it I told my sons preschool teacher….and I have now made over a hundred postcards for the preschool classes. The kids will be using the postcards to send letters/drawings to the troops.
I had so much fun making these and they are SUPER simple. And with all of my leftover cardboard I think I might whip up some of those cute notepads.
Such a great week of posts.
Hey thanks for letting me know this. That totally pumps me up that they will go to encourage our troops. I happen to have a sister in Afghanistan right now. That is awesome.
This is a great idea. I always save cereal bozes ‘just incase’. Thanks for sharing!
I am a school librarian, and I cut up all my cereal, mac and cheese, soda boxes etc. to use as bookmarks… I go through hundreds of them during the year. The kids love them I also cut up Christmas cards and once I cut up a victoria’s secret bag, and had to stop the girls from taking whole handfuls…
Oh that is awesome. What a great way to recycle and be able to provide something for the kids to take to mark their spot.
I just found these yesterday. I went out, bought the Dew, & made some cards to send to our son who is on a 2yr mission! The kids thought this was such a cool idea! Me too! 🙂 I’ll be making a stack of these to send to my son so he can send out notes instead of letters, he doesn’t always have the time for letters. thank you so much for you site. I spent my day yesterday reading your series of posts Rel & Raw. So sorry you had to go through all that, but just look what God has done for you in the process! You have been “refined as Gold”!
I hope you don’t mind, I linked this post on my blog
http://farm-marm-mama.blogspot.com/2011/10/letters-for-jake-more-cardboard.html
Yay how fun to send them to someone. Thanks for taking the time to read my story. God has been good to me!
Toss on a stamp (although he probably can send for free since he’s serving) and return addy to make it easier still. Lovely idea.
Thanks, Sheryl!
My nieces and nephews would like this! They knows in my box of crafts there’s always recycled cardboard for making scrapbook pages and artist trading cards.
Here’s one of my scrapbooks from a soda box http://www.udandi.com/2008/05/12/make-it-recycled-cardboard-album/
Just stopping by to let you know that I’ve featured your craft on Family Fun Crafts! You can see it here:
http://funfamilycrafts.com/cereal-box-postcards/
If you have other kid friendly crafts, I’d love it if you would submit them. 🙂 If you would like to display a
featured button on your site, you can grab one from the right side bar of your post above.
I checked the USPS regulations for sizes, etc. For postcards and unfortunately you can’t round the corners if you plan to send them by mail.
Interesting…Mine have always gone through fine. But good to know because if you don’t put your return address on, which you usually don’t on postcards you would never know if it didn’t get there.
I was inspired by your postcards. Hope over to my site to see your inspiration in action~
http://fieldofpoppies.blogspot.com/2012/03/upcycled-recycled-postcards.html
I just love this, super cute! This is the perfect project to do with my nieces today, they’re visiting from out of town so this will be great to create and send to their parents, they’ll love it! Thanks so much
i luv this so much! just watch me do it tomorrow
Go for it. Let me know how it goes.
Love this! My son is at camp – I am sending him a Cocoa Puffs postcard tomorrow 🙂
Ahhhh, I love that and know he will too! So glad you were inspired. 🙂
OOOh, the pringles card is so cute!!!
Hehe 😉 Glad you like it!