Record card celebrates 2 of my favorite things: Athletes & Switzerland

In Switzerland, they love their athletes. I lived there for the summer when I was 14 and when I wasn't clocking boys at the local pool, communing with goats and cows in the backyard and learning how Swiss cheese was made, I often watched village soccer games played in no less than four languages. Soccer was not an option in Sumiswald: you played ... in German, Italian, French, Romansh and sometimes English (mostly for my benefit).

The good luck card celebrating Swiss skiers, jumpers, curlers and hockey players competing in the Winter Olympics in Vancouver has 3,645 signatures and is so big -- 43×64 meters (that's 141 by 210 feet) -- that it had to be hung on the Lac de Creuson dam. So big, in fact, that the Guinness Book of World Records dubbed it the world's largest.

Damnnnn.

Finally, an iPhone app for paper greeting cards

I don't own an iPhone, but this kind of technology makes me wish I did.

CardRaven allows you to send greeting cards from your phone. No big deal, right? Anyone can send an e-card (there's are free, BTW, and not really worth your time). But this app allows you to send print greeting cards from you phone. Printed greeting cards where you can take a picture with your phone (or, with your camera and upload it to your phone) and ADD it to the card. Paper greeting cards that cost only $2.99 to send, anywhere in the world, postage included. So the next time you need to send something airmail, this service is definitely a no-brainer.

And it's green with a twist: "Our greeting cards are printed with vibrant and durable inks, similar to postcards. The cards are folded, sealed, stamped and mailed – without an envelope. Without an envelope, your card will be noticed and opened immediately."

Not sure what kind of research went into the last statement, but it's an interesting sales tactic (though, who doesn't open a card they get in the mail?)

Major drawback: the art & designs need A LOT of work. But since everyone is a semi-pro photog these days, that doesn't matter as much. Customizable mobile greetings are the wave of the future. You heard it here first.

Is it IMproper to think these cards aren't saucy enough?

If you're going to promise me something irreverent, naughty & sassy, you'd better deliver. Seek Publishing has launched IMproper Greetings - combining images from the 1920s with such "modern" sayings as "WTF." The result ... maybe I'm missing something. WTF?

Greeting cards + wine = awesome

Wine bags. My home-bar area is cluttered with them. A great thing to reuse, but often ugly and easily ripped.

Wine gifts. I get a lot of them. Always graciously accepted and readily shared.

Cards. I can never get enough greeting cards.

Toast-its addresses all of these life issues with nice art and some fun sayings. The greeting cards that wrap around wine bottles are $3.99 each, shipping included, and when combined with a $10 bottle, makes for a nice, personal and unique host/ess gift for your next night out. Plus, the brand sounds like Cheeze-its, which are a good snack addition to any (casual) party. And who doesn't love cheese & crackers?

No word on if they fit around bottles of bubbly -- the toast-its, not the Cheeze-its. Maybe toast-its 2.0.

The best VTD card that I didn't get, but wish I had given

The boys at Bald Guy Greetings have done it again. I heart them so much.

I hope all of you got what you wanted from the (fabricated-but-still-important) holiday. There's a lot of pressure to give a good card to a card writer. Luckily, the best one I got was in Spanish, had dogs on it and made me laugh out loud for both of those reasons. And that's one of the best gifts you can give anyone.

What kinds of cards did you give this Valentine's Day. And did it work? Did you get laid?

Cards for the great beyond

Normally, I try to avoid linking to stories that could make me cry, but this is a unique one. Eternally Yours offers "laminated, weather proof cards" intended "to celebrate holidays, birthdays and special family remembrances with those who are no longer with us." Not an easy task, so I'm glad a company is trying to tackle it. PEP will be sure to follow with something a little lighter than "You left too soon." Which is kind of making me cry right now.

Regardless of what you think about life after death, after I've left this world, please send me cards addressed to wherever you think I've gone. I figure Heaven & Hell both have forwarding programs.

When you care enough to say I love you more than video games...

I'm hoping I get one of these this weekend.

Really, really hoping.

But at $6.25 a pop, maybe I should just go for the cuff links and call it a Valentine's Day.

P.S. -- Seriously? An entire blog about Xbox? Really?

Could I be more jealous of Taylor Swift?

It isn't enough that my boyfriend is enamored with her AND she made me tear up when she very genuinely overwhelmed after winning Album of the Year at the Grammy's -- Taylor Swift now has her own greeting card line with American Greetings too. Swift wrote the content for the cards -- ranging from birthday to love notes -- and those items, as well as gift packaging and stationery, are set to be on shelves mid-month.

My idea of a great song is a song that says how I feel, better than I could ... I feel the same way about cards.

So, she's beautiful, has long legs, used to date Jacob from Twilight and is 20 years old ... really?

Really.

The Spam awards

I love that Hormel sponsors a card contest, but I really wanted the prize to be a lifetime supply of meat products instead of a $500 art scholarship.

Thinking about thank you

The PEP team is working on wording for a thank you card. We've had the (awesome) design in place for a while -- I just need to get the words together. The designer-in-chief has been a WEE bit busy with her gorgeous, new baby girl Avery, so any lack of production is COMPLETELY on my side.

Seeking inspiration, I came across this piece on the importance of thank yous. You'd think after writing about 3 dozen of them after the holidays and my birthday, I wouldn't need the extra boost, but it's always good to have a reminder to "be genuine."

