To recycle Christmas cards as soon as I open

[lovemenorca]

I open them and immediately put them in the recycling bin. I can’t bear the clutter! They make a lovely cosy Christmassy room look like a primary school classroom IMO

Am I alone?

I feel a little guilty, but I always read and enjoy the sentiment, but actually displaying.... no chance

Ps and I send 4 myself (to aged relatives - it really seems important to them hence why I do it, and enclose a photo of the children) , and would take no offence whatsoever to discover they too are recycled!

l've just received one this morning that's going straight in the recycling bin.
lt's from someone l worked with years ago. lt's basically just a photo of her, pissed, clutching two bottles of wine. lt's grim.

lt's from someone l worked with years ago. lt's basically just a photo of her, pissed, clutching two bottles of wine. lt's grim.

That actually sounds quite funny. I might make an exception and put that one up.

@itgetshardereveryday

I usually don't like the clutter of cards but my dad died less than a fortnight ago and the sympathy cards are really bringing me some comfort.
I also really wish I'd kept all my Christmas cards from my dad over the year
I'm so sorry for your loss.

I have kept my dad's cards and postcards over the years and I'm glad I did. He had beautiful writing and was a bit of a wordsmith. Just seeing his handwriting means such a lot to me.

Do people honestly just bin cards without opening them?

So my photo of my son I've included or letter I've written etc just goes in the bin without being looked at.

I'm honestly shocked that people can't even take a few seconds to open and read a card. Unbelievable

Mia, I'm sure people do open cards before binning them because people often write a letter to enclose in the card; I've received two today with letters.

I just do not get why people don't like cards.

I thought most could not be recycled. I dont send them so thankfully each year get less, heaven

Quite a few of mine include invites to drinks/parties so I would miss out by not opening

I don't get why people send cards to people they don't know will like them. Christmas card giving is no longer sufficiently universal to assume the person actually wants to participate. A lot of faff would be avoided if people only sent cards to those who sent to them last year.

Christmas card giving appears to be pretty much universal here still. There's only one person I know who actively doesn't send cards. Everyone else on my Christmas card list is still sending them.
It's only on mumsnet really that the curmudgeons congregate(!) although I do think that the younger generation will send fewer cards of all kinds. Social media is responsible for this.
Christmas cards >>> presents.

There's been a lot written about how we're sending fewer cards, I think that's generally accepted. Less clear if it's because some people still send loads and some none, or most people are still sending some but reducing the numbers.

Quite a few of mine include invites to drinks/parties so I would miss out by not opening

I open all the cards
I just recycle them immediately
Never received an invite in a card that I didn’t already know about. In any event, if I’m not close enough already to know they were having drinks at this time of year, it would surprising to receive an invite completely out of the blue and presumably only a week or so in advance of it!

I do the same. Cards from our parents and close relatives go up and the rest get recycled immediately. I can cope with decorations for a couple of weeks but I can’t bear cards.

I think not even opening them is just strange - it seems very dismissive and cold. I buy charity cards and recycle those I receive - we used to get tons from friends and family all over the world and every year there are a few less as we are all getting older, but it is still a pleasure to open them and think about the people who have sent them. If sending a card to wish someone happiness is an 'outdated waste of time, money and resources' then I am glad to be a fully paid up member of the Christmas Fan Club.

You would be a bit stupid if you threw cards away without opening them and they had money or a gift card in them.

I do the same. We get thankfully few nowadays, but the 20 or so we have had are in the recycling.

Wow. This surely wins the prize for the most miserable MN thread ever.

Agree!!!

I think I'd probably be more into cards if my family were inclined to actually write messages in them. I just get a load of bog-standard cards with 'To Spam [Generic printed message] Love from X'. Same for birthdays.

And god forbid a family member doesn't get their generic mass-produced card from me on time; massive sulk. I hate the obligation of it (despite being an over-gifter).

FrownPrincess this is exactly me! I have cards that are years old, some of them decades. I love a really nice Christmas card

Urgh that sounds incredibly annoying spamantha.

It really is, particularly when giving a gift too, it means the card is essentially just a larger duplicate of the gift tag (which they also expect and will comment if absent!)

I can’t bear them. I have to wait behind the door every morning for the postwoman and when they come through I stamp on them. Then I scoop them up with a long handled pooper scooper and run out to the garage with them. Ugh! Utterly terrifying things.

The usual display of joyfulness on Mumsnet, I see!