Greeting cards and envelopes made of most paper materials can be put in the recycling bin. Cards with glitter, metallic accents or plastic should be placed in the trash. Photo paper greeting cards also cannot be recycled. Don’t worry about removing the stamp from the envelope, the recycling process takes care of that for you.
Here's a master list of Greeting Card recycle tips:
Many cards cannot go into the recycle bin because they contain other materials besides paper:
- Glitter
- Ribbons
- Plastics
- Foil
- Jewels
- Elastics
- Metallic Inks
- Photo Paper
So, What can you do to recycle them? Try some of these ideas:
- Remove the adornments
- Bring them to a swap
- Frame them
- Give them a new life with crafts
- Re-gift - Just make a new card!
- Bring to a swap
- Find a crafter or artist that uses them in their work
- Make something beautiful as a keepsake!
TIP: Many times the back of cards can be recycled even if the cover can't. Tear off the adornments, and recycle the rest.
