Tag: personalized birthday cards

Design #462AE – Balloons & Stars Birthday Card

Design #462AE, Balloons & Stars Birthday Card, features a combination of three lovely lavender balloons on shiny white card stock. All three balloons seem to be floating away, through cascades of streamers and confetti. Each of these balloons has refractive stars on them, so when you move the card they pick up many different colors which look lovely against the lavender balloons, further making this personalized birthday card come to life. The words “Happy Birthday” are done in blue foil at the bottom of the card. A blue ink or silver foil imprint inside would set off nicely on the shiny white stock.

Design #462AE - Balloon & Stars Birthday Card
Design #462AE - Balloon & Stars Birthday Card

This birthday card would be great to send to a friend or a co-worker. It has a slight whimsical feel, and with all the great greetings you can choose from, you can express the perfect birthday wish. Not only can you choose a great card, but you can also put the most appropriate greeting inside of it so that anyone who receives it will really appreciate the thought. It is always nice to know that someone thinks enough of you to send you a special card on your special day.

Craft Ideas for Recycling your Birthday Cards

I don’t consider myself to be a pack rat because I don’t like clutter, but recently I decided to clear out a couple of “junk drawers” and a closet. I finally got rid of the magazines and newspaper clippings with recipes, especially holiday or birthday recipes (that I never cooked) and craft ideas (that I never made). I also tied up the four years of National Geographic magazines that my kids never used for reference for school reports. Duh! When was the internet invented?

As I came across the next hurdle, I knew I wouldn’t part with it. It was my box of personalized birthday cards. I save greeting cards that I receive from friends and relatives. You know the ones with the beautiful wrapped presents on them and the ones with balloons and cakes and candles. I like to recycle things and also love crafting. If I like the design on the front of the card or the greeting on the inside, I just throw the card in a drawer, thinking one day I’ll do something with it. Well, with the drawers and closet overflowing, I had to act. Here are some ideas I came up with:

Idea #1 – Instead of buying expensive wrapping paper, collect all the birthday cards that you’ve received, especially the ones with beautifully wrapped presents on them. Wrap your gift either in brown or white craft paper (I’ve even used aluminum foil in a pinch) or a put it in a plain box or gift bag. You can cut the pictures and words off the cards and paste them randomly on the package. You can even use the inside greeting or verse words. If you have enough birthday cards you can cut out each letter individually to spell “Happy Birthday” or the recipient’s name. I like to use craft scissors with different edges to vary the finish. Your gift will be unique!

Idea #2 – Cut the pictures off the front of the birthday cards and make gift tags by punching a hole in the top of each image and pulling ribbon through it. Tie a bow and tape it to your gift.

Idea #3 – Use birthday cards for your scrapbooking projects. When filling a page with pictures from a birthday, cut the words, pictures, and greetings off the cards. Arrange them around the pictures to add descriptive memories of the special event. Finish the page by adding bows, ribbons, or fabric swatches to add texture. Although I never seem to get the time to do my own scrapbook, I have made pages for my niece to add to her book with pictures I have taken at her special events such as her Baptism, first day of school, and a Disney vacation.

Design #335AY – Bedazzling Happy Birthday Card

Personalized birthday cards are just one of the many ways to acknowledge an associate or an employee, letting them know that they are an important and integral part of your team. It shows that each individual is vital to the success of a company and worthy of a personal acknowledgment on their own special day.

Design #335AY, Bedazzling Happy Birthday Card, evokes the spirit of fun. The “Happy Birthday” sentiment is cleverly spelled out with a colorful array of dots. These dots vary in size and give the impression that the artist had a grand time as the creation was bedazzled into a fun filled design.

Design #335AY - Bedazzling Happy Birthday Card
Design #335AY - Bedazzling Happy Birthday Card

If you want to bedazzle with personalized birthday cards, consider this design or check out one of the many other designs offered by The Gallery Collection. You are guaranteed to find one that will tickle your fancy.

Personalized Birthday Cards and the Big 6-0

On April 4th of last year, I wrote about how great it was to have received personalized birthday cards and company birthday cards from my employers for celebrating my 59th birthday and that, because of how great the feeling was, that was the reason why I was looking forward to the big 6-0 this year. Well, the big 6-0 has passed and what a great day it was!

I actually threw a party for myself at a restaurant and invited relatives and friends – 30 people in all. There was plenty of food, my favorite music, speeches – you know, a real neat celebration. When I got home, I proceeded to read all the birthday cards and open all the presents. Everyone was extremely generous with their gifts and sentiments that were written on the inside of the birthday cards. Once the guests that had accompanied us back to my home had gone for the night, I sat and reflected that the big 6-0 had been the best birthday I had ever had. There were a couple of tears as well as I thought about how great a day it had been.

Since this year’s big day was so special, going back to receiving those nice personalized birthday cards and one from my bosses next year is just fine with me.

