Happy to announce we got over 75 comments on this post and so were able to choose THREE winners. Scroll to the end of the post to find out who won!
Christmas Tree note card, from Kneen & Co: www.kneenandco.com
The other day I was dismayed to read this article in the Chicago Tribune about the decline of holiday cards. From the article:
“While Christmas remains the holiday that sparks the most greeting card sales, fewer people send cards each year…
The outlook is particularly weak for teenagers and college students, who are accustomed to communicating in ways that are more immediate, more efficient and more cost-effective, said Pamela Danziger, president of Unity Marketing.
“Compared to these instant forms of communication, addressing a preprinted card and sending it via snail mail seems like an antiquated waste of time,” Danziger said.”
Such a news report would have set my mother–with whom I credit my rebellious-traditionalist-contrarian leanings–into a rant of epic proportions. I can clearly remember her making us kids sit down around the table several times a year to pen holiday letters, birthday greetings and thank-you notes, despite our groans and protests. It wasn’t enough for us to scribble our names on a card and send it off–there had to be an actual personal message with each letter. Maybe she just felt it was the polite, ‘right’ thing to do. Maybe she was trying to teach us a lesson: that a thing hard done is a thing worth doing. Either way, handwritten letters at Christmas and always, always thank-you notes were part of her motherly philosophy.
It’s not a philosophy I’ve always stuck with, I hate to admit. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve managed to get Christmas cards out the door in the last decade (and as far as getting them out in time for Christmas...well, maybe twice.) And while my intentions are good, our thank-you note track record is spotty at best.
But even though I’m one of the offenders, reading this article made me feel sad…and determined not to let the art of the hand-written Christmas card disappear entirely. Because to the traditionalist in me, Christmas cards aren’t really just about keeping in touch. They’re about taking a few minutes (more than a brief, unfocused and multi-tasked moment) to sit down and acknowledge the important people in your life–perhaps the ones you don’t see as often as you would like–by sending them something tangible, something special and outside of the everyday in the way a “Merry Christmas” wall posting or mass email simply can’t be.
A card can be held in the receiver’s hands, stuck on the fridge or displayed on the back of a door (even if it will, most likely, eventually be recycled.) It’s something that can’t be lost in a spam folder alongside scam mail from Nigerian princes or buried under messages about end-of-year budget meetings. Something displaying a unique display of your handwriting, whether it’s even and lovely or (like mine) sloppy and scrawly. Something that is a real-life snapshot of time, to be preserved, read twice or ten times, lingered over.
The holiday card is something I don’t want to let die away. So this year, I’ll be sitting down with an old-fashioned box of cards and a pen and scribbling–err, carefully penning– holiday greetings to a short list of friends and relatives I want to acknowledge a little more personally and permanently than an email or Facebook message will allow.
Maybe I won’t have it together enough to slip pictures of the kids into the cards, and it’s very possible some of the cards won’t make it to their destinations by December 24. As to whether I’ll repeat this year in and year out, I can only say: I’ll try. But in the spirit of learning to slow down and enjoy small rituals, I’m realizing that the Christmas card is one tradition I don’t intend to slip away under the guise of “we’re too busy.” After all, generations of card-senders before us had just as many hours in a day. Maybe what they understood–and what us modern folk seem to be forgetting–is that time-consuming rituals and traditions can give us more in satisfaction and connection than they take away in time and energy.
I don’t want you to feel guilty if you aren’t sending cards this year. If you can’t manage one more thing on your plate or are simply moving that activity aside to make room for others, I totally understand. But I hope we won’t all, as the ominous Tribune article suggests we might, write off holiday-card-writing and other slow and outdated traditions simply because technology seems to be making them obsolete. Because one thing thinking about the way I spend my time has shown me is that quicker and more efficient doesn’t always equal time better spent. Often the slower activities are the ones that bring me the most satisfaction and happiness. And I’m guessing my investing time in those activities brings other people happiness, too. (Let’s face it: if my 80-something-year-old Grandma hasn’t gotten on Facebook yet, chances are good it’s not going to happen. She still wants and deserves to be recognized–right?)
