It’s that time of the year again when you’ve got to decide whether or not to order holiday cards. Personally I get sad every year receiving fewer and fewer cards in the mail. There’s nothing quite like coming home to a full mailbox of holiday greetings and warm messages from friends letting me know how their year went. E-cards just don’t hold the same weight, literally and figuratively. Living in a time where e-mails are replaced by short tweets or Facebook messages, it’s often easy to forget how nice it can be do get a real card in the mail.

If you do send cards out this year, we recommend choosing a company that gives back. Not to toot our own horn, but Paper Culture plants a tree in your honor for every order.  If you want to skip the gift-giving this year, plant a tree for someone instead with a beautifully designed card. Now’s the best time to shop with a final sitewide sale of up to 50% off. There are many other companies that give percentages of the cards to charity. Choose a card design that reflects your style and personality. Consider adding a recently holiday photo. And most importantly, add a few lines of holiday cheer to let your lucky recipient know you’ve been thinking about there. Here’s to a happy and safe holiday season for all!

Enter on our Facebook Fan Page (you must be a Fan to win)

Without further ado, here’s the list of Giveaways:

Sunday Dec 11: $200 Paper Culture Voucher: Well, we couldn’t very well ask our favorite sites to participate without participating ourselves, so we are giving away a $200 Paper Culture voucher good for just about anything in our store: holiday cards, baby announcements, baby shower invitations or even our newly launched Bamboo Wall Art. But you know about us – onto the fun stuff!

Monday Dec 12: weeDECOR $100 Voucher – Discover a world of nursery wall decals that are printed on eco friendly fabric (instead of vinyl) and are so easy to remove and reposition. We love the fact that weeDECOR is a small business like ours and encourage you to check them out if you haven’t already. Our personal favorites are the jungle animals, the giraffe growth chart and the owls in the tree (pictured here). We even have a few of their wall decals in our office!

Tuesday Dec 13: A 6 month subscription to Kiwi Crate ($120 MSRP) – a great new service that delivers arts and crafts activities that are fun, educational and engaging. Each month for 6 months, a package will arrive on your door. The package will be full of everything you need to get started. If you’re anything like us, it’s hard to come up with unique activities every week – it’s no crime to borrow a little creativity from our friends at Kiwi Crate. Two of our co-founders’ kids (3.5 years old and 6 years old) are busy as we speak ripping open their own Kiwi Crates.

Wednesday Dec 14: Flip HD Ultra 8GB ($199.99 value) from giggle. An HD video camera is a perfect way to capture all of those priceless holiday moments (whether that’s grandpa snoring like a polar bear after a little too much Christmas ham or it’s Baby Logan deciding to do his best Sandy Koufax imitation with his cherry pie). giggle has been one of Paper Culture’s earliest “friends” almost since day 1. We’re lucky enough to be by one of their great stores in San Francisco and we just can’t get enough of their bold colors, great design and fantastic product selection for baby products that are both functional and fashionable. We’re obviously biased since giggle also has an exclusive line of giggle cards including personalized holiday cards, invitations and announcements available on Paper Culture.

Thursday Dec 15: A baby’s bounty from Zoli that includes one (1) Sumo Snack Stacker ($18.00 MSRP), one (1) STUCK suction bowl ($19.00 MSRP) and (1) On-The-Go Snack Stacker ($15.00 MSRP). Once again, this is not some random company that’s offering free swag – these guys used to be our neighbors across the street from our old office. Our CEO says that the On-The-Go snack stacker was one of the most used products of all time in his two child household. We love not only the utility of the products, but the fun design and eco friendly materials they use to help ensure a safer future for our children.

Friday Dec 16: ThinkEco Modlet Starter Kit Home Starter Kit ($59.95 value) – we were one of the first people ever to see one of these in action. You plug this into any home outlet and it tells what appliances are sucking up all your energy. On top of that, you can actually program your appliances to shut down on whatever schedule you’d like, and did we mention, it’s a pretty good looking power adapter to boot. Available on the ThinkEco website as well as online at BestBuy.com.

Remember to check back each day as we will add a new post. You can enter once per post.

Enter on our Facebook Fan Page (you must be a Fan to win).

With the new school year and a new school comes the need to buy back-to-school items. Being a big Hello Kitty fan myself, I couldn’t help but get her a new Hello Kitty lunch box. I also had to pick up a sleeping bag for nap time. How could I deny her a Disney princess bag?

