13 Ways To Repurpose Junk Mail Instead Of Sending It To The Trash

Do you find your mailbox crammed with more junk mail than actual mail? If so, you're not alone, as millions deal with junk mail each year. The average American household receives 848 pieces of junk mail each year, according to the Solana Center for Environmental Innovation, which comes at a cost of 2 million acres of forest destroyed per minute. Instead of just throwing your junk mail in the trash, consider repurposing it to prevent waste. About 22% of junk mail is recycled, but with some careful planning and a little DIY creativity, you can also use this paper for household crafts.

It's time to give that pile of pizza fliers, value pack coupons, and takeaway menus a second look. Sure, you can clip the coupons, but what about the rest of the paper? Consider upcycling it into decor, junk journals, and a variety of other crafts instead of tossing it in the recycling, or worse, the trash can. By following a few simple tutorials and getting crafty, you can make your trash into treasure, or at the very least, a creative project. 

Sometimes we get mail that features pretty images, and it seems a shame to toss it. You can turn any mail with attractive art, like animals or scenery, into magnets. You only need scissors, a pack of magnet sheets (try this 100-piece collection of FCLUB Self Adhesive Magnetic Tape on Amazon for $9.99) and your junk mail. Cut the images to size, then attach them to the adhesive side of the magnet sheet. You can also use old greeting cards or pages from an old calendar for this functional home decor.

While you can't use all your junk mail as mulch, you can put some unwanted mail to work in your home garden if you're careful. Adhere to the guidelines for organic mulch allowed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and avoid using any mail with plastic enclosures (like those "bargain" credit cards), or "any gloss, glossy inks, or color inks." While you're shredding, make your confidential documents into mulch as well to protect your identity and give your plants a boost. Use your mulch in the bottom of flower pots or sprinkle it in your garden.

Here's another way to use your trusted shredder: Make packing material out of junk mail. Shredded paper is an economical and easy way to add extra protection to packages and even store small breakable items like ornaments. Another idea is to use the shredded paper to line a gift or Easter basket. The plastic grass commonly used in Easter and gift baskets poses a serious choking risk to birds and other animals if ingested. Plastic grass also isn't biodegradable or recyclable – using paper you already have on hand helps you save money and make an environmentally-friendly choice. 

Repurposing junk around your house doesn't have to stop with junk mail. If you have a bunch of old CDs around your home, try using them to make a functional coaster. Grab the scratched CD of your choice, scissors, a piece of felt, Mod Podge, and junk mail. Using the CD as a template, cut a felt circle to the dimensions of the CD (usually 4.7 inches) and use the Mod Podge to glue in place. Rip or cut out the junk mail pieces, then attach them CD with Mod Podge. Let dry, and add a coat of Mod Podge on top to seal your coaster design.

Glossy advertisements can find new life as paper beads for garlands, jewelry, or even a fun beaded curtain. All you need to make flat tubular beads is a stack of junk mail, a pair of scissors, a wooden skewer, a glue stick, and Mod Podge. Cut your mail into strips that are 12 inches long and a ½ inch wide. Take a strip, roll it around the skewer, then seal with glue. Repeat until you have finished the design you want, then seal with Mod Podge.

If you think your present needs a bow, don't buy it! Instead, use junk mail you have on hand. You'll save money, plus you'll practice sustainable gifting, as you can't recycle traditional bows. How About Orange has an easy DIY bow tutorial. First cut 9 strips of paper that are ¾ inches wide. Then cut 1 inch off three of the strips, cut 2 inches off two of the strips, and cut the last strip to 3 ½ inches long. You can then twist the paper strips into loops and use a dot of glue to seal the strips together, making a bow.

A pile of mail brims with possibility when you consider turning it into a junk journal, a handmade bound book with recycled and found materials. The size, style, and binding of a junk journal is up to you. After all, there's no rules in crafts! Common binding techniques include stapling, sewing, or even ring clasps. A good beginning size is 8-by-5 or 9-by-6 inches, according to House of Maholo, because there's less need to trim the paper. The focus is to make a little journal for scribbles, writing prompts, drawings, or whatever you desire.

Got a feline friend who doesn't like clay-based litter? It's easy to make homemade kitty litter with junk mail, preferably with regular paper and not glossy catalogs because of the dyes printers use. You only need to shred the paper, then soak it in dish soap and water. Let the mixture penetrate the shreds, then sprinkle 1 cup of baking soda over it all. Sit it in the sun and watch it crumble as it dries, then use just like any other litter.

There are a ton of ways to repurpose junk mail into a bookmark, but one easy DIY is to cut images or words from the mail, then glue the paper onto a piece of cardstock and cut it to the standard bookmark size of 2.5-by-8.5 inches. Another way is to cut a small square and make corner bookmarks. You'll need your paper, a pair of scissors or a craft blade, and some adhesive for this project. It's easy to find a template online that can help you cut anything, including junk mail, into a pretty bookmark that slides on the page to mark your place.

A stack of catalogs and mailers can easily be turned into a quirky decorative bowl. Mod Podge Rocks has a great way to turn these glossy pages into a functional container with a lid. You'll need at least 30 pages, some Mod Podge, scissors, and some glue. You can start by cutting the pages and making strips. You'll then use glue to seal the strips, overlapping them together until you have a suitable base of 2 to 3 inches. Keep building up your layers to create the body of the bowl, plus a lid! 

Paper junk mail can be recycled into more than just functional objects or decor, it can also make new paper. There are countless tutorials for this, but a paper-making kit has all of the components you need to craft paper. You'll need a blender and ironing board or other pressing object. Try the Su Jae Waterproof Paper Making Screen Kit on Amazon for $25.99. First, you will blend shreds of junk mail into a slurry, then apply it to mesh screen enclosed within a wooden frame. Once the applied slurry dries, you have paper perfect for cards, gift tags, and other uses.

Ready to throw a party or just need a stack of confetti for everyday use? Grab a decorative hole punch and make confetti out of your junk mail. You can then use the confetti as table decor, to fill glasses or vases, in other crafts, and more. A Fiskars Hole Punch Confetti Maker Set, available on Amazon for $19.99, will let you cut out hearts, stars, rectangles and circles for whimsical confetti. Making your own confetti means you aren't using microplastics that can harm the environment, and it can be recycled, unlike traditional metallic confetti.

The black-and-white striped interior of security envelopes is a great canvas for a DIY gift tag. Cut along the seam of the envelope, then cut out shapes like stars, hearts, and circles. You can then glue the pieces on cardstock or a piece of recycled cardboard from a cereal box, add a message, then embellishments like glitter, stick-on gems, and colorful designs with gel pens or markers. Punch a hole, add a piece of string or twine to secure, and you have the perfect finishing touch for your gift!