Saturday, July 8, 2017

Photo Cards & A few questions

I've decided to make cards from my photos.  The easiest way to go is to buy 5x7 cards and add a 4x6 photo to the front and you are ready to go. Envelopes become the issue so one needs to buy sets of cards and envelopes.  These can be expensive.

After some research,  I managed to find a heavy white card stock which will serve nicely for the card base.  The photo has been trimmed to 3.5 x 4.75 inches to leave a generous border on this A2 card which is 4.25x5.5 inches. 

This requires that I have a photo I can afford to trim .25 off one side. It comes down to the composition which I will work on.  Two of these are off to my card exchange group. 


I am interested in finding how many folks give cards.

Do you give paper cards or electronic?

Does the cost of postage make you hesitate to give a card?

What type of occasions do you give cards for?

Do you prefer to have a card specific to the occasion?  Or will a generic card suffice for almost any occasion?

Do you have a preference between a card made with stamping and designer paper or a card like these art cards?

You can leave me a comment with any information you would like to share.  Thanks so much.

3 comments:

  1. I make and sell cards as well from my photos. Mine are often printed up (Vistaprint.com does an amazing job at a very reasonable price and they often have sales. I used to do the original photo on card stock and that has some advantages -- they do get an original. Both are good. I also do original art cards -- mini-collage on 5x7s. Both go well but not nearly so well as they did four or five years ago and I know it's the internet and e-cards. As for myself, I tend to send a lot of cards, mostly my own but I will buy others at shows. Postage? Not a problem though I won't buy the square ones to mail as in the states they take 21 cents additional postage. I'll send cards for many things -- birthday, get well (a little less), sympathy (more and more) and blank ones for thank you notes and letters. I usually do birthday cards specific and sometimes those are the ones I will buy to fit the personality. Often with get well and sympathy I go for a blank card because I like to write a note. I don't buy stamped cards or use them (much). If I'm going to charge for a card it has to be more original than a pre-done stamp. Now I'm pretty much painting all my background papers, too, although I still have some preprinted that I will use if appropriate. The thing I've found useful with note-card sized cards is to sell them as a set at a slightly different discounted price (about one card free). My photo note cards are small (not 5x7) and they are 2.50 for one or 13 for a set of six in a ribbon packet. Sometimes two complimentary designs, sometimes six of the same. The 5x7 collage cards are $4 each. I'm not doing as many of those now. In terms of time I should up the price but I don't think the market will take it. Watercolor cards are $5 and all original. Of course, if you're selling through a shop, they'll take their cut and you have to up the price to make what you do. It hink with your photos you'll have quite a market. They're lovely.

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    1. Jeanie, Thanks so much for your response to my questions. The last 2 years here selling cards has been very difficult. I know when our postage went up some folks just quit cards altogether. The economy is slowly improving so I hope sales will be better this fall. Your prices are very similar to mine. I do some of my own background paper which I love to make. Sylvia D.

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  2. Not much help from here I'm afraid. . I have taken my own photos to Walgreens a couple of times to have cards made, they sell them in packs or singly with the envelopes. I don't remember what I paid.

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