Catch the Christmas post

• 2015's best craft shows
• 21 quick and easy Valentine cards and gift tags to make
• Make a secret book safe
• Save money - use your craft skills
• Flower arranging: make a celebration centrepiece
• New Year's Eve party decorations to make
• Make a stylish statement necklace
• Fast Christmas flowers: berry and rose place settings
• Fast Christmas flowers: rose and holly place settings
• Make a pompom Christmas wreath
• Make Christmas paper chains
• Make handmade Christmas gift tags
• Make pretty beaded charm rings
• Make a tissue-paper Christmas tree card
• Your free Christmas template collection
• Make your own Christmas postage stamps
• Make stained-glass biscuit Christmas decorations
• Catch the Christmas post
• Video: watch how to make a Cath Kidston lampshade
• Make a beautiful Christmas wreath with roses
• Turn old Christmas cards into eye-catching baubles
• 30 Christmas gifts to make for her
• Make a framed feather picture
• Make a Christmas star and heart window garland
• Give candlesticks a new look
• Make paper dove Christmas tree decorations
• Make a house advent calendar
• Just for Mum: Mother's Day cards to make
• Christmas craft ideas: Noël decorations and cards to make
• Make a button star Christmas card
• How to make a candle
• Make a classic silhouette picture
• Make a St Patrick's Day card
• Make this floral arrangement in a pumpkin
• Christmas craft ideas: Christmas trees
• Make framed handprint wall art
• Make clothes-peg angel Christmas decorations
• Different designs for Halloween pumpkin lanterns
• How to carve a classic Halloween pumpkin lantern
• Christmas craft ideas: stars
• Make it a handmade Christmas: hundreds of Christmas craft ideas...
• Say Happy Easter with a handmade card
• 30 Christmas gifts to make for the home
• Get creative with Christmas gift wrapping
• Make your own Halloween decorations
• Christmas craft ideas: snowflakes
• Make your own Father's Day cards
• Make a paper kimono picture
• Christmas craft ideas: reindeer
• Christmas shopping online: gifts for craft lovers
• Watch: Paula Pryke flower-arranging video
• Make a popcorn and cranberry Christmas garland
• Beautiful books on flower arranging
• 30 Christmas gifts to make for him
• Make sweet almond soap
• Make pine-cone Christmas decorations
• Flower arranging: shades of autumn
• Watch our craft videos: step-by-step guides
• Make a contemporary paper-bag advent calendar
• Make a clothes-peg Christmas fairy
• Make a button Christmas tree card
• Get creative with holiday souvenirs
• Make scented Christmas decorations
• Heavenly ideas for hydrangeas
• 10 of the best scrapbooks
• Make beautiful teacup candles
• Catch the loom band craze
• Pick up a pebble - and transform it
• Step-by-step flower arranging: summer blooms
• Our craft idea collections - all in one place
• Flower arranging: pretty pinks and blues
• Make wooden key fobs
• Make a new home handmade card
• Make your own jewellery
• Revamp a lamp with paint and buttons
• Take an old can, jar or bottle...
• Make kids' paper mini bunting
• Free England-flag World Cup bunting to print
• Make striking summer party invitations
• Make tea light holders, for indoors and out
• Make a ties card - ideal for Father's Day
• Make a shell jamjar lantern
• Make a wraparound leather cuff
• Paint a shabby chic chest of drawers
• Bring lilac into your home
• Make a last-minute Easter egg and chick decoration
• Half a dozen Easter egg-decorating ideas
• Grow an Easter egg decoration
• Cool craft cafés in London
• Make pompom Easter chicks
• Flower arranging: make table decoration centrepieces
• How to make a flowery feast centrepiece
• Make a Singapore orchid and gerbera centrepiece
• Ideas for wedding flowers
• How to arrange roses in a square glass vase
• Spell out 'mum' on a Mother's Day card
• Refurbish a French-style chair
• Make a fluffy-tailed Easter bunnies card
• Wedding flowers: pretty rose posies to make
• Make a sparkly shoe card
• Transform a trug
• Make a vase of flowers card
• Make a cut-out flower card, perfect for Easter
• Make a pretty paper Easter bunny card
• Make a cocktail dress card
• Make a pressed-flower card
• Make gingham gift tags
• Make beaded glass tealight holders
• Enter the craft blogosphere
• Make flower gift tags
• Make personalised gift tags
• Make your cut roses last longer
• Make butterfly gift tags
• Make butterfly decorations
• Make a sequined 'love' Valentine card
• Make a heart-shaped roses arrangement
• Make a heart-shaped wire noticeboard
• How to make paper flowers
• Five ways with... daffodils
