UK Disability Resource of Disabled Needs

Christmas card jigsaw game:
Make a Christmas jigsaw game. Gather 10-20 cards and cut each one into 3 or 4 pieces, using straight lines. Shuffle them all up together and lay them out on a flat service such as a dining table or the floor – then put them back together again. Store the cards in a shoebox for next time. This is fun on a quiet family evening at the beginning of the season as it helps to get everybody into the Christmas spirit! You can play the game as a race between individual players and teams, too. As each card is completed, the person or team who added the final piece put their token on top; at the end the tokens are counted and the person or team with the most tokens wins. If you like, you can also increase the difficulty each year as your children get older by cutting the cards into smaller pieces!

Christmas window decoration:
Choose a color of card which suits your usual decorating scheme (all gold and silver, red and white, etc). Cut pretty Christmas shapes out of the cards and stick them back to back, sandwiching a piece of clear thread or fishing line between them as you do so. Make each length slightly different. Suspend in a window for a pretty "mobile" decoration.

Christmas candle votives:
Collect small glass jars (baby food jars are ideal) or buy some cheap candle votive jars. Cut pretty strips from your old Christmas cards and use to wrap around the outside of the jars - leaving space at the top and bottom of the strip for the candle to spark through. Alternatively, cut small shapes such as stars or circles from the cards and glue in a pattern around the jars. Gold, silver and sparkly/glittery cards look especially effective.

Christmas tree ornaments:
Make cinnamon stick ornaments for the Christmas tree. Wrap a small bundle of cinnamon sticks together with a pretty ribbon tied in a bow (leave a loop for hanging). Using a small dab of glue, attach a pretty shape cut from a Christmas card with pinking shears to the centre of the ribbon bow to finish the ornament off. These look pretty and smell delicious too!

Scented sachets:
Make scented sachets to give as gifts or fragrance your own home. Simply glue the bottom and side edges of the card together and then slip a small amount of potpourri (or a cotton ball on which you have dropped a little Christmas essential oil) into the space. Use a hole punch to make two holes on the top edge, through which you can thread a pretty ribbon before tying a bow. If you leave a loop in the ribbon, the sachets can be hung on door handles, coat hooks or radiators (the heat will help to release the scent, but it won’t last as long) to create a welcoming, Christmas atmosphere.

Napkin rings:
Make simple napkin rings for the Christmas table by cutting colorful strips from your Christmas cards and stapling them to form a loop.

Christmas letters:
If your child is learning their ABCs, you can cut large letter shapes out of old Christmas cards for a special play alphabet. You could use the letters to sticky-tack your child's name to their bedroom door, or just use them to spell out words or play other alphabet games.

Thanks Wendy, I like some of those ideas. We used to do lots of things with our old Christmas cards but the kids are too grown up now so they go to be recycled.

It used to keep them busy before going back to school.