If you’ve been wondering what to do with all of those Christmas cards you get in the mail around the holidays, I have a fun and easy project for you today! This DIY Christmas card display is simple to create and makes a fun place to display all of those pretty holiday cards. (I’m also sharing our family’s Christmas card with you at the end of this post!)
A couple different friends have asked how I display Christmas cards in our house and to be honest, I haven’t had a great display in place the past couple years. So I decided to whip something fun up this year and my parameters were that the project had to be frugal and it couldn’t be some bulky thing that would take up precious storage space for the majority of the year.
My solution? Creating a hanging Christmas card display on the door to our basement and adding painted light bulbs for a festive decor that’s functional and doesn’t break the bank.
Thanks to DecoArt for providing festive paint to make this Christmas card display. As always, all ideas and opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links. See my disclosure for more information.
DIY Christmas Card Display Supplies
- DecoArt Maxx Gloss Acrylic Paint in Jungle Leaf, Poblano Pepper and Garnet Stone
- Small Paint Brush
- Burnt Out Bulbs From Christmas Lights
- Yarn or String
- Large Clothespins
- Mini Clothespins
Painting The Light Bulbs
I scored this entire shoebox of Christmas lights at the thrift store a while back. Keep your eyes peeled and you might find some, too! This whole box was $1.00. Or maybe you have some extra bulbs lying around already? This is a great way to repurpose some of the burnt out bulbs after you replace them.
I gave these light bulbs new life with a coat of this super glossy acrylic paint. Seriously, this stuff is amazing. It’s thick enough so you only need one coat, it adheres to the glass no problem and it dries to a smooth, glossy finish.
I tried out both brushing the paint on with a paintbrush and dipping the bulbs directly into the jar of paint. While the dipping seemed like the best idea at first, it resulted in a very thick coat of paint that took a long time to dry and I ended up with more drips as the excess paint ran off the bulbs. So I used a small paintbrush to coat the bulbs in the paint. This process went very fast.
By the way, aren’t these paint colors so pretty?! I love how vibrant and festive they are.
Using a regular wooden clothespin as a makeshift stand to hold the bulbs upright while drying worked really well! It took about 3 or 4 hours for mine to dry to the touch. The paint will be fully cured in 14 days, but you can work with them and finish this Christmas card display once they feel dry. Be sure to dry the bulbs on top of some paper or plastic to catch any drips!
Hanging Your Christmas Card Display
The next step is to hang the light bulbs on some string. I used embroidery floss and cut it about 8 inches longer than the width of our basement door (where I wanted to hang it). You could use yarn or any string you have handy.
Then I tied each light bulb onto the string, spacing them approximately 3 to 4 inches apart (the spacing is up to you and can definitely be eye-balled!). I purposely varied the spacing between my bulbs so it looked intentional rather than trying to perfectly measure things.
I tightly wrapped the string around the base of the bulb a couple times and then tied a knot.
Once your light bulb string is ready, it’s time to hang it up! I hung mine on the front of the door to our basement since we rarely open and close it. You could use a closet door or simply hang it on an empty wall.
Two small Command hooks placed on the edge of the back of the door are perfect for this project. Here’s what the back of my door looked like with Command hooks in place for three strings of light bulbs.
Tie a small loop on the ends of your string and slip onto the Command hook.
Display Your Christmas Cards
Now you’re all set to hang up those Christmas cards when they come in the mail! Mini clothespins work great for this.
Our Family Christmas Card
We haven’t ordered Christmas cards in a few years but I got organized and sent one out to family and friends this year! Since we just had family photos done after Chloe was born, I wanted to share them with everyone. Plus, I made this Christmas card double as a baby announcement so Chloe is the star of the card.
I added some extra newborn photos along with a Christmas letter to the back of the card. I personally enjoy when people take the time to write out a short letter with updates on what the family and kids have been up to that year. It’s a nice way to keep up with family and friends you rarely get to see and something more personal than seeing their occasional social media updates.
I ordered our cards from Mixbook for the first time this year and am very happy with the quality of their cardstock! I had a small budget to work with and they were more affordable than some of the other companies I’ve used in the past. d
Do you send a family Christmas card each year? How do you display Christmas cards in your house?
Happy holidays!
Thanks to DecoArt for providing festive paint to make this Christmas card display. As always, all ideas and opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links. See my disclosure for more information.
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