Create a Holiday Card Flip Book

What do you do with your old Christmas cards? If you're like most people, you stash them away in a box - but you might never take them out again. Fortunately, you can save all your Christmas cards in style with a holiday card flip book you can make yourself. You can even expand it each year when you receive new cards.

Here's how.

How to Create a Holiday Card Flip Book

Here's what you need to create your own holiday card flip book:

• Your collection of holiday cards
• Hole punch
• Three 2-inch book rings
• Scrap cardboard and embellishments

You can get book rings at nearly any office supply store - sometimes you can even find them at combination grocery and retail stores.

Once you've gathered your supplies, follow these directions to create a spectacular holiday card flip book that you'll love to look at every year:

• Sort your cards
• Punch holes in the right places
• Create your cover
• Thread the rings through each card

Here's a better look at each step so you can create your own special book. (If you haven't put together your own holiday cards, now is the time!)

1. Sort Your Cards

Go through all the cards you want to include. You can put them in chronological order or group them by family - it's totally up to you. (The best part of this flip book is that you can easily switch cards to any location. You don't have to keep them in the same order.)

Choose one card from your collection to serve as your hole-punch template. Ideally, you'll pick a mid-sized card that's halfway between your largest and smallest card. Don't worry if you have oddly-shaped or circular cards - we'll cover those later.

2. Punch Holes in Every Card You Want to Include

Punch three holes on the folded side of your "guide card." Then, line your guide card up on each card that's larger than it is. Try to center it on the edge of each card so that even if you have cards of various sizes, your book will be fairly even on the top and bottom.

For cards that are smaller than the guide card, punch two holes. If you have very small cards, or those that are round or oddly shaped, punch just one hole.

The key is punching the holes an equal distance from the spine on all your cards. That way, they'll all line up neatly when it's time to compile your book.

Pro tip: Be careful when you're lining up the punch with the existing holes in your guide card - and if you think you might make mistakes and accidentally punch larger holes in the guide card, trace it on a piece of card stock and use that instead.

3. Create Your Book Cover

You don't have to create a cover if you're short on time (or creativity). However, if you choose to make a cover, holiday-themed card stock or plain cardboard embellished with holiday elements is a great way to pull the whole book together.

You can wrap the cover in ribbon, use holiday-themed scrapbook stickers or use your artistic abilities to decorate it yourself.

Pro tip: You can create a back cover for your book to add a layer of protection to all your cards.

4. Thread the Rings Through the Cards

Thread your rings through your organized cards. (Don't forget to put your guide card where you want it before you start!) If you have cards with two or fewer holes punched in them, choose where to put them in the book. You may want to alternate small cards with the top two and bottom two rings so your book has a more uniform thickness, but that's totally up to you - you can put them all on the top two rings or all on the bottom two rings.

Holiday card flip books are a great way to keep track of all the cards you receive each year. You can pull them out during the holidays and incorporate them in your Christmas decor or simply enjoy them throughout the year.

Have You Created Your Own Holiday Card Flip Book?

If you've already tackled this DIY project, we'd love to see what you came up with. Share your photos with us on Instagram (we're @Mixbook) or share a link in the comment section below. If you have any tips that will inspire other crafters, please feel free to share those as well.