Handmade Paper Seed Cards

Have you ever tried making your own paper or cards? I have! It’s not as hard as you might think! All you need are a few scraps of old paper from your recycling bin, or a few scrap pieces of construction paper, a little water, and a blender! Add some seeds to your homemade paper and you have an easy instant garden! It's one of my favorite spring and summer gift ideas! These handmade paper seed cards would make a wonderful Mother's Day gift, or a great party favor for a spring tea, wedding, or any other spring occasion.

Supplies:

paper, construction paper: several scrap pieces
water
blender
old wood photo frame, glass removed
wire mesh
seeds
printable message card

Instructions:

Step 1: Shred up the paper into small scraps until you have roughly 2 cups of shreds, removing any staples, glue, or other foreign objects.

Step 2: Place the shreds in a blender and cover with water. Let the water-covered shreds sit for about an hour or so to soak.

Step 3: While the paper is soaking, make a quick drying frame by stapling the wire mesh to the old photo frame.

Step 4: Pulse the blender several times until the paper shreds resemble a thick paper pulp. If the blender isn’t mixing your shreds, add more water a little at a time.

Step 5: Pour the paper pulp into the frame, and spread it out evenly over the top of the frame. This step should be done outside, or over a large towel, since water will drip while you’re pouring.

Step 6: Sprinkle the seeds on top of the pulp and press them in.

Step 7: To remove excess water press the paper gently with your hands or a soft towel.

Step 8: Lay the paper out to dry in the frame.

Step 9: The paper will take a day or so in a warm sunny place to dry. While the paper is drying, print out the printable message to attach to the front of the card (optional).

Step 10: Remove your paper from the frame, print out the printable message and use a small dot of glue to attach it to the handmade seed card.

Step 11: Give your plantable seed card to someone who will plant it and enjoy!

More Spring DIYs:

Linette Gerlach has lived in Ohio all her life; she graduated from Wright State University with a degree in Operations Management. She worked in the corporate world for over 10 years before she decided it just wasn’t her thing! She’s been a freelance writer, blogger, and amateur photographer for over 6 years, and she is deeply passionate about creating fun food, crafts, and DIY projects. Her blog, The Kid’s Fun Review, is an online magazine that features fun and creative content for kids and their families. She enjoys interacting on social media, so you can find her on Twitter or Pinterest at linetteg and on Instagram and YouTube at linetteg1.