Vintage Christmas Cards

A Joyous Christmas Tide

At current count, around 1500 Vintage Christmas Postcards available from CardCow

A fascinating slice of the history, style and presentation of Christmas postcards throughout the world.

Creative Christmas Cards

An interesting seasonal piece from Lifehacker
"If you send out Christmas cards every year, you know that buying cards can be a spendy endeavor. So in the spirit of saving money this holiday season but not skimping on the cool-factor of your cards, we're rounding up a few very cool, very 3-D DIY Christmas cards that'll help you spread a little holiday cheer without breaking the bank."


And yet more ideas for creating some very cool cards...











A great pop-up resource from Robert Sabuda
Learn how to make this 3D greeting card pop-up xmas tree among many other ideas.















Free Pop Up Font
Inspired by the work of Masahiro Chatani in his book "Pop-up Greeting Cards"
Learn how to create your own 3D pop-up text greeting cards (if you manage to somehow create the above xmas card, send it in, you're a genius).

Pop-up cards at Cool Cards

"Pop-up Card Designer is a Windows application, which generates unfolded pattern of Pop Up Cards. With simple interface, you can get unfolded pattern of your original Pop Up Cards."

So now you know. Have a play!

Let us know how you get on!

Cards Blessed by Church of Enlgand

Talk about a Bandwagon...

"A selection of Christmas greetings cards blessed by the Church of England is set to take the social networking site Facebook by snowstorm this Advent."

"The virtual cards, based on religious themes, can be sent on with a personalised message and are freely available to any of the seven million active users in the UK registered on Facebook."

"The Church of England has worked in partnership with Rechord – a leading web design agency in London, specialising in social networking and web applications for charities – to create the environmentally-friendly virtual cards. The designs feature colourful animations representing key elements of the nativity story, including the journey of the wise men to see the ‘new born King’."
Source : The Church of England

"The idea for the Facebook application follows last year’s Church of England online Advent calendar, (from Rechord : "Would you like a site that not only increases traffic, but persuades your visitors to act?") which received wide media coverage and around 1,000 unique visitors each day during December."

"The slightly not so good thing is that receivers of cards will need to add the application, which they may not wish to do. Adding Facebook applications is of course a bit of a privacy risk as you are giving your information to a third party (the creator of the application) about whom you know nothing. I am of course willing to give the Church of England my information, but not everyone will be."

"Of course if you are a real luddite you could send them an actual card made out of card in the style of yesteryear."

Source : Episcopal Cafe

Also from : Cartoon Church

Coincidence - Cartoon Church Christian greeting cards delightfully reminiscent of Cool Cards Edward Monkton

Rechord deface York Minster Dec. 2006. (Well we never claim to be cutting edge...)

Poet Confidential

"I was a professional greeting card writer."

Shameful confessional from poet Nancy Breen :

"I don't mean I wrote and submitted greeting card verses on the side for extra cash."

"I did like it. I was good at it, too. However, by the end of the first year, I began to yearn to do something of a utilitarian nature, like filing or processing paperwork. Sitting at my desk all day long trying to come up with new ways of saying "Happy Birthday" without using the words "Happy Birthday" became deadening. And my creative juices dried up from writing on demand five days a week."

"The more I wrote verses (and I had to produce daily), the less poetry I wrote. I've never entirely recovered. I don't find the joy in sitting down to tackle a poem that I once did."

Source

Seeking Freelance Greeting Card Writers

All you aspiring greeting card writers... a Job advert from Blue Mountain Arts.

"Blue Mountain Arts is interested in reviewing writings for publication on greeting cards. We are looking for highly original and creative submissions on friendship, family, special occasions, positive living, and other topics one person might want to share with another person. Submissions may also be considered for inclusion in book anthologies. We pay $300 per poem for all rights to publish it on a greeting card and $50 if your poem is used only in an anthology. To request a copy of our writer’s guidelines (which include contact/submission information), please send a blank e-mail to writings@sps.com with “Send Me Guidelines” in the subject line, or write us at: Blue Mountain Arts, Inc. Editorial Department P.O. Box 1007 Boulder, CO 80306. You can also visit our website at www.sps.com."

Source

Greeting Cards Market Is on the Upswing

Greeting Cards Market Is on the Upswing as Card Shoppers Turn to Speciality Retailers for More Specialized Product Offerings.

New Study From Unity Marketing Finds That Greeting Cards Were the Fastest Growing Category in the Overall Stationery Market.

In 2006 the market for greeting cards made a big comeback after four years of steadily declining sales, rising over 11 percent from 2004 to 2006. In 2006 the market for greeting cards climbed to over $10 billion. This according to the latest report on the stationery market from Unity Marketing.