Do you persist in sending snail-mailed holiday cards or participate in some other “old-fashioned” and time-consuming–yet rewarding–holiday tradition? I’d love to hear about it. And since sending hand-written notes is an even bigger pleasure when they’re written on beautiful cards, The Printery, part of Chicago-based company Kneen & Co, will be giving away two–possibly three–gorgeous sets of engraved, hand-beveled holiday notecards complete with tissue-lined envelopes, each with a value of $60.
- One lucky reader will win a set of ten Christmas Tree notecards
- One reader will win a set of ten Ice Skater notecards
- And to encourage you to spread the word, if this post gets at least 75 comments, one more reader will win a set of ten Reindeer notecards!
Since it’s the holiday I’m offering FOUR different opportunities to enter the giveaway. Here’s how you can enter to win:
1) Leave a comment! You can say anything in the comment, but I’d especially love to hear what slow, outdated holiday traditions you’re embracing this year.
2) For an additional entry, check out Kneen & Co’s Facebook page and leave a comment letting me know you did!
3) Want another chance to win? Sure. Tweet, Facebook, Stumble, or blog about the contest. Or tell your great-aunt Bernice or your carpool buddy or the barista at your local coffee shop…whatever you want to do to spread the word! Just make sure to come back and leave an additional comment letting me know.
4) Here’s one more opportunity to enter! Subscribe to my feed, then leave me a comment letting me know.
The contest ends at 10 AM EST Thursday, December 16. Winners will be chosen at random and announced in this post. Winners will be also notified via email by 3:00 PM EST December 16. If winners send mailing addresses by noon on Friday, Dec. 17, their cards will be shipped that day. (Otherwise, your shipment may be delayed!)
Contest open to residents of continental U.S. and Canada.
Good luck and happy tradition-making!
Here’s the cut-and-paste of the winning comments, chosen at random by the plugin “And The Winner Is”
Congrats, winners! You should have heard from me by now asking for your mailing address. If not please shoot me an email at meaganfrancis at yahoo dot com. Thanks to everyone who entered!
I write holiday cards every year. Some years are nice cards, some years photo cards, but always with a personal message. It’s something I love to do each year.
These sets are lovely. The ice skaters make me think of my daughter and me.
Thanks!
Beautiful cards!
I miss hand writing my cards, but I have sent out cards every year for the last decade. They aren’t always on time. Now, with little ones around, they are more often mass produced without a touch of my handwriting on them. But, they go. This year, I am writing to a few friends I want to get back in touch with.
I make it a priority to write and make my Christmas cards (this year is the first that I have not made them due to some other things) every year. I absolutely love sending snail mail letters to people, not only on Christmas but throughout the year. I also participate in Postcrossing, a postcard exchange with others all over the world. It delights me to get a postcard from another country in the mail, as well as write little notes on postcards and send them to others.
I used to be the first to send my Christmas cards out, often hand made. This was 20 years ago. Since then I’ve had 2 children, people have stopped sending cards and I’ve lost incentive. This year my 5 yr old daughter was exited to write a Christmas card for each of her kinder friends. I think it is time to get back into it! I love stationery so I would love to win these cards.
This is the first year I’m sending “holiday” cards, and it hasn’t gone so well. Some are handmade, some are purchased, and my address list is all scrambled and lacking! Hopefully with some nice cards and a new address book it will be better next year!
I also grew up in a house where my Mom sat is down to hand write cards and thank you notes… And now even though I am the mom, who works full time… my son (7) is required to do the same 🙂 Just this past year he sent a printed thank you note to my great aunt and she still carries it in her purse! I do send out Christmas cards via snail mail every year and love to send and receive them. I try to recreate a number of the traditions I grew up with, including baking cookies with my son, reading Christmas stories with him, taking him out to buy for a “less fortunate angel” always a boy of the same age… We listen to Christmas music, decorate our house with new and old decorations and ornaments, (we have 6 trees) and take part in the pageant at Sunday School. Of course we have newer traditions too. He won’t remember playing video games but I hope he will remember the baking, the cards, and the time we spend together.
