Loving Custom Stationery & Female Entrepreneurs

I love this list of fun facts added to a Christmas card

Pamela Chan, BCFamily.ca

Our purpose in life is to uncover exceptional design from all over the world and bring this to savvy consumers who won’t accept anything else. (About page, Minted.com)

Confession up front! I’m slightly addicted to the concept of creating holiday cards online.  It used to be that I’d take some of my favourite photographs (usually of flowers) and make them into Christmas cards.  I’d add stickers and special paper in a scrapbooking-before-it-became-fashionable way.  Then I decided to take one favourite photo from the year and use that one to make cards.  Once I discovered that I could make photo collage cards online I was hooked. There was no turning back.

For this reason I didn’t hesitate to take part in an opportunity to share information about Minted.com cards and stationery.  (More information about this opportunity is disclosed below.) The holiday season is coming up  and that means one thing –  I’ll be rushing to figure out what I should do for cards.  “Please don’t leave the Christmas cards too late!” is my usual self talk in the fall. This has been my tradition for the last 15 years and I’m not about to stop.  I enjoy spending the time thinking about each household that is receiving my card.  In a more selfish way I also love receiving cards from all around the city, country and world.  It’s as if a little piece of that person’s world has landed in my mail box.  I particularly love to see recent photos of the sender (or the sender and his/her family).  Now that more and more people are using custom card websites, I’m receiving examples of beautiful photography. Naturally I never recycle any of them!

The first place I checked out on Minted.com was their Christmas page.  I’ve had a fair amount of experience checking out card sites as I’ve been doing this for a number of years now.   What I noticed first – what really jumped out at me – is that each card has three colour themes. The way that the colour theme affects the card is different for each design.  It might be the main lettering that changes. Accents in the design might change or the background could change colours.  This blows wide open the range of options for the selection of cards available for your holiday needs.  For the Christmas option there are 23 pages featuring 20 images.  If you are looking to create a unique card, this large number of possibilities will prompt your creative talents.

Cards – such as the one shown above – feature a photo fit into a cut out of the word joy – truly stand out.  Cards that are not folded, double thickness or triple thickness can also be cut to special shapes. (As in the example shown here.)

Minted.com cards are designed by a worldwide network of independent designers.  Here’s what the founder Mariam Naficy and her staff have to say about the community of designers who work for them:

Minted is a global community of independent graphic designers and an online store that prints and sells the best of their designs in the form of paper goods. We believe that great design lives and thrives in the hands of indie designers that people may not have access to through traditional retailers. Our goal is to use technology to allow our community to discover the work of great designers from all over the world. And at the same time, create a place where designers can get exposure and build their careers.

Whether or not you are planning to send out holiday cards (including New Years cards), you might be planning a wedding, having a baby or planning an event for your children.  You can also create a journal, thank you cards, moving announcements, a calendar, business cards and address labels.  One feature that is very tempting is the idea of designing your own personal stationery.  There are many opportunities when you might want to write a note, letter or thank you message to someone using your own stationery. In the example shown above you can forgo using your initial or name and use your favourite photograph instead.

Moving beyond stationery needs, you can buy art prints for yourself and others.  The selection of prints features bold, unique graphics and opportunities to make custom changes or add in your own photography.

Other unique options include family tree art, custom photo art pieces (including the option shown below)  and party supplies.  Custom made bunting, table runners, party signs and table decorations are the stuff of Pinterest inspired dreams. It’s fun to check out the children’s party themes but I’m most interested in the grown-up theme. This is because my once-a-decade milestone birthday bash takes place on my 8th year.  The tradition started when I was 18 and I threw a big party with friends in Tokyo.   When I turned 28 I was back in Tokyo celebrating again! For my next “milestone” birthday I’d like a Coco Chanelish party theme.  Using the Glitter Everywhere theme (hold the Coco Chanel insignia) and adding in healthy splashes of pink would do the job nicely.

If you dread the idea of going to different places trying to find a frame, you can opt for a framed version of your print.

Most of their 5,000 designers (98 percent) are women and 40 percent are mothers.

“We see lots of submissions at 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. And I, being a mom myself, am right there with them.”  (Mariam Naficy, Founder, Minted)

To stay up-to-date regarding information about special offers,  “like” the Minted.com Facebook page.

Do you like to create custom stationery online? Have you ordered prints of graphic designs via a website? You can comment about this posting using the comment function below or on the BCFamily.ca Facebook page. Your contribution matters so don’t be shy!

Related

More about Minted.com’s founder Mariam Naficy

A description of the triple ply paper used to make Minted cards.

Minted raises 41 M for larger crowd sourced design push.

Bloggers: Apply to become a party ambassador

Minted.com blog

Minted.com on Facebook

Minted.com on Pinterest

Minted.com on Twitter

Fascinating insight into the launch of Minted.com and how its founder coped with initial failure. Mariam Naficy is an aluma of Stanford University. Have you noticed that many of the top female entrepreneurs in the United States are Stanford alumnae especially from their School of Business.

SEE the must-see video below:

Disclosure:  I am being compensated by Minted.com to write about their product offerings.  The opinions that I have shared on this posting are my own.

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