This revival of speciality retail for greeting cards comes after years of a steady drop in the number of speciality retailers in the card and gift segments. The number of gift shops dropped 21 percent from 75,0102 stores in 2002 to 59,032 shops today. Speciality card shops declined even more -- 33 percent from 8,135 in 2002 to 5,391 currently.

Source Marketwire

Uncooked - Interview

New additions to Cool Cards.
Uncooked Cards.

Uncooked cards, known for their snarky, irreverent copy and sweet illlustrations.




"Our cards are a lot different to other card lines. It'll take time before they get fully appreciated. Smart people get them first. Idiots catch on later, after someone tells them they're funny".

Uncooked interview here

Royal Mail Christmas Stamps

The Church of England has greeted Royal Mail’s decision to re-establish a religious theme for its Christmas stamp collection.

The Royal Mail is to release a collection of eight stamps with illustrations of baby Jesus, Mary, as well as angels, this Christmas.

The Church was highly critical in 2006 when the Royal Mail’s stamp collection carried only secular themes of the Christian holiday, and even though they have welcomed the return to religious themes this year, the Royal Mail said it would alternate between secular and religious themes annually.

The Church has emphasised the importance of Christmas stamps being filled with Christian-themed designs rather than a random secular selection, as this would "remind people of the true meaning of Christmas".

Source: Christian Today
Wiki : Christmas

Edward Monkton - Interview

New additions to the Cool Cards range of Edward Monkton Greeting Cards here.

Who is Edward Monkton? Interview here.

Wiki here.

Eid Greeting Cards - Cool Cards

New: Eid Greeting Cards - calligraphy and arabesque patterns.
Original and incredibly beautiful Islamic art cards by acclaimed artist Salma Arastu.



Islamic Eid greeting cards inspired by Mughal, Moorish, Iranian and Turkish art traditions.

These sensitive and creative designs show images from semi-abstract paintings, others are calligraphic compositions, known as the Tughra style.

.:Click:. Eid Greeting Cards at Cool Cards
7" x 5" - White envelope - Not cello wrapped.

Royal Mail - Post in time for Christmas 2007

Royal Mail recommended posting dates for Christmas 2007.

"Do you want to send post in time for Christmas? If you're sending gifts or cards to family, friends or business contacts you have to start thinking now. Here you'll find all the last posting dates for the UK and around the world. To beat the rush, post well before the recommended date."

.:Click:. Royal Mail recommended last UK and International posting dates before Christmas 2007

UK last posting dates:

Friday 14 December - Standard Parcels

Monday 17 December - Second Class

Thursday 20 December - First Class

Friday 21 December - Special Delivery™
Saturday guarantee

Saturday 22 December - Special Delivery™


International Airmail:

Friday 7 December - South & Central America, Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Far East (except Japan), Australia and New Zealand

Monday 10 December - USA, Canada, Japan and Eastern Europe

Thursday 13 December - Western Europe


International Surface Mail:

Monday 1 October - All non-European destinations (except USA, Canada, Middle East, Far East and South Africa)

Monday 15 October - Middle East and Far East (except Hong Kong and Singapore)

Monday 29 October - USA, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Africa

Friday 16 November - Eastern Europe, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Malta and Iceland

Friday 30 November - Western Europe


Royal Mail can arrange for alternative formats of this information to be sent to you in…
• Large Print
• Braille
• Audio CD
• Audio Cassette

To obtain a free copy call Royal Mail Customer Services on: 08457 740 740

If you are deaf or hard of hearing, Royal Mail offer a textphone service on:
08456 000 606

To ensure your post gets there safely:
• Please use the correct postcode
(visit www.royalmail.com/postcodes if you are unsure)
• Add a return address on the back of the envelope
• Make sure you pay the correct postage for international items

Source (pdf)



Royal Mail Christmas Stamps

The Gallery Collection, Vegetable-based inks

The Gallery Collection, the leading business Christmas card and personal Christmas card publisher, announces the use of vegetable-based inks in the printing of its greeting cards. The publishing company, which recently decided to go green, has been making numerous eco-friendly investments to show the company’s dedication and commitment to a cleaner environment.

The Gallery Collection’s greeting cards are finished at print shops that utilise agri-based inks made from vegetable oils, such as linseed oil. These vegetable-based inks were common prior to the 1960s, but petroleum-based inks popularized over the past several decades due to cheaper costs.