I stopped by and even “liked” Kneen & Co on FB. 🙂
I also grew up in a house where my Mom sat us down to hand write cards and thank you notes… And now even though I am the mom, who works full time… my son (7) is required to do the same 🙂 Just this past year he sent a printed thank you note to my great aunt and she still carries it in her purse! I do send out Christmas cards via snail mail every year and love to send and receive them. I try to recreate a number of the traditions I grew up with, including baking cookies with my son, reading Christmas stories with him, taking him out to buy for a “less fortunate angel” always a boy of the same age… We listen to Christmas music, decorate our house with new and old decorations and ornaments, (we have 6 trees) and take part in the pageant at Sunday School. Of course we have newer traditions too. He won’t remember playing video games but I hope he will remember the baking, the cards, and the time we spend together.
I might not send anything this year–not even a form holiday letter. But this year is a special circumstance. I’ve got too many deadlines on 1/3 and the holidays are just in my way. In my way! That said, I’ve struggled with this because I try to conserve paper and I know that I toss most of the cards I get from other people–and I suspect they do the same with mine. I think it’s great when a card is really individual and it is personal. I hand make cards throughout the year. I basically cut my kid’s art work up into the shape of a card. I send them to various people for various reasons. It’s not all at once, which is what I find overwhelming about the holidays. And people always seem to love the cards because they are not store bought.
I hate to admit it, but this year, I did ditch the snail mail (and saved some money and lowered my stress level.) I did however design my Christmas card and will be emailing it out!
The holiday tradition that I won’t give up however, is cookie-baking with the kids, a messy, time consuming tradition that I hope remains in my (3) kids’ memories forever! Merry Christmas!
I’m in school, and finals end on the *23rd*. No wonder I’m having a hard time getting into the holiday spirit! There are plenty of traditions that I am missing right now, including sending out Christmas cards, baking a ton of cookies and eating my grandma’s plum pudding. The cookies will get done – just in a major baking session … I hope … and I’m making a cranberry pudding for dessert – the best sub I can swing without actually making plum pudding myself. The cards … I’ll send ’em out if I win them here. 🙂
I’m sharing this on FB as well …
Last year we hand made our cards…and some people said it was the favorite one they received, which was nice for the kids to hear. Last night, we made our list…and although we bought cards this year, the kids are very excited about sending them.
Susan
I’ve been hit or miss with holiday cards, and this year just might be a miss. Last year, the first with our baby, we got professional photos done and sent them out to everyone, but this year I don’t think that’s going to happen. Money being tight means no professional photo, and I had thought we could at least do one at home but I’m not even sure that is going to happen.
I think I may just cut back on who I send a card to save myself some time and at least get something out to my family.
We always send out holiday cards (though sometimes for Chinese New Year instead of Christmas — gives us longer to get our acts together that way!). With family all around the world, and not all of them on email, it’s the only way to reach everybody! Cookies, etc, we do when we have time … but cards, always.
Oh, liked Kneen & Co on facebook.
(Also emailed my stepmom about them…)
Those are beautiful cards! I like to send cards in the mail to friends and family that I won’t see for the holiday’s and I love receiving cards. We give everyone who gets a gift a card as well so we use a lot of cards in our house! They are a nice way to say hello, thank a teacher, spread cheer and create a tradition with the kids. We use the old Christmas cards for crafts in our house and it’s wonderful to see the pictures on the cards re-used and displayed as a piece of artwork created by the kids.
I too hope that Christmas cards are not a forgotten tradition! I love sitting down to write, and also try to write a quick personalized note in every one. I’ve noticed that it has now become customary to also include a family picture, or atleast one of your kids- but this year, I have been mostly behind the camera, so I’m going to forego the picture because I can’t seem to force myself to send a ‘family’ picture sans moi! I’m sure my Grandma would wonder what was up! Haha thank you so much for the contest- I hope to win, but whoever does, I’m sure will love taking the time to pen these pretty cards 🙂
I love sending out holiday cards! I used to do the handwritten kind, but moved to photo cards that involve my cat in odd places (stemming as a joke on my grandma. The year I was married, she said that she’d better see pictures of my baby in my Christmas cards.A not-so-subtle hint 😉 I still include the cat (and now the dog, with a message about “peace and getting along”)
While I do send a photo card, I do hand-sign it with a Sharpie (I am adamant they must be HAND signed) and I address them by hand. In about half of my cards, I include a hand-written note (updates, greetings and such), and I use holiday stationary.