But I did find her a few eco-friendly non-branded lunch items for her. I love lunchskins. They are such a clever idea. Why use a ton of sandwich bags, when you can use a reusable and well designed, lunch, or snack bag? The lunchskins come in a variety of colors, patterns and sizes. I chose the pink floral one for my little princepessa.

My absolute favorite food containers are baby cubes. Strangely, I never used them for storing fresh-made baby food. I have only used them for carrying around snacks. The lids are attached, which is a life-changer. Once they are closed they do not leak, which means no more cereal, or raisins in my purse. They are perfect for packing almonds, dried mango, cookies, blueberries, or whatever. And they are easy enough to open that most of the times my daughter can do it without dumping everything everywhere.

*There is still time to order your New Year’s cards in time for Rosh Hashanah!

How did you celebrate America’s birthday? Are there any neighborhood traditions you enjoy? What timeless activities did you participate in? We want to hear it all. Happy summer, everybody!

UPDATE: Congrats to our 4th of July Paper Culture gift certificate winners: Most popular post – Carole Da-Cruz her bike ride and my favorite: Beth Cardwell and her good old fashioned block party! Congrats!

Holiday cards are great to send and receive but what do you do with them after the holidays are over? From creating one-of-kind Christmas ornaments and garlands to works of original art, thank you Facebook fans for sharing such creative ideas on how to turn your holiday cards into special keepsakes. You can view the entire list of ideas on our Paper Culture Facebook fan page.

And now the winners of our (2) $100 vouchers:

The first $100 voucher with the most Likes goes to Julie Dance: “I keep my photo cards every year. I punch a hole on them and put them on a binder ring. I then put them in my Christmas totes for the next year. Every year when I bring out all of the Holiday stuff, I take time to reflect on the previous year’s cards, and see how everyone has grown.” You can see her blog post about it here: http://www.angryjuliemonday.com/2010/12/27/cherishing-those-cards/

The second $100 voucher for our editor’s choice pick goes to Natalie Alexander: ”I hang the really special or sentimental Christmas cards from years passed on a garland and hang it across one wall of my house. It is a pretty decoration and it also allows us to think about how our lives have changed and how our kids have grown over the last few years. Makes me a bit sad to put it away at the end of the season.”

Thank you all again for sharing and reminding us of all the really creative things we can do to create lasting memories from our holiday cards.

Winners, please contact us at contact@paperculture.com with your Facebook ID’s and we’ll send you the $100 eVoucher.

If one word could express my awe at the comments of gratitude shared on our Facebook Page, it would be “wow.” Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to the hundreds of you who shared what you are thankful for this Thanksgiving. From the health of yourselves and your families to having loved ones home who are otherwise deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, your comments are moving, meaningful and often times, downright inspiring.

Nicole’s comment “I am thankfull that there are all these posts about people being thankful, especially after all the horrible stuff we see every day in the media,” also touched home!

And now the winners…

The first $200 voucher with 72 likes goes to Marin Sevy who is “Thankful for my wonderful fiance and this exciting time in our lives!! And thankful for the support of all our wonderful family and friends!”

The second $200 voucher goes to Tiffany Nething who shares this: “I am thankful for the basics that make family and friends possible: clean water (which not everyone has), clean air (which can be hard to come by now a days) and nutrient soil around the globe, which grows all the food necessary for us all. I’ll spend my Thanksgiving being grateful for the basics of life, which not everyone has, sadly… prayers to a healthier world as time continues on.”

Thank you all again for sharing and reminding us that we all have many reasons to be thankful. We hope you share your words of gratitude throughout the holidays, which can easily be done on the back of our holiday photo cards with a personalized message.

Winners, please contact us at contact@paperculture.com with your Facebook ID’s and we’ll send you the $200 eVoucher.

…”Peace out Homie!”

Thank you to all who submitted photo entries for the EcoMom/Paper Culture “Homely for the Holidays” photo contest and to the wonderful kids who gave us such great poses! It would have been impossible for us to select a winner as each photo has its unique elements of silliness – just as each child does. So thank you to all who also participated in the voting process.

And the drumroll please……

FIRST PLACE, winning a $300 gift certificate to EcoMom, a $300 Gift Certificate to Paper Culture and a Kikkerland Photo Mobile, with 1877 votes: “Peace out Homie”

2nd PLACE, winning a $50 Gift Certificate to EcoMom and a $50 Gift Certificate to Paper Culture, with 1488 votes: “Brotherly Love”

3rd PLACE, winning a $50 Gift Certificate to EcoMom and a $50 Gift Certificate to Paper Culture, with 1050 votes: “Elliot on Easter”

Congratulations winners! Should you use your Paper Culture gift certificate for holiday photo cards, we hope you will share them with us. If you did not win, know that at any time, we welcome you to share what you like most about our cards here, which gives you the chance to win a $50 Paper Culture gift certificate.

