seasons greetings

Thanksgiving has still yet to happen, but one of my top holiday tasks this time of year is producing a Christmas card. It's one of those items that needs to be completed early in order to have time for printing and mailing, which is why even before the tree is put up and decorated, I must get it off my holiday "to do" list.

I usually have an idea in mind of what I want the card to say and look like. Once a photo (or photos) are taken, which I do myself (and must admit are not the greatest), I ask my design friend to develop a design. I'm pretty specific in my instructions and my friend is pretty great at what he does, so usually he has no problem creating a card to my liking. (I also must get real here. While it is a holiday card and I want it to be perfect, I also understand my friend has a real job, so I try not to burden him with constant revisions.)

I'm currently debating a few ideas for this year's card, but below are the holiday cards we've created in the past.

I thought with this one it would be fun for family and friends to see different glimpses of my little one, but I must warn, it was difficult enough to take one good photo of a seven month old infant, much less three for each scenario. The top question I got that year: how did you make her cry? It was pretty easy. I took away whatever she was playing with in the moment and snapped away. The great thing for mailing was I printed three cards to an 8.5x11 page at Kinko's on card stock, had them cut and each card fit into a business mailing envelope, which I bought in red at Hobby Lobby. Perfect!

This one was a postcard, which I printed through Overnight Prints. They were fast, easy and set a good price. My thought with the postcard was it would cost less on postage, but apparently the size I chose bumped up the cost instead. Wah! If I was to do a postcard again, I would probably still keep it the same size, but choose matte finish instead. I came up with the idea of "sweets" when I came across a large lollipop and figured it would make a great prop for a photo. My daughter seemed to like it, but again I'm not a professional photographer and directing a one year old on how to lick the lollipop while angling her face just right was also not easy. Regardless, I still like the way it turned out.

For this card, I've always liked my daughter's bright red tricycle and figured it would make the perfect prop for another holiday photo. I drove her out to a quiet country road one morning, positioned her as best I could and again snapped away. I could not for the life of me get her to put her feet on the pedals. Also, if you look closely she's holding the lens cap. I tried to take it away, but she started crying, so I quickly just let that go. But I love the open road behind her and she did smile, so it all worked out. I asked my friend to create a red/white chevron pattern, which went perfectly with the dotted typeface. These cards were printed two cards to a 8.5x11 page on card stock. I'm really happy with how they turned out.



Now for those of you who do not have a graphic designer at your beck and call, I would highly suggest ordering holiday cards through Minted. They have some of the cutest designs around. Below are a few samples that I simply adore.

If you are strapped for time this holiday season, consider sending out a "Happy New Year" greeting instead. You can send it after Christmas and your friends and family will be just as pleased!

image source: Minted

Are your holiday cards ordered yet? With the idea I have in mind I may have to wait til after Thanksgiving to get started on it. I'll let you know how it all works out.