Petroleum-based inks, however, negatively impact the environment and print shop workers. These inks contain hazardous metals that contaminate the soil and groundwater when released into the environment. These inks also contain harmful solvents that emit volatile organiccompounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere, causing air pollution and ozone depletion. And when inhaled by print shop workers, VOCs can cause an array of illnesses such as bronchitis or depression.

Used as a substitute for petrochemical inks, vegetable inks significantly reduce toxic VOCs, benefiting the environment, the atmosphere, and print shop workers. Vegetable inks are also developed from renewable sources, whereas the global supply of petroleum will be exhausted indefinitely in years to come.

“The Gallery Collection is committed to making decisions that minimally impact the environment,” declared H.L. DeVore, Chief Marketing Officer of Prudent Publishing, The Gallery Collection’s parent company. “As a publisher of greeting cards, we have an obligation to our planet. We want our company to leave a smaller imprint on the environment, and this needs to reflect all aspects of our business…including the ink used to print our cards.”

To learn more about agri-based inks, please visit The Gallery Collection’s vegetable-based inks information page at http://www.gallerycollection.com/articles/vegetableinks.htm.

ABOUT THE GALLERY COLLECTION – Prudent Publishing’s The Gallery Collection is the leading publisher of premium quality personal Christmas cards and business Christmas cards in the United States. Established in 1929 and still family owned, the company offers direct-from-the-publisher prices that include customized ink and foil imprints, a large selection of memorable greetings, and matching deckle-edged envelopes made of recycled paper. The Gallery Collection also offers birthday cards, sympathy cards, and personal photo cards.

The Gallery Collection, UK launch, FSC Certified

The launch of The Gallery Collection in the UK marks a highly commendable addition to the Greeting card market.

Ethically and environmentally-sound U.S. based The Gallery Collection continue to "do the right thing." said H.L. DeVore, Chief Marketing Officer of Prudent Publishing, makers of The Gallery Collection line of greeting cards. "We want to conduct our business in a fashion that minimally impacts the environment and makes good economic sense."
"The Gallery Collection has made a commitment to wind power energy, specifically in the manufacturing of our greeting card stock and envelope stock. Currently, we sell 163 business Christmas cards, personal holiday cards, all occasion, and birthday greeting cards that are produced in windpower paper mills. Additionally, all of our envelopes are made in these eco-friendly facilities which are utilizing Green-e certified renewable energy."

The Gallery Collection use paper mills owned by Mohawk Fine Papers.
"Mohawk is at the forefront of environmentally sound manufacturing. Every day we look for better ways to reduce emissions, use clean energy, and protect the environment inside and outside our mills. On June 1, 2007 we increased our purchase of wind-generated electricity RECs to 100,000,000 kWh annually which represents 100% of the electric power required for all of Mohawk's operations in its New York and Ohio facilities.
Because paper manufacturing relies heavily on water, forests, and energy, it is our responsibility to care for these precious resources. At Mohawk, environmental stewardship is a top priority for everyone, every day. We act responsibly within our own mills and we require the same level of environmental performance from our suppliers."

Continuing in the vein of 'doing the right thing', The Gallery Collection have also announced that they have gained FSC Certification. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international organization that brings people together to find solutions which promote responsible stewardship of the world’s forests.
Over the past 13 years, over 90 million hectares in more than 82 countries have been certified according to FSC standards while several thousand products are produced using FSC-certified wood and carrying the FSC trademark. FSC operates through its network of National Initiatives in 43 countries.

The Gallery Collection are also supporting two Charities, Marie Curie and Operation Smile
A donation of 10p for each card ordered will be given to either charity of the customers choice. Additionally, an elegantly embossed, self-adhesive charity seal is provided for the customer to add to the card or envelope.

Freelance Greeting Card Artists Required

Looking for work as a greeting card designer or artist?

For an up-to-date list of all Greeting Card Association members who are looking for freelance artists click here.

General Facts: U.S. Greeting Cards

Source: Greeting Card Association - United States.

U.S. consumers purchase approximately 7 billion greeting cards each year, generating nearly $7.5 billion in retail sales.

More than 90 percent of all U.S. households buy greeting cards, with the average household purchasing 30 individual cards in a year.

The average person receives more than 20 cards per year, about one-third of which are birthday cards.

Greeting cards range in price from 50 cents to $10, although counter cards typically cost between $2 and $4. Cards featuring special techniques, intricate designs and new technologies are at the top of the price scale.

The exchange of greeting cards is one of the most widely accepted customs in the U.S. There are cards for virtually any occasion or relationship, and they are widely available. Approximately 100,000 retail outlets around the country carry greeting cards.

Women purchase more than 80 percent of all greeting cards.
Although women are more likely than men to buy several cards at once, men generally spend more on a single card than women.