Customized Crafts using Personalized Birthday Cards

What do you do with your personalized birthday cards after you open them? Okay, you might display them for a while, but when you get tired of looking at them, or tired of picking them up when the cat knocks them over (I assume this must happen, although I’ve never actually witnessed it), you probably dispose of them. If you’re environmentally conscious, you recycle them, and if you’re not, you throw them in the trash. If you’re the sentimental type, you might store them in a box that you only open on those rare occasions when you change your place of residence, or on the even rarer occasions when you clean out your attic. Now, I admit that I immediately recycle the ones with glitter (environmentally conscious, don’t like glitter), however the non-glittery ones face a more interesting fate. I take these used birthday cards and give them another chance to make someone smile, by using them to make customized craft items.

Today I am going to tell you how to make gift boxes. Gift boxes are simple to make, and can be used for small items like jewelry, or those gift cards that are so popular these days. And since gift cards aren’t the most creative gift you can give, at least the box can be creative, right? My favorite design for gift boxes is something called a pillow box. For this project you will need birthday cards, glue, scissors, a pencil, a ruler, a butter knife or other object that you can use to score (crease) the paper to make it easier to fold, and a circular object like a plate to trace the curved ends of the box.

Step 1: Fold the birthday card along its normal crease.

Step 1

Step 2: Flip the card over so you are looking at the back of the card.

Step 3: Measure and draw a straight line along the lower (open) edge of the back of the card, approximately 1 inch from the lower edge. The 1 inch measurement here is really just a suggestion. This portion is going to be cut away from the front of the birthday card, so you may want to adjust this to control the portion of the front of the card that will appear on the completed box.

Step 3

Step 4: Holding the ruler along this line, score it using the back (non-serrated) edge of the knife. You do not want to cut the paper; you only want to make a crease.

Step 5: Fold the card, along this new crease, away from you, and toward the front of the card.

Step 5

Step 6: With the birthday card in this position, you will see a small portion of the inside edge of the front of the card. Trace a line onto the inside of the front of the card, along the folded edge you just created. Cut this edge off the front of the card.

Step 6

Step 7: Turn card over and apply a small amount of glue to the inside edge (the side facing the inside of the front of the card, outlined in red below) of the flap you created in Step 5 and spread it evenly across the entire flap.

Step 7

Step 8: Press this glued edge onto the inside of the front of the card and apply pressure. You may want to place a heavy object like a book on the card to help glue the edges firmly together.

Step 9: While you’re waiting for the glue to dry, you can perform steps 1-6 on your next couple of cards – you didn’t think we were only making one of these, did you? When the glue has dried, place the round object (plate or bowl) on the folded and glued card, so that the curved edge of the object touches the left side of the card. Trace the curve with the pencil. Repeat for the right side.

Step 9

Step 10: Cut along these lines so the birthday card is now curved on the sides, and straight on the top and bottom.

Step 10

Remember to recycle the scraps.

Step 11: Place the round object back on the card and score the curve (using the back of the knife) in the opposite direction from the curved edge to form a shape that looks like parentheses ( ). You will need to do this on both the left and right sides, on both the front and back of the card.

Step 11

Step 12: Here’s the fun part. Turn the card so that the back edge is facing you. Press the curved shape – the one that looks like parentheses ( ) – on the left side toward the front. Repeat on the right side. Flip the card over and do the same thing on the front of the card on both sides. The box should “puff” and the curved folds should hold it in place.

Step 12

You can adjust the height of the box by removing more or less than one inch from the bottom of the card. You can also adjust the portion of the card that is visible by using a fold other than the natural fold of the card. Since these are so easy to make, feel free to experiment and remember to properly recycle the scraps!

Personalized Birthday Cards for Safe Keeping

I have only moved twice in my life (and no I am not counting the dorm room in college)…once when I was 30 and again last summer. It is definitely something that I NEVER want to do again…especially the last crazed few weeks before the move. At one point during those last weeks, I just started throwing things in boxes, mostly without looking at them. But the one thing that I did start to look at was many years worth of personalized birthday cards.

I suppose birthday cards are something people tend to hold onto. Apparently, in my family we do anyway. There were so many birthday cards to look through. There were ones that had been personalized by friends who picked out cards with dogs on them or cartoon characters I had especially liked. Some of the birthday cards had been personalized with stickers or drawings by the children I used to teach. There were birthday cards that had been personalized with notes written for me. And then there was the birthday card that was probably the most special birthday card of all. It had been sent to me by my aunts, and they had helped the dog “sign” it with an ink paw print. Despite the craziness of the moment and knowing that I should be packing, I kept looking at all my old personalized birthday cards and smiling.

Then I went into another drawer and found birthday cards that I had personalized for my aunts…cards that went back years, with drawings I had made and notes I had written (many of them with misspellings). I knew that these cards had meant to them what the cards I had saved meant to me. Deeper into that drawer though, I found even more. I found cards that had been written to them by their parents when they were young. These cards were not personalized by drawings, or stickers, or ink paw prints. But I think that these birthday cards, which had really just been personalized by the signature “Mother and Daddy” meant as much to them as if they had been personalized with all the other things. After all they had been kept for over 50 years.

Finally, I stopped looking at all these personalized birthday cards. I found a plastic envelope and carefully packed them away. These birthday cards didn’t go into a box though. I took them right over to the new apartment so that they would be safe, and nothing would happen to them during the move.

