Two months from today is CHRISTMAS DAY so today I am sharing Part One of my mac-daddy list of awesome Christmas Card Tips so you can actually MAKE and SEND your own Christmas cards this year!

So – do you want to make your own Christmas cards this year but you aren’t sure where to start or how to ensure that they actually get done? And in the actual mail? I've got your back! Making and sending a bunch of cards is NOT scary when you follow my Christmas Card Tips. Let's get started:

Step One – How many cards do you want to make?

Are you making cards for everyone on your list or just those special people?  Are you making cards to send to all your family and friends AND people at work? Are you just making cards for people to use to enclose a gift card? Make the list, count 'em up and know your numbers. Gather your information and write it all down!

Step Two – How many designs do you want to make?

Do you want to have ONE design that you use for ALL your cards? Do you want one card for family and friends, something different (maybe non-denominational) for work people? Do you want to make one of a kind special cards for certain friends?

But Meg, I don’t know how to make that decision, you say! No problem – here is the best answer I know to give. If you are going to use patterned paper, you can choose a couple of designs without having to buy extra stuff because patterned paper for holidays usually comes in packages. Of course I prefer Stampin’ Up! paper, but regardless of where you purchase, they usually come in packs, so you often get two (or more) sheets of each pattern. Another reason I prefer Stampin' Up! paper is because the patterns are made to coordinate with core colors meaning you can have a couple of different looking cards but since they will be based on the same core products with minor changes you don't need a ton of additional product. Figure out how many “fancy” cards you need, how many “one for all” cards, etc. and write it all down.Make those notes – you will be glad you did in a bit.

Step Three – Choose Your Designs

Ok, brace yourselves – this is where Pinterest can be your best friend or your worst enemy.
If you don't already have examples torn out or bookmarked, head to Pinterest. Seriously, it's an idea seekers Nirvana. Set a timer. We all have our phones glued to our hands, so let’s use it to be smart. (Did you see what I did there? Use your smart phone to be smart? Yep! It’s a cheesy day in my world.) Choose your amount of time – I think 5 minutes on Pinterest is just right. Set up a secret board, type what you are looking for into the search bar and pin the cards you like. When the timer goes off – STOP!

Go to your board and start narrowing down your options. Play the A and B game. You know when you go to the eye doctor and he asks which is better, a or b? It’s never which is better, a, b, c, d, e, f, – there are only two options on the table. Whichever one is B – DELETE from the board. Then
go to the next card. Lather, rinse repeat.

Remember in step two when I said make your notes in Step Two? When are left with the number of cards on your Pinterest board that matches that number you are done!

Step Four – Personalize Your Design(s)

Take a good look at the designs you chose for your card(s) and decide what you can or want to change about them. You may love them the way they are but you might also have eleventy-thousand snowflake brads left over from a year when you MEANT to make your cards and didn't. Can you use them on any of your designs?  Dig into your stash – look at your stamps, look in that basket of ribbon, look at your colors of card stock. USE YOUR STASH!

WRITE THESE CHANGES DOWN! We all get busy. We walk inside to grab our keys and see the plant that needs watering and then go grab a cup from the cabinet and see coffee grounds in the cabinets so we grab a paper towel and notice that there are only about 15 sheets left on
the roll and life would be better if we knew we had a fresh roll at the ready so we go to the laundry room to get another roll and we see the laundry that is still in the washer that needs to be moved to the dryer and we open the drawer to get a dryer sheet and we find the insurance
bill that we were positive we had paid so we go upstairs to pay the bill and notice that the stairs need to be vacuumed so we go to grab the vacuum and trip over a pair of shoes that need to go downstairs in the closet then on the way to the closet the phone rings and someone
needs a recipe so we go to the recipe book and read it off to them and then we set down the recipe book and it’s now 10pm and we never put that item in our car that we started our day with. (or is this just me?)

Step Five – Order Your Supplies

Order your supplies from your favorite demonstrator – ME!! (Shameless plug, but can you blame me?) But you now have your numbers. You now know how many cards of each design you want to make and what supplies you need so this is the next step in getting yourself prepared for your CARD PRODUCTION. When you are pulling together your order, be SURE to remember to add things like envelopes, adhesive, cutting blade replacements, Stampin' Mist, etc. – all those things that aren't visible parts of your card designs but would bring you to a screeching stop if you didn't have them. I've created a handy table here for you so you can just click on what you need, add it to your cart and then add in the things you want to create your visions.

This was the UNfun party of Christmas card planning but it wasn't that hard, was it? And now you get to the part where you get to MAKE all these cards, all the while knowing that YOUR card will be displayed at the FRONT of the pile because of its glorious handmade fabulousness.

Click here for Part Two of my Christmas Card Tips where we will break down how to get it all done without breaking a sweat!

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