Decorate Your Home With Holiday Cards

Soon they'll be arriving by the carload - all those holiday cards. Some are funny, some are pretty, some include family photos and some are from people you've never heard of before. So, besides sending a card in return, what should you do with all of them?

Instead of just putting them up on the kitchen bulletin board, Nathan Turner thinks you can turn your cards into something pretty and useful. Turner, a Pottery Barn style consultant and a contributing editor to Domino magazine, showed Julie Chen some quick and easy holiday decorating ideas.

For instance, instead of having a plain holiday wreath, why not jazz it up with some photo cards? Turner says to punch a hole in the upper left corner of each card, then string wire ribbon through hole; tie it to branch on wreath by twisting the ends of the wire.

Similarly, you can use the cards to help decorate your Christmas tree. Turner suggests getting together some holiday-related cookie cutters (or, if not available, go low-tech and use the top of a jar), a pencil, some scissors, a hole punch and your favorite decorative wire ribbon.

Put aside the prettiest and/or most colorful cards, and use the cookie cutter (or jar lid) to outline a shape - cut it out, punch a hole, insert some ribbon and add to your tree decorations. If you're feeling really ambitious, make a few extra to use as gift tags.

Another easy way to display holiday cards, says Turner, is in a large beautiful bowl in your entryway.

And how about once the holiday season has ended? Turner suggests bundling up all the cards and sending them to an organization called RAFT (Resource Area For Teaching).

According to their Web site, RAFT transforms recycled and surplus materials donated into interactive learning experiences for students in math, science, technology and art, providing teachers and community groups with creative tools to enhance education and promote hands-on teaching. RAFT also uses a variety of holiday cards for math and art activities. For more information go to www.raft.net