There are two categories of greeting cards -- Seasonal and Everyday. Total card sales are split approximately 50-50 between the two types.

The most popular Everyday cards are Birthday (60%), Anniversary (8%), Get Well (7%), Friendship (6%), and Sympathy cards (6%).

The most popular Seasonal cards are Christmas (60%), Valentine's Day (25%), Mother's Day (4%), Easter (3%), and Father's Day (3%) cards.

Nine out of 10 Americans say they look forward to receiving personal letters and greeting cards because cards allow them to keep in touch with friends and family and make them feel they are important to someone else.

Although e-mail, text messaging and phone calls are valued by Americans for helping them communicate with family and friends, the majority of Americans say they prefer the old-fashioned handwritten card or letter to make someone feel truly special.

Cool Cards Gay Greeting Cards

Cool Cards have long been on the hunt for sensitive and stylish Gay and Civil Partnership cards.
We now proudly welcome Pogoplum as the latest greeting card publisher to Cool Cards.
Whichever term you prefer... Gay Wedding, Civil Partnership, Gay Friendship... Cool Cards are proud to offer these contemporary gay greeting cards. Classic gay celebration and friendship cards:
.:Click:. View Gay Cards at Cool Cards

How Green Is Our Valley?

Greening the Greeting Card Industry
Via: GCA

...The time could be nigh for a universal grading that will clearly state the heritage of each card. “I would love to see the environmental credentials of not just the card but also the envelope and packaging to be made compulsory for all, so that consumers can make an informed choice when buying their greeting cards,” suggests Susanna Morrish from Glebe Cottage.

Besides board and envelopes, packaging is another element that is coming under the environmental spotlight. While paper can be fairly easy to recycle, individual cellowrapping is not. Some publishers, notably Glebe Cottage, Canns Down Press and Art Angels have recently begun using bags made from corn starch, which is fully compostable, while Roger La Borde is looking at introducing biodegradable bags on all its cards for 2007 so this looks to be something that will develop quite quickly in the next couple of years. “There is a small cost concern when it comes to using corn starch bags rather than those made from polypropylene but we can just about manage to absorb these costs. I am sure that as publishers begin to increase demand for these bags, I am pretty confident that the prices will reduce in line with this,” predicts Robert Hartford, director of Canns Down Press.

The UK printing industry has long been governed on minimising any damage to the environment (with greeting card specialist Loudwater being the first in the trade to gain the highest ‘green’ credentials) but there is the inevitable environmental cost of transporting the materials to consider. “To be honest I don’t think it’s enough to just to look at the product and pander to public concern by undertaking a defensive marketing exercise. We feel we are going to have to review the so-called carbon footprint of all our business activities and we are just starting the process of assessing everything, from our electricity suppliers to our how long our computers stay on for in a bid to try to reduce the size of this footprint,” explains Tim Solnick, director at Roger La Borde.

At the moment, public concern over the environmental credentials of the greeting card industry has been relatively low key – there are bigger fish to fry when it comes to potentially harmful manufacturing. However, as the ecological situation worsens and global warming hots up, so society’s demand for every aspect of manufacturing and consumerism to be environmentally responsibly is likely to increase. Add this to the fact that it is in everyone’s best interest to protect our precious planet as much as possible, in any way possible, and it becomes clear that taking a strong eco-friendly approach is essential, even for those who don’t list ‘tree-hugging’ among their hobbies...

Read More: Via GCA .:Click:.

Wind Power Cards

Greeting Card Publisher, Gallery Collection, Announces Wind Power Commitment
"We are trying to do the right thing for our planet," declared H.L. DeVore, Chief Marketing Officer of Prudent Publishing. "We want to conduct our business in a fashion that minimally impacts the environment and makes good economic sense."
The Gallery Collection's commitment to wind power actually began in 2006, but the company made the decision to stay quiet and see how the political and economic landscape developed for "green corporate behavior." DeVore admits to some reluctance about making the move to wind power, stating: "It seems there are always people looking to criticize you for not going far enough." He further comments, "These critics hurt the world and make people reluctant to do their small part. Green should not be about extremes. Green should not be a political issue. We are trying to do our small part to help the environment and send energy dollars into friendlier hands."
Via Marketwire .:Click:.

Wind Power to Propel The Gallery Collection into the Future
The Gallery Collection has made a commitment to wind power energy, specifically in the manufacturing of our greeting card stock and envelope stock. Currently, we sell 163 (cards) that are produced in windpower paper mills. Additionally, all of our envelopes are made in these eco-friendly facilities which are utilizing Green-e (.:Click:.) certified renewable energy.
Via The Gallery Collection .:Click:.