Butterflies are forever

I'm that girl who goes to the post office and asks to see all of the stamps they have before buying. Sometimes, I am just handed a pack of Forever stamps and ignored. Other times, there is a limited supply (only Simpsons and National Parks? Really?). But there have been rare times, usually in smaller P.O.s in rural places, when there is never a line and the postal clerk gets a glint in his eye and we end up spending 10 minutes poring over the books together. Yes, dear readers: I'm a stamp nerd.

So, Christmas will come early for me in 2010. The USPS, in conjunction with the Greeting Card Association, is creating a new stamp just for greeting cards that aren't shaped to take traditional postage. The 64-cent butterfly stamp, which will be dedicated May 17 at the National Stationery Show in New York City, is designed to take the guesswork out of how much postage is required for those irregular-shaped pieces of joy. Under this new program, participating card manufacturers will print a silhouette image of a butterfly on their envelopes so senders know they need to get a butterfly stamp or equivalent postage at the time. The USPS will issue snew stamps as prices increase, and the first image will be a monarch -- likely the most iconic in the Lepidoptera order and a fitting symbol for a new beginning.

About JibJab

Personally, I think JibJab cards are creepy and weird. But with 80 million shared cards in the fourth quarter along -- the Spiridellis boys are definitely doing something right. USA TODAY had a great profile last month; some of the highlights:

• JibJab Facebook application has 1.2 million active monthly users.
• $12 for an annual subscription for their e-card service.
• 1,200 different possible card combinations.
• Company was started in 1999 and now has 35 employees -- and will be profitable this year.

I may not be into jiggly heads, but I always love a good small business story. Especially one making it work online.

Helping men everywhere to appear to actually care for their loved ones

MrThoughtful.com makes me more angry than excited about innovation in the card community. Why do companies continue to enable men's thoughtlessness? And who designed this Web site, a pack of moths? I was going to write monkeys, but monkeys undoubtedly have better HTML skills.

For the record, if you can't remember my birthday -- considering what a huge deal I make about it every year -- you'll need more than an e-reminder service to inform you of the world of Hell you're going to be in.

PEP Greetings: Potpourri-free since 2006.

Did you get a card instead of a gift this year?

I'm just wondering, because this Cardstore.com poll indicated that 20% more of you may have. It also indicated that:

• 43% of Americans prefer a greeting card from a loved one over $10
• 53% of Americans display greeting cards at least through the holidays
• 42% of Americans hold onto holiday cards as a keepsake, such as in a photobox or scrapbook

I keep all of my birthday and holiday cards. Every one. And I am definitely in the 43% of people who would rather get a card with a personal note versus something someone just grabbed at CVS. I have plenty of generic bath salts and themed wine tags at this stage of my life, but I'll never have enough cards with special notes inside from the people I love the most. OK, it helps if the card has glitter or features a particularly hilarious greeting, but you get the point. It is always the thought that counts.

Is American Greetings on the move?

Word out of New York indicates that the chiefs at American Greetings are considering moving the company's global headquarters out of Brooklyn, Ohio, where it is the area's largest employer:

American Greetings cites Brooklyn's increase of payroll tax by 25% to 2.5% But Mayor Richard Balbier wonders if there's more too it.

Balbier tells WTAM that he wonders how Brooklyn would survive the loss of another 2,000 jobs.

So if they pull up stakes, where to next?

The King wishes you happy holidays

I know, I'm late. But please tell me if you were among the 50,000 people who got a greeting card this Christmas with $1 for a ¼lb Double Cheeseburger at BK inside! Brilliant.

My only complaint -- how did the Promo Magazine writer get away with this kicker?

The Double Cheeseburger features two flame-broiled burger patties, crunchy pickles, ketchup, mustard and two slices of American cheese on a sesame seed bun.

I mean, who doesn't know what's in a double cheeseburger? What are we, farmers?

A Facebook app for greeting cards

In November, Hallmark announced it had invested in the developer of the SocialCalendar application for Facebook, and relaunched it as the Hallmark SocialCalendar. The SocialCalendar application (in November) had more than 13 million total users and more than two million monthly active users -- according to Hallmark. It is designed to help people "remember and acknowledge birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, and other events and occasions." Kind of like the FB birthday reminder on greeting card 'roids.

As someone who is NOT a fan of most Facebook apps, but loves Facebook, I decided to give it a try. Not shockingly, it's completely unnecessary. Virtual gifts. Wish lists. Invitations. Doesn't Facebook already offer all of these tools already? It is, however, good to see Hallmark continue to further its online strategy. If anything, it leaves more paper space for us little guys.

Did your holiday cards make you laugh ... or cry?

I only got two holiday cards at my "desk job" this year -- normally I get at least a half dozen. I know that companies are cutting back, but considering the long days and uncertainty in the workplace these days, a few more happy snowmen and foil envelopes would have been much appreciated. And for the first time in eight years, my company didn't send out holiday cards either. A missed opportunity? I think so.

Very little WORK gets done in the last few weeks of the year. People are working remotely (wrapping gifts, shopping, maybe checking their Blackberry or checking voicemail, but mostly driving around town fighting people for parking). However, if they are in the office you know what they are definitely doing -- anything at work that isn't really actually WORK. Company parties. Building parties. Pillaging gift baskets from vendors. Secret Santa. Hot chocolate with rum at 3 p.m. OK, maybe that's just me.

They are also opening holiday cards. And reading them. And passing them around and hanging them up cube and office walls. Why? Because it's one of the few times of year that workers actually have time to do something other than work and usually no one is there to watch them. So, next December, send holiday cards. Funny, cute, thoughtful, smart or just plain thankful. Your partners -- and customers -- will remember you for it.