When my daughters were young, I would send photo cards and write notes. The cards went to friends and relatives with whom we didn’t communicate on a regular basis. It was a way of catching up with folks. I probably sent 50 cards. Now, I send non-photo cards–the list has dwindled to 25.
I admit to having a stationery fetish–I am a dinosaur. I love heavyweight paper, different fonts, and engraved lettering; so, any excuse to buy beautiful cards and notes is welcome. I find that stationery/card stores are slowly disappearing.
My daughters don’t send holiday cards. They do write thank-you notes, but they do so through email.
Ours just went out, and we’ve been receiving them over the last week. I hope it doesn’t go away - there’s something about a physical item that carries more meaning. I still have the last birthday card my late grandmother sent me. It only 2 handwritten sentences, but it’s extremely meaningful.
Whether this holds true for the next generation is certainly an open question.
I’m with you, @Bromfield2. Papyrus was my Achilles Heel. I have a lot of stationery, and I use it. When our son graduated, we gifted him with the most gorgeous creamy, heavyweight, engraved, crested, monogrammed West Point stationery set, letter opener, and Mont Blanc pen. Happy to say, he uses them, mostly for thank-yous, but it’s not something he would have bought himself, and he really appreciated the present.
I used to send out cards every year, but I get fewer and fewer. Some friends send email newsletters, most of which I enjoy. This year a bunch of friends are sending cards who hadn’t in the past. They felt like reaching out was more important this year. I wanted to send a Zoom screenshot with my kids’ photos, but they nixed it, so people will be getting a reproduction of one of my paintings instead. I usually print these myself and included some news, but nothing more than will fit on the card.
I spent Thanksgiving weekend writing my Christmas cards. We do a photo card and I always write something on the back of each card. I always love getting cards. I just wish the people I wasn’t in contact with on social media would include a little note on their cards about their lives.
I do photo cards every year. I include my girls and their SOs in the pictures. They are happy that I include them. I also include their names in the cards.
I’ve been slowly phasing out doing cards. Last year I was overwhelmed with caregiving and flying back and forth to my parents that I only sent out a handful of cards to older family members.
This year, I have more time on my hands so we did them to the whole list.
Every year I receive fewer and fewer cards. At some point I can see letting it fall by the wayside, especially as more and more people are on social media.
I send maybe 20 to some far flung old and dear friends and relatives. People say less about their lives on FB all the time, or avoid it altogether, and I like to hear details, which occasionally arrive with the cards. This does seem like a particularly interesting year when some folks need more contact, so will send some cards with a letter. I still go back and forth about the letters. Years ago I started a thread about whether to send letters or not and I still have mixed emotions about sending so many of my own life details and potentially boring anyone. But I like the process of writing and having dealt with a number of significant events, it seems a newsworthy year. My twin daughters, who are rather playful creatures, take a twin fun photo, make photo cards and send it out to various friends and relatives.
Regarding flatware, I don’t know where it goes, but it seems to evaporate from the drawer and my kitchen. This past spring, I had need for more forks and ordered a set from Wayfair. I am not picky, but the stuff that arrived was very attractive, and has a satisfying heft to the pieces.
I send photo cards every year to family and friends and will mail this year’s batch tomorrow. I thought sending cards would fall off with the rise of social media use, but it hasn’t in my circle and I’m grateful for that. I’m actually sending more cards this year given how difficult of a year it has been for everyone.
I think some people who send will keep sending, but I don’t expect younger generation to do so.
We have been doing a Christmas letter for 30+ years. Mostly it is a way to touch base wtih friends and family far away (especially older relatives not on Facebook, although fewer of them left as the years go by… one aunt used to call or send me email gushing about how she loved the delicious letter and photos). At one time it was a good annual way to keep updated on address info too.
I used to joke that if we stopped sending the letter, folks would assume we were dead or divorced. This year I actually did loose my mother, and due to that and Covid weariness this letter has been hard to write. When done I will be glad to have it because our Christmas letter collection, which is text plus photos on page 2, becomes the family history log.
I stopped for about ten years after sending them for decades. I thought I would send them last year and even wrote the letter, but then never did anything with it. I’m going to send some cards again this year (if I can get my act together).
I still send cards and an update letter. This year I really debated if I wanted to - what do we write in the letter? But I bought cards and will get the letter written today so the kids can proofread it for me. I like receiving letters too. It’s the cards with just a name in it that make me wonder why people bother. Ditto with organizations/businesses that send them.
Like many, I think card sending is becoming a thing of the past. We only send them to people we don’t have regular contact with (old friends) and relatives. Many of them have died off over the years and since we haven’t moved in 22 years, the majority of our friends are still close by. I don’t think our kids send them out at all, but I’m not sure about oldest and his wife.
However, our post office is out of Christmas stamps, so someone is sending things. I had to buy them at our grocery store and they only had the bright red ones left - cashier said they weren’t very popular compared to the others.
We got a photo card of a baby with just a last name printed on it. We had no clue who it was. No first names to clue us in or a pix of who sent it. We laughed and then threw it away finally. Sort of the same with a wedding invite with just first names on them.
I’m guilty of only sending photo cards. I sent a letter one year and my mother criticized me: “Nobody cares what you did all year. “ That stung. So, now it’s just a standard card with pictures.
@mountainsoul Your mother might have said that, but several of my recipients told me they look forward to keeping up on our family via our letters. Don’t let one person turn you off - just quit sending them the letter (just like those we see on a regular basis don’t get ours - or often - cards). People aren’t all the same with their likes and dislikes - try to tailor who gets what.