...because home doesn't happen overnight.

I so appreciate everyone’s support and concern for our family on yesterday’s post. Your advice and willingness to help out financially have blown me away. I was not expecting that at all. At this time, we do not know exactly how much we will owe for Everett’s medical treatment. Things are in limbo and I imagine they will be for some time. I am optimistic that we’ll get them straightened out. In the meantime, it would make us happiest if you invested in quality helmets for yourselves and loved ones – and used and cared for them properly!

AI cards 1

Fact: I am not a big fan of store-bought greeting cards.

To me, they are impersonal, expensive, wasteful and usually tacky. In college, my roommate and I used the same greeting card over and over again, writing new messages in it to each other and exchanging it on our birthdays every year. It was such a fun (and cheap!) tradition. By graduation, there was no blank space left.

When I met Steve in college, I quickly learned that he had a knack for buying cheesy 99¢ greeting cards and crossing out or adding a word (bubble) or three to transform the generic message into something witty and hilarious. His cards always made me laugh.

AI cards 2

These days the kids make the majority of the cards we hand out. I keep a stash of blank cards on hand for unanticipated life events or quick, friendly notes. A current photo and a few handwritten lines can mean so much. And, at the moment, I have a slew of thank-you’s to write.

AI cards 4

That’s why I was happy to see Artifact Uprising‘s new everyday photo cards. The blank cards can be customized with a personal photo on the front, making them perfect for all occasions no matter how big or small. (The 5″ x 5″ size is perfect for all those instagram photos stuck on your phone!) As always, the company stands behind its mission to create tangible beauty via environmentally-friendly means. The cards are printed on sustainable, FSC certified papers.

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Today Artifact Uprising is graciously offering up a pack of 20 everyday photo cards to one lucky reader. The winner chooses the size(s). Mixing and matching is okay! Enter via the form below through Tuesday, May 5th. Good luck!

*This post is NOT sponsored. I just love sharing good finds and this is my meager attempt to thank you once again. Plus, the mini photo shoot and lighter subject material felt like a good way to ease back into things.

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

17 Comments

29.April.2015

I don’t know if I’ve been hiding under a rock (probably) or if this is the newest way of entering giveaways, but I LOVE IT. It was so so easy. Anyways, weird observation of the day!

29.April.2015

Thanks for the great giveaway, and happy you’re back!

Can you provide the name of your son’s helmet? My almost 2-year old loves riding in her bike seat at the front of my bike, and I’m looking to upgrade her helmet. Your story is a good reminder to have properly fitting helmets. Thanks!

29.April.2015

Hi Dana! First of all…really glad to see you are easing back in, and infinitely more glad to hear that your son is doing so well. Can’t imagine what that must have been like, but happy things are better!!!

Second, I’ve generally felt the same way about purchased cards as you. And while I love these cards that you mentioned in this post, I wanted to share another idea with you. Unfortunately I don’t even remember what blog I got the idea from (maybe it was even you!), but a few years ago I purchased a simple sketchbook for everyone in my family. For every birthday, Valentine’s Day, etc, THAT’S where we create our “cards”. Our kids were so great about making cards, and I wanted a way to keep them in one place, and this is the perfect solution. We call them our “love books”, because they are basically filled with messages of love. It’s the last thing our girls want to open each year on their birthdays (saving the “best for last”), and we all love reading the funny and sweet love notes on Valentine’s Day. My hope was that our kids will cherish these books when they leave home, having pages and pages of encouraging words, cute drawings, and messages of love inside. Pretty sure they will.

29.April.2015

So glad to hear Everett is well and I am definitely taking your helmet story to heart!

I love Artifact Uprising. Their products are so top notch.

29.April.2015

That is such a cool idea!!

29.April.2015

I’m so happy Everett is on the mend! Could you share with us the brand of helmet he was wearing? I’ve been thinking of gift ideas for my nephew who is 7 and your post yesterday made me think a good helmet was the way to go. Thanks!

29.April.2015

That is so great.. thanks for sharing! It would work great for a bridal or baby shower too.. I always forget to buy cards!
Which reminds me… enter giveaway contest now…

29.April.2015

I LOVE this idea! What a beautiful tradition!

29.April.2015

I have been making blank cards for a couple years now with my photographs on them. I sell a package of 8 for $10 and they are well received!

30.April.2015

I love Artifact Uprising, I’ve been using and gifting their stuff for the last two years or so! everything they do is so beautiful.

I loooove Artifact Uprising! I just spent the last few weeks pouring over all the photos I have since I met my hubby. Our 5th wedding anniversary is in a week or so and as my gift to him, I wanted to create “volumes” of photobooks that showed our lives throughout the years together. My first book “We’re Dating.” My second book “We’re Engaged.” My third book “We’re Married.” And my fourth book “We’re (Still) Married.” They were an absolute labor of love and I can’t wait for them to arrive! (Should be any day now!!) Next I’ll do one of our wedding and honeymoon…and of our house purchase/renovation/transformation…and then hopefully I’ll keep these going over the years!! :)

01.May.2015

Love this idea. I’m also not a fan of store bought cards. I love writing letters to people and it helps me really set aside time to share my thoughts & emotions with the person whom I’m celebrating. Sounds like your Steve is similar to my Steve – plain 99 cent cards filled with the most off the wall, yet loving words :-).

01.May.2015

I love Artifact Uprising …I have used them too. Call me old fashion BUT I love getting cards in the mail.

02.May.2015

I am so glad to hear that your family is doing well and I am a firm believer in helmets. I was hit by a car on my bike when I was about 19 and thankfully I had on a backpack and a helmet. They both saved me as I flew backwards. The car that hit me never stopped but thank goodness others did and insisted on helping me, as I was in shock and thought I was fine.
I am a firm believer in handmade cards now but my childhood best friend and I exchanged the same Snoopy card from the time we were 7 years old until we were out of school. I still have that card and have since lost track of her. I have been thinking about it lately and wanting to find her so that I start that fun tradition again.
Have a lovely weekend!

02.May.2015

Sharpie Pen Fine is absolutely my favorite pen! So glad to hear Everett is on the mend and happy to see your posts again :-)

03.May.2015

I’m so glad you’re back. I’m relieved that your son is ok, and wish the best for your family. Yours is one of the few blogs that I check in with regularly and I missed it!

30.May.2015

[…] the fridge. I’m also keeping the card stash on hand for last minute note writing. (You know how I feel about store bought cards.) The cards have the cutest fonts and prints on the front, and they’re blank inside for […]