Cool Cards comment: We haven't been able identify which paper mills are used in order to validate these statements. Perhaps Gallery Collection could provide further information?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Cool Cards were very pleased to receive a comment from Mr. DeVore, who informs us that The Gallery Collection use paper mills owned by Mohawk Fine Papers.
Many thanks Mr. DeVore and congratulations on your excellent green credentials!

Email Scam Alert

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For My Mother... on Father's Day

Happy Father’s Day, Mom!
Hallmark cashes in on family breakdown.

From: City Journal

The mandatory trek to the greeting card display, whether for an artificial holiday such as Father’s Day or for a birthday, is occasion for fear and loathing. There is only one melancholy upside to the rising muck of cards devoted to flatulence, impotence, and outsized mammary glands: Hallmark provides a darn good barometer of social breakdown—transformed, with all the cheerful non-judgmentalism of capitalism, into a business opportunity.

For years now, as one stared with increasing despair at the studly stud, dirty old man, and bathroom “humor,” new categories of card were blossoming luxuriantly. “Celebrating your divorce” or “For my second stepmother” cards began popping up regularly among the “From the dog” or “Incompetent duffer” standards. And this year’s display at a Manhattan stationer’s did not disappoint. In the small section devoted to Hallmark’s “African-American” line (of course there is one; it is called “Mahogany”), two card pockets advertised “For mother on Father’s Day” options. One card had apparently already sold out. The other was a tasteful and ingeniously designed card in the Mahogany line’s characteristic earthtones, with a lovely charcoal drawing of a beautiful black woman in one-quarter view.

The front of the card reads:

for My Mother

ON FATHER’S DAY

You hear a lot of talk

these days about

children growing up

without a father—

without this

and without that.

You hardly ever hear

About the mothers who,

In spite of everything,

Raise their children to be strong,

To believe in God, to work hard

To make their lives worthwhile . . .

The message inside the card continued:

That’s the story

I’d like to tell

Because that’s

How you raised me.

In spite of it all,

it’s our story . . .

I made it because of you.

Have a wonderful day.

UK Now Has a Trade Deficit in Greetings Cards

The UK Now Has a Trade Deficit in Greetings Cards — Whereas Its Surplus Was as High as £31.2M in 1995 States New Report, Greeting Cards Market Report Plus 2006

DUBLIN, Ireland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c56934) has announced the addition of Greeting Cards Market Report Plus 2006 to their offering.

The UK greetings cards industry is a mature one, in which the value of retail sales is virtually static and competition is intense. While dominated by the US giants Hallmark Cards and American Greetings, there is a myriad of small publishers that contribute to the diversity of the UK industry and the innovation for which it is justifiably renowned. More than a quarter of UK publishers of items other than newspapers currently have turnovers of less than £50,000, while just 1.3% achieves sales in excess of £5m.

The days of high profit margins for greetings cards publishers look to be well and truly over in this oversupplied market. Bearing in mind the relatively low production cost of a card compared with the average selling price, margins should be healthy, but publishers have little choice but to comply with the increasingly stringent demands of multiple retailers (including the leading supermarket chains). Another characteristic of the market is the growth in the discount retailing of greetings cards. These difficulties have resulted in many corporate casualties and near-casualties. Further consolidation on both the retailing and publishing sides of the industry looks inevitable in the future.

In common with other manufacturing sectors, the UK publishing industry struggles to compete with overseas operators with lower production costs. Some companies, including International Greetings PLC and Hallmark Cards PLC, have moved some of their own production facilities overseas. The UK now has a trade deficit in greetings cards — whereas its surplus was as high as £31.2m in 1995.

On the positive side, longevity and expanding family networks through divorce and remarriage mean an increase in the number of card-giving occasions and of potential recipients for greetings cards. The industry continues to endeavour to persuade the card-buying public to embrace more card-sending occasions. While there is a price-sensitive sector of the market, it is also the case that many consumers do not begrudge spending significant amounts on quality cards that serve as keepsakes, and the UK has the highest per capita consumption of greetings cards, with the average consumer sending 55 cards each a year. It is little wonder, then, that the industry put up such a fight to prevent the imposition of Pricing in Proportion (PIP) by the Royal Mail. Its failure to do so means that the scheme, effective from August 2006, makes it more expensive to post letters and cards of other than standard size and weight. It is to be hoped that its implementation does not stunt creativity in the industry or confuse consumers into sending fewer cards. In a difficult market, the UK greetings cards industry can do without such negative aspects, as it strives to maintain a buoyant market value.

Source