I love the tradition of hand-written notes and do intend to teach my kids the value in it.
My #1 tip for holidays cards is getting them ordered around Thanksgiving time – most of the major players (Photoworks is the one I use) have special deals going on to encourage folks to not get lost in the rush of ordering. I then snuggle in my chair and take my time addressing them while I am watching TV. I send about 60 cards, so there does have to be a process – I put return labels first, then I hand-address them, then I stamp them, then I sign them. I LOVE signing and writing messages, so I save the part I love for last. 🙂
I do write cards every year. It’s a big task, but I know how happy I feel when I am on the receiving end of a card – it’s the moment that someone took with a pen. And so I stubbornly insist that cards and holiday pictures of our family are important.
And I am also teaching my kids to sit and write their Thank Yous. Well, one kid so far – the baby is just that and doesn’t do much with crayons beyond eat them. While my son is too small to write, I have him make the cards (maybe we make one picture, scan it, and print it for post cards, or maybe we are feeling excited about rubber stamps and glitter glue…) and I write the thanks from his – approximate – dictation. It’s just so important to me that those small attentions to courtesy and awareness of others don’t go away entirely.
And I just checked out the FB page. Nice stuff!
I’m trying to overcome my innate Scrooginess, in deference to my kids. I’d like for them to grow up with a better attitude toward the holidays than I did.
my little guy is only 8 months, so as he gets older we’ll start doing more of the holiday traditions with him that we grew up with… popcorn garland, making tree decorations…
i love watching old christmas movies though, and still always manage to do some christmas baking.
I still sent out holiday snail-mail! Absolutely cannot give that up. I LOVE receiving cards/letters/photos from others….though I must say, they’ve been dribbling in pretty slowly this year so far. I hope that article isn’t right!!
While I don’t always do something hand-written, I at least send an updated photo of our daughter and or all 3 of us. It’s important to me to have that annual holiday check-in with those both near & far.
Lovely. I agree with you wholeheartedly..”the slower activities are the ones that bring me the most satisfaction and happiness.”
Those are beautiful cards! I can’t imagine not sending Christmas cards, I always do, and imagine I always will. 🙂
We’ve sent out cards every year for the past 10 years. This will be the first year we are not sending out cards. We are in the process of moving 3,000 miles!
My only daughter is under two, so I’m really just getting started with the traditions. I’m reading lots of Christmas stories and baking, which isn’t really part of my family’s traditions, but I’m enjoying it a lot, and hopefully she is too! Thanks for the giveaway.
I’ve been doing photo cards ever since our first was born in 2007 (we’re up to 75 to 100 now!), so I’ve got a decent track record with the handwritten ones and haven’t started feeling guilty yet. I do hand-address the photo cards and often write a note or send a handwritten letter to the friends and family I’ve been out of touch with. Forgive me if this is something any of you all do out there, but I cringe at the mass-produced family news letters. Most of the time I don’t know the people well enough to know who or what they’re talking about and would rather just get the unsigned photo card.
Lovely cards! I’m sending out a handful of homemade cards so far, complete with kid artwork. Not a lot, but I’m sure the grandparents will proudly display them.
Every year since I had my daughter I persist intrying to make cookies for everyone! This year is proving difficult though. I am 8 months pregnant and have a co-sleeping nursing two year old under foot, I find myself too exhausted to attempt it. I will probably end up making them though. I like to think my friends and family appreciate the time and effort that go into them.
I love receiving cards – so I keep sending them out! We punch a hole in the corner of the cards, tie a ribbon on them and hang them on the garland wrapped around our bannister. Before kids, when Christmas was over, I would cut out whatever I thought was pretty on the card and made 8 X 10 collages with them and hung them up every year. Maybe I need to start that tradition again!