Exclusive holiday card designs benefitting Healthy Child Healthy World

As parents, it is overwhelming just keeping up with the day-to-day. It’s a feat in our household when I’ve remembered to get permission slips signed, put library books and a healthy lunch in my childrens’ backpacks and then make it to the school bus…on time.  So when it comes to keeping up on all the latest news on toxins in our homes, safety recalls, much less trying to discern all those misleading labels, I’d throw my hands in the air if it weren’t for organizations like Healthy Child Healthy World.

This is why I’m thrilled that were supporting Healthy Child Healthy World as part of our Cards That Care program, where we are donating 100 percent of the sales proceeds of these exclusive holiday cards, inspired by the organization’s Five Easy Steps. The card Icons From a Healthy Childhood, portrays icons representing eating healthy (apple), cleaning up indoor air (butterfly), using non-toxic products and recycling (recycle) and holiday peace (snowflake). Similarly, the card 5 Steps to a Healthier Home, reminds us that creating a healthy environment is not impossible if we 1) avoid pesticides, 2) use non-toxic products, 3) clean up indoor air, 4) eat healthy and 5) be wise with plastics. Thus, the name Five Easy Steps…

Not only do I love the designs of these cards, but they are meant to be a keepsake, reminding the recipient of simple ways to keep our homes healthy. Now that’s a gift – err, um card, I’ll keep!

You'z a talkin' zu meeee?

Cute pictures of kids and babies are a dime a dozen. In this holiday photo contest, we are looking for your worst photos! One you would never consider featuring in your holiday photo cards.

We know our kids are all just as cute as can be, but we all have those unflattering, unattractive, just plain terrible photos that make us crack up. Instead of burying them in the back of a box, EcoMom and Paper Culture encourage you to face those photos and bring the funny to the forefront–and win amazing prizes in the process!

Enter our Homely for the Holidays photo contest and you can win a $300 Paper Culture credit, $300 to start your holiday shopping at EcoMom, personalized photo advisory sessions with both a designer and professional photographer, and more.

Plus, the second and third place photos will receive a $50 credit at Paper Culture and a $50 credit at EcoMom–just in time to get your holiday cards going and start your shopping ahead of the game!

How it works:

• You submit the most unflattering, awkward, cringe-inducing, or funny photo you can find that features kids. Submissions will be accepted from November 3 through midnight on November 9.
• We will open up voting through November 16. Paper Culture and EcoMom will ask their communities to vote, and you can ask your friends and family to vote.
• We will announce the Grand Prize winning photo, plus the 2nd and 3rd place winners on November 17.

The prizes:

• The Grand Prize winner will receive: a $300 credit at Paper Culture to use for gorgeous, environmentally responsible photo holiday cards, a $300 credit at EcoMom, a personalized photography tutorial with renowned photographer Annie Robillard, a personal holiday card consultation with a Paper Culture designer, and a sweet Kikkerland photo mobile from EcoMom. You will also have your final card and photo featured on the EcoMom and Paper Culture websites! You can win ALL that just for sending in a BAD photo!
• The second and third place winners will each receive a $50 credit at Paper Culture and a $50 credit at EcoMom.

Click here to submit now and encourage your friends and family to vote!

Photos should feature KIDS. They can be old or new (the 1970s fashions were not kind to many of us.) You must be the rightful owner of the photo and you must be a resident of the U.S.A. Limit one photo entry per person. Let us know if you have questions in the comments!

If you are a regular Paper Culture customer, then you may have noticed that we just got a face lift! Thanks to the amazing creative team here, we have updated our site with a fresh new look, while making it easier to navigate.

While you’re checking out the site, be sure to peruse Paper Culture’s extensive new 2010 collection of  modern holiday cards that embodies the spirit of the season and the unique nature of each person. Our cards are printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper and with every order you place, we plant a tree in your honor.

Also, don’t forget to take advantage of our free mail & message service.  Let us do all the hassle work of addressing and mailing your cards –all for just the price of the stamp!

Like all things new, there may be a few bugs or kinks to work out. So, if you see anything strange, please leave us a comment and we will be sure to fix it. Or, just let us know what you think.