Ornament Card

TYPE OF CARD: A paper chain ornament

COOL FEATURE: It arrives looking like a family scrapbook page and then you get to cut it up and reassemble it to make a hanging decoration.

PREP WORK: Divide a standard sheet of white paper into columns--one for each family member and one wider one for the greeting and instructions. Let everyone decorate his or her column with photos, drawings, greetings and so on. You can also click here for an online template of the card.

AT THE COPY SHOP: Have the master color copied onto white paper

ENVELOPE: A standard #10 (for an Ornament Card folded into thirds)

COSTS: Roughly $1 per copy, 3 cents for the envelope and 33 cents for postage

STICKY SOLUTIONS: When affixing photos and cut-outs to your master sheet, use only glue sticks or double-sided tape. This ensures that all the elements stay smooth and flat, thus avoiding shadows.

VARIATION: THE KWANZAA CARD

The paper chain design can be adapted to any number of other themes, such as a Kwanzaa card. Instead of being customized by a family member, each column could also be used to depict one of the celebration's seven principles.