I Just Found Out You Can Make a Customized Postcard for $0 (Check Your Recycling Bin!)

Postcards feel so special nowadays. Because my friends and I all text to keep in touch, getting an actual postcard in the mail is so exciting. If you feel like making someone’s day by sending them one, but haven’t been to any souvenir or card shops lately, I recently learned that it’s surprisingly simple to make your own postcard. In fact, this Instagram Reel demonstrates how you can easily use an old soda box to make a postcard of your own. 

Calling all Diet Coke and seltzer lovers! If you buy any canned drinks by the case, you probably have a cardboard box or two just taking up space in your room, ready to be recycled. Well, don’t throw them out just yet — as this Reel from The Threaded Clementine (@thethreadedclementine) shows, you can use it to DIY the cutest postcard. 

All you need to do is cut your cardboard into a rectangular postcard size, either with a ruler and scissors or a paper trimmer. Make sure it adheres to the USPS dimension guidelines, which call for a postcard to be at least 3.5 inches high x 5 inches long x 0.007 inches thick, and no more than 4.25 inches high x 6 inches long x 0.016 inches thick. 

As for the postcard markings, you can just draw the lines to write on yourself using a pen and a ruler. Make sure you have a spot for your message, the recipient’s address, and, of course, a postage stamp. The National Postal Museum also has this sweet template that you can simply print and glue to your cardboard piece to make it even easier. If you don’t want the soda box print to show, you can personalize the back of your postcard however you would like!

This is such a quick and cute craft to make in your dorm, maybe for a craft night with your friends — especially because all you need is a soda box, scissors, a pen or pencil, and a postage stamp. You could all write cards to each other (especially fitting if you’re a college senior moving to a new address soon) or send something sweet to a long-distance friend.  It feels good to let someone know you’re thinking of them in writing — and it’s also nice to commit to clearing those empty soda boxes.