I love getting Christmas cards! I really hope that this tradition does not go by the wayside. One tradition that my family makes an effort to keep alive is Christmas Eve caroling. You really don’t see too many people caroling anymore, and the reception that we get is amazing and so much fun! So, we pack the mugs full of hot chocolate, pack up some boxes of Christmas cookies to deliver as we carol and make our way through the neighborhood. So much fun!
we write cards every year. =) the kids are 2 and 3 and they draw pictures to go in each card. =) It’s a fun ( and stressfull) afternoon of family fun! My father in law is teaching me how to make candy since that’s HIS trade mark holiday tradition! =)
I LOVE LOVE LOVE getting Christmas cards so I’m compelled to send them. My husband was annoyed but compliant when I said that each card needed to have at least 1 line of hand written sentiment. Though truth be told, we sent out photo cards this year with our sweet little boy that contained not a single pen stroke except for the addresses.
I love this post! It makes me sad that people don’t send cards as often anymore. It doesn’t take much and who doesn’t like finding a smile in their mailbox?
The slow, outdated tradition we embraced this year: making a stuffed bunny out of a sock, ribbon, stuffing, needle and thread, and 3 buttons! I am not that crafty, and the sweetest thing was totally falling in love with it. Alas, it is for my daughter’s Kris Kringle classmate.
We still send out cards every year. Once upon a time, I made each by hand, but 3 kids later I have found I can’t keep up with that aspect. We also love decorating every year. I am lucky enough to have decorations that were my mother’s when she was little and we were given some decorations that were my husband’s great grandmother’s as well. Those decorations are so special. I love remembering each item every year; the yarn Santa and Mrs Claus my grandma made me that caught on fire one year (thanks to the old hot lights), the pixie elves from the 1950’s that I painstakingly glued back together after the cat knocked one off the mantle. They are all wonderful memories.
I checked out Kneen & Co on facebook.
We send holiday cards every year. We move quite a bit due to my husband’s job so this our way of keeping in touch with people we have met around the world. These lovely note cards remind me of the times back when my Christmas card list was so small I could hand make all of my cards!
I love writing cards throughout the year and Christmas cards for sure. I would love to win the notecards.
checked out their FB page… learned they recently were featured in Departures and Chicago Home + Garden.
I’m making homemade gifts for our family.
I always send Christmas cards! I started sending them when I moved out of my parent’s house at age 20. I love picking out the perfect design each year! And now that I have a little one, I always include a wallet sized photo of him. I usually send out around 25, and we end up getting maybe 16 or so. But I don’t mind sending more than we get 🙂 I’m not doing it just to get one back
shared this giveaway with my mom
I checked out Kneen and Co’s facebook page with their handcrafted goods.
I never manage to send out Christmas cards. In fact, I still have cards from 3 years ago addressed and in envelopes without stamps.
We haven’t received a single card this year. I’m not at all surprised tho since people are like “hey we never get a card from them so I’m not sending one out again this year!”
Oh and our antiquated tradition? That would be the live tree. Seems like no one has one any more.
I too love getting handwritten Christmas cards. It just makes you feel special, like someone took their time to personally give you a gift of them! I really want to keep this tradition alive and do it with love and without the stress and pressure that this time of year can put on us at times!
I did all of your qualifications for the contest! I hope I am one of the winners…the cards are beautiful! Love this!
I liked them on facebook.
Love sending Christmas cards to loved ones:) I also love to shower my friends, family, and co-workers with Christmas treats this time of year. Homemade ornaments, cookies, etc are much more meaningful as gifts.
For the first time we are sending cards this year…because I like receiving them.. and I agree it’s a nice tradition!
I always make at least one present each for my daughter and my niece. Last year they got tutus and t-shirts. This year it’s going to be magnetic paper dolls and tutu t-shirts.
I added your RSS feed to my reader.
I do all my own holiday baking. I even use some of my baking as Christmas gifts. We also make a holiday craft, age appropriate, with my 5 year old daughter. This year it was salt dough ornaments.
We hand-wrote Christmas cards and snail-mailed them to family and friends. We also baked cookies and gave a batch or two to our neighbors with their Christmas cards. Merry Christams everyone!
I love to send handwritten notes. I’m sending cards this Christmas after a 2 year hiatus due to many reasons (and it really bothered me that I didn’t send them!) These cards are beautiful!
This is the first year since starting a family I have sent out Christmas cards, but I insist that we send out Thank You cards every time we get a gift or someone does something particularly nice for us.