Show Appreciation for Personalized Birthday Cards

When I was a youngster my mother, God rest her soul, tried valiantly to get me to read the personalized birthday cards that came with my birthday presents. She actually wanted me to take the time to open and read the cards before tearing off the wrapping paper!! What century was she born in?

Later, I realized that she was born in a century that valued the written word – one in which chivalry was still alive and people were not criticized for displaying a little tenderness. Now, all of your birthday cards don’t have to be mushy or sentimental…I am all for humor and light heartedness. But somewhere between throwing greeting cards away without reading them or reading them with a chip on your shoulder, let’s get back to appreciating the effort put forth in the selection and sending of modern day birthday cards.

Unless you are a gifted writer and are prone to writing sentimental or comical notes to people, just take a look at some of the offerings available. You will be surprised at the wonderful variety to be had and the ease of choosing and sending one. On-line via the Internet is my personal favorite way. You can view literally hundreds of birthday cards sites and order quickly and efficiently.

I heartily recommend to all that the best way to show appreciation is to send personalized birthday cards, and the best way to feel appreciation is to read each card and think about who sent it.

Birthday Cards Capture Moments in Time

My friends’ son Evan recently turned two years old.  It feels like just yesterday I was holding him as a newborn.  It’s amazing how time flies!

Evan’s grandparents, aunts, uncles and family friends all gathered for a birthday party, where we showered him with food, presents, and personalized birthday cards.  His parents helped him carefully look at the greeting cards before letting him tear through the pile of gifts.  My friends like to keep all of the greeting cards given to their son so he can look at them when he’s older and see how much everyone loves him.  They even keep the little paper holder I make to accompany the cash gift my husband and I always give him “For the College Fund.”  They want Evan to appreciate the thoughtful sentiments extended to him, and greeting cards are perfect for showing that affection.

I also hold on to my greeting cards for sentimental value (and because I tend to be a pack rat!).  I don’t go through the greeting cards very often but when I do it’s entertaining.  The collection of birthday cards, thank you cards, Christmas cards, wedding invitations and other various greeting cards is almost like a time capsule, bringing me back to a particular year and evoking memories of what I was doing at that point in my life.  Much like photographs, greeting cards have the ability to capture moments in time.

During Evan’s birthday party, we of course took plenty of photos to capture that particular moment in time.  When he is older, I bet it will be interesting for him to go through all of the birthday cards, Christmas cards and other assorted greeting cards that were given to him over the years.  And the older he gets, he’ll likely come to realize how fast time goes by just like the rest of us!

Business Birthday Cards will Never Become a Thing of the Past

When I started working at The Gallery Collection, I was an order taker. I quickly learned something interesting…many orders were for business birthday cards. “What a great idea,” I thought! Birthday cards from the boss! Giving a card is a wonderful and easy way to boost morale and impress employees, especially if it is a high quality card like the ones we make.

Business birthday cards are a great way to let co-workers, employees, business clients, and loyal customers know that you are interested in their happiness. Business relationships are more than just emails and phone calls; People appreciate the thoughtfulness of genuine business greeting cards that have been personalized and mailed to them.

Business birthday cards are just one more way to keep one step ahead of the competition. In these hard economic times, sending a card is a cost effective way to let your customers know you are still in business and that you still appreciate their loyalty. Remember…your customers are your bread and butter, but they are still people and people do like having their special days recognized. This is why business birthday cards will never become a thing of the past.

Personalized birthday cards don’t have to be conservative or stogy; they can be full of fun. We design our exquisite cards with balloons, cakes, presents and party decorations, and then they are embellished with silver and gold foils. If the person you are giving a Gallery Collection business greeting card to is anything like me, they will be impressed before they even pull the card out of the envelope. I once said “You had me at the envelope,” as they have a pearl lining to match the card. Some are also deckled edged and are reminiscent of the past when quality was everything.

As an employee I have the privilege of receiving complimentary greeting cards. I share them with my family because they all ask for them so they can impress their friends. I am always happy to receive a Gallery Collection greeting card from them because it means that they cared enough to send me a “good one.”

Personalized Birthday Cards: What Goes Around Comes Around

There was an old lady who sent a birthday card to an old friend. However, her writing was shaky and the birthday card was delivered to a man who was in a bad way. He was alone and had lost his job. He was very depressed, but when he opened the envelope, he began to think about things. Even though the birthday card had reached him in error, he started to remember how important his friends and family were to him. How they always sent him personalized birthday cards each year and showed their love in so many ways. He realized what the really important things are in life.

He decided to see if he could locate the sender of the birthday card and tell her that she had the wrong address on it. He thought it would be a nice gesture. He hopped on his computer and found the phone number of the old lady. She was so grateful, and to tell the truth, so happy to be talking to someone that she kept on talking long after the information had been exchanged. At one point she said, “You sound so much like my late husband’s great nephew, and your name is Tom just like his.” She hadn’t heard from Tom in many years.

Well I think you know what came next. There was a joyful reunion for two lonely people. And by the way, eventually the birthday card did get to the right person. The moral of this story is sending birthday cards or performing any other kind gesture is like bouncing a ball: it will surely come back with vigor to the hand that held it.