I also sometimes make cardsout of my own photographs (divisie, snorkeling), and also calendars. I write them, stamp them and then laminate them, that is ideal
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If you want to use a laminating folder to protect your card, but donât want to have the message side laminated (or if that is a problem where you are because of cancelling stamps), here is a trick:
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Cut a sheet of baking paper the same size as your postcard (regular typing paper will probably also work, so long as it is not printed on). Lay it over the postcard on the message side when you put the card into the laminating folder/pouch.
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Laminate.
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Trim the lamination off on the three ânon-hingeâ sides of the lamination. You should be able to then fold the laminated baking-paper side out and trim that off as well.
Now your postcard will be laminated on the front, but the back side will be âvirginâ
Disclaimer: I am not sure if this will work with âcoldâ laminators, I have only tried this method with hot.
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Great idea though but I usually make envelopes out of them, I will try & have a go at making postcards to send to the grandkids they just love getting anything in the mail thatâs especially for them 
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I do and did a lot of postcards out of calendars and even out of illustrated children books. I always frame them with a colourful cardstock and glue white paper at the back. They are as thick as usual cards.
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Little off topic, but when I was in school, we made this frame, and everyone searched nice images through that as their homework and in photography, we used it in choosing what part to show/cut.
I still have it as itâs postcard size. Maybe someone would like to make such, as itâs simple but handy tool to see how any area looks when cut.
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I would definitely love to received handmade cards from old calender sheets! 
I use them myself in similar ways to what you guys do. Sometimes the calender picture itself is sufficient to fill a postcard and sometimes I use bits and pieces for collages.
I, too, have a cardboard frame to check what a cut-out section would look like and whether it is the right size - itâs very useful!
I have no experience with laminating cards, but Iâm beginning to think of getting a laminating device to save my cards from falling apart in the post.
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Great idea with the cut out cardstock. I think I will create one today!
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Yesss, i do that sometimes i cut like a shape card and use it for give away. And my friend like it.
If a picture big i cutting like a size maxicard.
Please do that and give you friend a smile 
Good idea and good job, thank you 
I like this kind of cards 
I got this one lately and I loved it. Itâs huge (probably the maximum size of US cards?) so there was space for a long message. And the picture is so beautiful. I wouldnât have noticed that itâs no ârealâ postcard if she didnât write it.
I got about 20 huge calendars recently and started to make all kinds of cards, envelopes and notebooks out of them. As they really are huge I think I canât just take a piece of the photo and turn it into a card.
These are some of the things I made and perhaps itâs an inspiration for some of you what to do with pictures that donât fit into a card.
To protect the pieces of the collage from falling off I laminated the cards. I put 2 cards together in one laminating pouch with the message sides touching each other. And then I continue like @ColorfulCourtney described above.
For notebooks
And for decorating the pages of a notebook
I used the cardboard to make templates for envelopes
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Looks great. Cute idea
Hi! I did that once too, recycling calendar images, and I think Iâll be doing it a lot in the future. I do some bookbinding, and to glue the paper onto cardstock I use the same method as the one for making book covers. Itâs easy and I find it gives the best finish. Hereâs a link to a useful guide (the relevant bit is the part where she explains the covers, the first few minutes).
You donât need to leave such big flaps as she does, I find that even for thick paper about 8mm is enough. More is easier, but not needed.
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I think they look great. I always feel a bit sad when I have to recycle my calendars at the end of the year as they always have the most beautiful art! I might do that with this yearâs calendar!
Sure. I get the tape from âIdeen mit Herzâ (ideenmitherz.de). I am not sure if they ship outside of DE or not. They offer a 15 cm and a 10 cm wide double-sided tape. I have found that the tape does have some âwonkyâ areas that you may need to work around if you are using thin paper, but in general it is absolutely first class and I can recommend it without hesitation.
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They ship within Europe. And that tape ends out being some investment⌠
Admittedly not figuring in the shipping, it is âŹ12 for 15m of tape, which means at least enough to cover 125 standard-sized cards, even given working around the places where the tape is a little wrinkled, so like 12 cents a card for the tape. Yeah, OK, if I bought a box of 100 cards for âŹ10 I would get the whole card for less than the cost of what I am paying for tape. But to me the ease of use and the result I get makes it worth the cost. Of course, this is another reason that I only send hand-made cards to people I think will appreciate them!
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I didnât find a roll of tape, only single sheets. Price and size are okay. But I also found some other stuff, which suddenly makes buying 10⏠of tape an investment 
I love upcycling calendar sheets and nice pictures from magazines, too. The pictures are beautiful, reusing things is sustainable and why wasting it?
I would like to suggest my way to make calendar sheet postcards
I use a DIN A5 sketch block (250g paper / 115 lb) from the supermarket. Itâs the Rossmann supermarket in Germany and the block is of Clairefontaine papers called âPaint On Multi-Techniquesâ. I cut every sheet in 2 halves with a cutting machine for paper. Every cut-in-half sheet makes 2 standard DIN A6 postcards.
Simple double-sided adhesive tape of 5 cm width (to glue carpets to the ground) from the supermarket or hardware store is my glue and reasonably priced. I glue 2 rows side by side near the margins of the paper. Only in the middle some millimeters are left but it really doesnât matter.
Every postcard is nicely stable and neat. Here are some examples:
Maybe you find it fun to try this, too?
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I am new to postcrossing and made me first Selfmade card last week. I used also some cardboard already in the correct size, glued it on a bit bigger paper than the card itself and turned the edges to the other side so I got a nice edge on the card that wonât go off do easily. Then I glued some paper on the other side and it turned out nice as well 
Iâm horrible at arts but it was fun to do it so I guess I will try again some time. I decorated the front side and taped it with some big packaging tape as I did not have anything else so that the edges of the glued items do not get stuck anywhere.
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I do this as well and they look nice! I use crafters tape.