Reusable Mail Art

Dress up your next thank you notes with Reusable Mail Art by Candace Jedrowicz. This fabric jacket can be created from old scraps and can be used for years! Fabric craft ideas don't get much cuter or more creative.

Materials:

Plain postcard or card stock enough for three postcards
Glue
Scissors
Two complementary fabrics – I used quilting quarters

Instructions:

Glue two postcards (or two pieces of card stock cut to 5 3/4″ x 4 1/4″) together.
Glue fabric on one side of the glued postcards.
Allow to dry.
Trim the fabric leaving a border of fabric approximately 1/2′.
Clip the corners of the fabric.
Fold the border of the fabric over the postcard and glue down.
Allow to dry.
Cut a piece of the complementary fabric 10 1/2″ x 6″.
Place the postcard in the center of the jacket fabric paper side down.
Fold the jacket fabric over the top and bottom of the postcard and iron the folds all the way across.
Glue the folds down.
Allow to dry.
Glue the postcard to the middle of the wrong side of the jacket fabric.
Allow to dry.
Fold the sides of the jacket fabric over the post card and iron the folds.
Fold the unfinished edges over leaving 2″ – 2 1/2″ of the postcard exposed.
Glue the folds down.
Run a very narrow bead of glue on the top and bottom edges of the sides of the jacket fabric.
Fold the sides over the postcard and push gently to fix in place.
Allow to dry.
Turn the whole thing over and decorate with glitter, dimensional glue and whatever else appeals to you.
Keep in mind that you can ask the postal worker to hand stamp before mailing so it won’t be destroyed by a machine, however embellishments like buttons can catch on other pieces of mail and ruin your mail art. If you want to add a lot to the fabric, consider using a padded envelop to send it in.
Cut or tear 1/2″ off the top and bottom of your third postcard. Write your message.
Flip the message postcard over and insert both ends of it into the jacket.
Address the exposed card and take it to the post office to mail.