• Make it for Valentine's Day
• Make a fabric heart Valentine's card
• Make a spotty heart Valentine's card
• Three ways with... anemones
• Make easy party disguises
• Make paper fortune cookies
• Decorate Christmas wrapping with a ribbon 'name'
• Print your free 2014 craft calendar
• Make cocktail-glass party invitations
• Make painted-star glass coasters
• Make sparkly tea-light holders
• Make a biscuit cutter Christmas wreath
• Make a Christmas wish jar
• Make a Christmas amaryllis arrangement
• Make a Christmas twig heart
• Make Christmas tea-light holders
• Make a twiggy Christmas 'chandelier'
• Make a vibrant Christmas wreath
• Make an evergreen Christmas garland
• Make simple Christmas wreaths
• Festoon your fireplace for Christmas
• Make a silvered paper star Christmas decoration
• Make a Christmas snow candle
• Turn carrier bags into Christmas gift bags
• Trim your Christmas wrapping in red-and-white style
• Make a button snowman Christmas card
• Make a gingerbread man Christmas card
• Home-grown Christmas decorations: flowers and foliage
• Make a three trees Christmas card
• Make a Merry Christmas tree card
• Make a 'Ho, ho, ho' Christmas card
• Make a reindeer Christmas card
• Make a Christmas stockings card
• Place cards to make for your Christmas table
• Make personalised Christmas crackers
• Make a fabric Christmas wreath
• Make a simple foliage and berry Christmas wreath
• Make a blackboard advent calendar
• Make a pretty paper cones advent calendar
• How to make a Christmas pomander
• Make découpage Christmas wrapping
• Make potato-print Christmas wrapping paper
• Make personalised clay Christmas star decorations
• Make Christmas crackers
• Flower-arranging: candle and pine cone centrepiece
• Make a mulled wine spice bag
• Make a beaded ribbon bookmark
• Make postage-stamp Christmas gift tags
• Make linocut Christmas cards
• Make paper roses for Christmas wrapping
• Make advent calendar bunting
• Make clothes-peg Christmas decorations
• Make a beaded garland Christmas tree decoration
• Turn a tray into a noticeboard
• Make a sewing-hoop picture
• Make a wallpaper lampshade
• Make wallpaper tablemats
• Make a fabric picture frame
• Make a frosted twig Christmas tree
• Make a presents greetings card
• Make a cupcake birthday card
• Feel festive with the best Christmas craft books
• Transform a retro floor lamp
• Make a ribboned Christmas gift box
• Take a sprig of holly...
• Make button fridge magnets
• Make a teapot thank you card
• Make a child's Halloween witch costume
• Make a child's Halloween ghost costume
• Make Christmas cards with buttons
• Flowers for Christmas: red rose and candle centrepiece
• Make a pretty card cake box
• Cover a folder in fabric
• Missed 'Fabric of Britain'? Find out more
• Make a pretty thank you card
• Turn cotton reels into storage hooks
• Make a set of leaf pictures
• Make an age birthday card
• Make paper cut-out Christmas cards
• Upcycle a vintage side table, with paint and maps
• Cover stationery with fabric and wallpaper

If you've gone to the effort of making your own Christmas cards, you'll want to be absolutely certain that they reach their recipients before Christmas, so you'll need to know the last posting dates - see below. You might want to copy the relevant ones into your diary, or print out this page.

And as well as knowing the last posting dates, you also need to know the collection time from the postbox you're using. Earlier this year, Royal Mail made the collection time at almost 50,000 postboxes much earlier in the day, some as early as 9am instead of 5pm as previously the case.

The latest recommended posting dates from Royal Mail are:

International Standard (formerly Airmail), and all International Tracking and Signature Services (formerly Airsure and International Signed For)

Asia, Far East (including Japan), New Zealand: Wednesday December 3

Australia: Thursday December 4

Africa, Caribbean, Central & South America, Middle East: Friday December 5

Cyprus, Eastern Europe, Greece: Monday December 8

Canada, Poland: Tuesday December 9

USA: Friday December 12

Western Europe: Saturday December 13

International Standard HM Forces Mail - British Forces Post Office (BFPO)

Operational BFPOs: Friday November 28

Static BFPOs: Friday December 12

UK Services

2nd class and Royal Mail Signed For: Thursday December 18

1st class and Royal Mail Signed For: Saturday December 20

Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed: Tuesday December 23

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