The Interesting Story of Christmas Cards

Posted on: December 10th, 2019 in Mindset by Pat Mesiti | No Comments

Do you still send friends and family Christmas cards or do you just flick off an email? Christmas cards are very much a tradition of English speaking countries. It’s not so big in other countries in Europe and definitely not the thing in Asia and Africa. Americans send some 6.5 billion greeting cards a year, while the British send around 900 million cards – that is 16 cards per person. In Australia it’s hard to find a tally of how many cards we send, but I’ve seen figures indicating it’s as high as 20 per person.

Some people don’t like the idea of Christmas cards because they say it’s a waste of resources in a society where we already consume too much. Instead they send off an email and maybe a digital photograph.

In the US card sales are stable but they have been falling in Australia. A poll for the Royal Mail found that 80 per cent of Britons prefer a Christmas card over an e-card, with only 1.7per cent of people saying a WhatsApp message would do. And would you believe the most likely group to make their own are 18 to 24-year-olds (the tech generation).

“People were starting to use email as a replacement, but over time they found they weren’t making the same meaningful connection,” said Peter Doherty, executive director of the US Greeting Card Association.

I like Christmas cards!

People who keep sending Christmas cards tend to be drawn to the idea of a physical object with a personal sentiment, according to the makers of cards. I will confess that I like getting Christmas cards. It’s much more exciting than an email, and they look good around the place though I’m not always diligent about sending them out.

British etiquette coach William Hanson is still a believer in paper Christmas cards. “It’s a nice thing to do, especially in the digital world,” he says though every year he receives fewer and fewer cards. “I’m sure this is representative of everybody, not just people disliking me. It’s still nice to let people know you have put pen to paper and you are thinking of them.” 

Some people refuse to send Christmas cards and instead give the money to charity, but many charities sell Christmas cards, and these are the ones I like to buy.

The history of Christmas cards

The first recorded Christmas card was sent by a German advisor to King James I of England. It had a picture and the message, “A greeting on the birthday of the Sacred King, to the most worshipful and energetic lord and most eminent James, King of Great Britain and Ireland, and Defender of the true faith, with a gesture of joyful celebration of the Birthday of the Lord, in most joy and fortune, we enter into the new auspicious year 1612”. Why don’t you try writing that on every one of your Christmas cards this year? A little long winded?

The next cards were made by inventor Henry Cole and painter John Collcott Horsely in London 1843. The card showed a family drinking wine and giving away food and clothes to the poor, but the picture of a family drinking wine was controversial. Only 2,050 cards sold that year.

The next wave of Christmas cards featured flowers, fairies and other fanciful designs that reminded people spring was coming. Humorous and sentimental images of children and animals were popular, as were shapes, decorations and materials. In 1873, the printing firm Prang and Mayer began selling cards in Britain and the US, and grew incredibly popular. By the 1880s, they were producing more than five million cards.

Queen Victoria was the first royal to send out a card. The British royal family’s cards are generally portraits of family members. Many businesses send Christmas cards to customers, as a way to develop general goodwill, retain brand awareness and reinforce social networks. Most countries also release Christmas stamps, depicting some Christmas tradition.

What to say in a card?

Round the world some of the preferred greetings for Christmas cards are Merry Christmas (53 per cent), Happy Holidays (21 per cent) and Season’s Greetings (12 per cent). Snow scenes are one of the most popular Christmas card designs (22 per cent), followed by humorous images (14 per cent), nativity scenes (7 per cent) and Christmas trees or decorations (6 per cent).

I have already confessed to loving Christmas cards – an email or text just doesn’t cut it for me. OK, according to Flux magazine this is how you make your Christmas cards special. 

  1. Make it personal

Personalised Christmas greeting cards that are personally designed by you will show your love to family, friends and the special people in your life. Customisable Christmas cards can feature your favourite photographs, elegant monogramming and personalised text. The recipient of your personalised Christmas card will instantly perceive the card to have more value than a bought card. 

  1. Be socially responsible

People of all ages are becoming more socially responsible and environmentally aware. Choose Christmas cards made from recycled paper or buy cards that donate 10 per cent of the selling price to one or more charities. The most popular charity Christmas card designs are traditional Virgin Mother and Child scenes, and images from the festive 12 Days of Christmas song. 

  1. Blue is the most fashionable card colour for 2019

Colour plays an important part in traditional Christmas customs. Although green, red and gold are the seasonal favourites, the most fashionable colour for Christmas 2019 is blue. Celebrate a blue Christmas by creating personalised Christmas cards that feature beautiful shades of deep midnight blues, cobalt, aquamarine hues and cerulean. You can keep it traditional with a design that includes a Christmas tree, baubles, bells, Santa Claus and reindeers, or use blue as a background colour, to highlight text, or as a tint for a photograph. 

  1. Go cute

Quirky designs can lift the recipient’s spirits and put a smile on their face. Break away from customary festive traditions by picking an adorable, amusing or sarcastic Christmas card design to send to family and friends in 2019.

Make them laugh with a personalised Christmas card that features a humorous family photo, or a funky illustration with a cheeky message inside. Cute and funny Christmas cards are a jolly way to brighten up the day of even the most bah-humbug anti-festive person that you know. 

This all sounds like a lot of work. I’m just happy with any card that comes in one of those 10-packs (with a percentage going to charity). And of course it’s even nicer if the sender writes a personal message.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

ABOUT PAT MESITI

Pat Mesiti is a best-selling author, coach and educator in the area of personal development. Having built some of Australia’s largest people-driven organisations, Pat understands the power of harnessing human potential. He has shared the stage with some of the world’s great business minds and has sold over millions of copies of his books and materials.

 

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