I subscribe via google reader.
My husband and I have went to the store together and picked out one ornament every year that we have been together. We write the year on the ornament with a sharpie. It is fun every year when we unpack the Christmas stuff to find all of the ornaments back to 1998!
Is baking considered old-fashioned? Cause that’s what I love to do! There’s nothing better than creating a luscious baked treat & sharing it with everyone.
I visited their facebook page- I love their products.
I’ve also subscribed to your blog via Google Reader!
I have been lamenting the dwindling number of Christmas cards I receive every year. So far this year, I’ve only received a handful. It’s so sad. But I will persist in sending cards, and my list usually grows longer every year. This year, I sent out 93. DH and I also include a newsletter recapping our year. People tell me they look forward to our cards and newsletters each December!
That makes it worthwhile to me – but I still wish more people would send ME a Christmas card 🙁
For the first time since I was in high school I didn’t send Christmas cards last year. It was freeing. An obligation that had gotten too heavy for me that I let go of quite happily. I got a number of phone calls, emails, notes and cards. My Christmas cards were missed.
This year I send them again. I am a sucker for the handwritten Christmas card. There is nothing quite like holding in your hands a card that someone you love held in their hands only days before. It has value that just can’t be received via the internet.
I, too, am terrible at holiday and thank-you cards, though always with good intention. I was inspired by someone’s comment on Facebook though, mentioning how she was finished with all her cards AND all her holiday shipping. I thought HOLY COW! If she can do it, >I< can do it! The next morning I picked a picture from my computer, ordered wallets online at Walmart, picked them up a couple hours later, and that night I had 50 cards done to go in the mail. It was an ALL DAY event, I couldn't believe it. It took hours for me to do all those cards, with only a sentence or two in each one. At the end of it though, I was so satisfied. It was great feeling :o)
I always send Christmas cards even though I don’t receive as many as I use to which makes me sad. I was trying to knit stockings for my husband, daughter, and myself but will only have my daughter’s completed. ) : I’m trying to start the tradition of putting little gifts for one another in our stockings throughout the month of December – anything from handmade little things to gag gifts to small thoughtful items… sadly we aren’t on track for this year, but I will get those stockings finished for next! I also want to find or create the perfect advent calendar. Thanks for the chance to win – happy holidays!
How beautiful these cards are!
We are staying home more this Christmas. We are expecting a new grandchild anyday and then hoping to have our complete family with new addition home for Christmas day for Turkey and stuffing and the works.
Visited facebook Keen and Co.
I subscribed to feed.
This year, I collaborated with a designer to create custom holiday cards based on a parody I wrote called “The Night Before Deadline.” So far, the editors and clients who’ve gotten my cards seem to like them. I sent most by snail mail, but there were a few new-to-me editors I happened to be emailing with, so I attached it as an ecard and wished them a happy holiday that way. I left a message on their Facebook page. Tried to subscribe to your RSS feed, but something went wrong (I wonder if it’s a Chrome issue, because it’s been happening a lot lately!). Happy Holidays!
I just visited Kneen & Co. on facebook.com
I just subscribed to your feed.
#3 Shared it as a link on FB
Every year I WISH that I were sending cards! We sent a beautiful photo of our family when our first child was 18 months old, and haven’t gotten it together again since to do so. I think I spend way too much time thinking about the “perfect” card and just put way too many obstacles in my way. That seems like an easy problem to solve, doesn’t it? 🙂
I have sent out Christmas cards annually since I was out of college. I also bake and make candy yearly. This year, I am attempting a gingerbread house with my daughters (ages 6 and 4). i have a fabulous Victorian gingerbread house mold that was used pre-children, but has, post-children, only collected dust. Until now, that is. I think we’re ready to attempt it together!
I also checked out you FB page….very interesting and unique stuff!
Gorgeous cards — I’m sorry to see this is a tradition going by the wayside. This year I’m making my own cards, which is even more time consuming, but by being blank on the inside, it forces me to really be personal about it. We’ve only received 3 cards so far this year.
We love our Advent book and Advent calendar (daily activities) and we always send Christmas cards too – but we’ve pared our list way down.