11 Ways to Reuse Old Calendars
Reuse old calendars as you put up the new with these amazing craft ideas! Recycle and reuse those pretty pictures to make something new.
If you are in the crafty mood after you reuse your calendars, try a 4×4 craft, indoor winter crafts for kids, or canvas art projects.
Craft Ideas
1. Wrapping Paper. This is an especially great repurposing project for oversized calendars! You can even use the proper month for a friend’s birthday and circle their birthdate, as seen here on Blah to Tada!
2. Envelopes. Follow the simple tutorial for making envelopes and envelope liners from old calendar pages and start sending your mail in a more personal way. Making Mondays shows you how.
3. Coasters. Some old tiles and Mod Podge will make your used calendar like new when you make these coasters from Pretty Prudent. Trace the tile onto your favorite images and cut them down to size for the perfect fit.
4. Boxes. Take a stab at this folded box made from old calendar pages with the instructions found on Scissors and Spoons. Depending on the size of your calendar, the box can be the perfect size for small gifts, party favors, or for organizing small items in your junk drawer!
5. Decorated tin cans. Old tin cans can be used for all kinds of things and can be quite decorative on their own, but try adding some fun images from your calendar and they become even more fabulous. The creative minds at Fishtail Cottage simply mod-podged the images straight onto the cans.
6. Gift Bags. These clever bags at I DO Have Talent use two calendar pages folded and glued together. Add colored ribbon or string for handles and the bag is just right for a small gift.
7. Decoupaged Furniture. Any old piece of furniture can be painted and improved, but if you really want to add creative flair then this creative piece is the way to go, as you can see with this piece from 508. Follow this basic tutorial from Better Homes and Gardens to learn how to properly decoupage.
8. Gallery Wall. A gallery wall is a great solution for reusing calendar images you don’t want to cut up! Find a wall in your home that needs a makeover and get a set of frames that will fit your pages, or just trim them down to size. Your new gallery is sure to become a focal point in any room, just like this fabulous wall at The Creativity Exchange.
9. Notebooks. Make your own notebooks by following these simple steps from A Beautiful Mess. Make a variety of sizes based on how large or small your calendar is – keep a smaller one in your purse for grocery lists or make a bigger one for the kids to draw in.
10. Matching game or puzzle. This is a fun project from Bug, Boo, and Bean if you need some easy entertainment for the little ones. Use the small pictures on the back of the calendar to play a matching game with the full-size pages or cut pages into pieces to create a simple puzzle.
11. Pendant banner. Use the simple method shown on Raising Memories and you’ll have a great up-cycled pendant banner to use for decorating, parties, and more. Add lettering to turn it into a birthday bunting or welcome home for family!
More Tips
Get creative with those old calendars, we brainstormed some more ideas for those pretty pictures! Try one of these ideas:
- Collage making
- Make your own confetti
- Vision Boards
- Kids craft projects
- Display photos
What other ideas can you think of? The possibilities are endless!
Related Reading:
New Year’s Eve Ideas
Keeping up New Year’s Motivation
Please pin this post for later: 
Originally posted 01.05.2015 // Updated 11.25.2020
Featured image via Blah to Tada.
Kayla is a DIY and home blogger who teams up with her carpenter husband, Justin, to update their Minneapolis home on a budget. They've been blogging on Home Coming and sharing their home remodeling stories and inspiring DIY's.
Fun calendar recycling ideas!
Thanks, Judy!
Wow! This article gives me an idea for my old calendars and old magazines. It gives a vintage look for presents.
These are really smart ideas of how to reuse old calendars. I just use them to draw – you know, the blank page behind.
I do have a question about the coasters, are they are disposable since calendars are made of papers? Wouldn’t they get soiled? Or do you place protective film above it?
*protective film on top of the calendar.
Wow It’s really fun and enviromentalist ideas thanks!!
I have about 20 old calendars with wonderful pictures on them. I’m not a DIYer, but hate to throw anything away, so these have been gathering dust in a “to do” box. Do you know how I would find a charity or crafter that would like to use these? I’ll gladly send them anywhere if someone will get some use out of them. Thanks!
Hi Nancy,
How thoughtful of you! I’ve had good success in my area with a local Freecycle group (https://www.freecycle.org/) or I’ve also found a local Buy Nothing group on Facebook — if you search “Buy Nothing” with your city or area, there may already be a local group set up. Both groups operate on the idea that we’d rather have someone else use things than throw them away, and they’ve been a great resource for me to share things I no longer need but that are still useful — everything from old appliances to extra plant bulbs!
I don’t write on mine. So I can reuse them every 6 years in a nice frame I have
Great idea! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much for these ideas. I have saved many beautiful calendars but never found a good use for them. There are several items here I’d like to try.