If you’re thinking about doing a scavenger hunt, I’ve got a little help for you. Free printable! That’s right, totally free. All you have to do is click the image, and print! Write your own clues for your loved ones to seek out, cut ‘em up, and voila, instant Valentine’s Day fun.

Hope you enjoy! And feel free to share it with your friends!

You’d think it’s easy for a cardmaker like me on these card-giving holidays. But the truth is, not so much. See, I already put my heart into my cards. The things they say are inspired by my family and friends. My real life. But when it gets to be Valentine’s Day and I need a card for my husband, giving him a card he’s seen all year long just doesn’t feel right. Even if I did write it for him.

So here are some other gift options for the people who inspire my art. And just to make it fun, let’s keep it under $25 a pop, shall we?

For my husband: Love this bookmark. My hubby loves to read and has a degree in creative writing. So this sparrownesscript hand calligraphed quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson would be perfect.

For my best friend: Love these prints by flapperdoodle! Wouldn’t be AWESOME to give one to your bestie and have one in your own house? Like modern day best friends bracelets!

And for my mom: Chocolate and peanut butter. She would probably kill me, but I would GLADLY help her out with these cookie-wiches by Tookies. It’s their brownie cookie (yeah, seriously) recipe with hand whipped peanut butter buttercream. I mean c’mon. Y. U. M. (If you have the hankering to buy me a Valentine’s Day present, I’ll just say this: I am my mother’s daughter.)

Time to hop! Click on the links below to see other participants in this blog hop, featuring lots of good Valentine’s Day gifts. You might just find something you can’t live without!

No worries. Check out this blog series, Steal the Show, over at www.meaganvisser.com. There’s two weeks worth of posts coming up on finding a show, preparing, setting up a booth, marketing your products, and more. You might wanna pay extra special close attention on Jan. 24 … it was written by a guest blogger I’m guessing you just might know!

Last year for Christmas (I’m talkin’ 2010, not even 2011) my mom said all she wanted for Christmas was a decent picture of me and my husband. And after seeing the one she kept in her purse, I knew I had to make it happen. So for the last year I’ve been trying (okay, okay, not very hard). I called a portrait studio in the mall a bunch of times and every time I canceled the appointment the day before. I just couldn’t bear the thought of sitting in front of a fake background, doing grip-n-grin photos that look so unnatural (and could possibly wind up on Awkward Family Photos).

I’ve been a fan for a while of the work done by Erin over at Tin Can Photography. We were sorta “introduced” over the web and became Facebook friends without ever having met in person. And I liked her Tin Can Facebook page, so I often saw all the amazing work she was doing. I wanted her to do our photos. Only one … little … problem … okay, actually about 900 little problems. They’re called miles. Erin’s in Atlanta, where I’m from originally, and I’m in NYC.

Well, long story short, thanks to Kari, we were able to squeeze in a few hours hanging out with Erin and her husband Bryan the afternoon we flew into Atlanta over the Christmas break. Seriously, we hopped off a plane, fluffed our hair, and went to do photos. Erin and Bryan were heading out of town the next morning, so I’m pretty sure this whole thing was fated to happen.

I felt like I knew Erin a little bit already, just by virtue of being Facebook friends, but I honestly couldn’t have predicted just how EASY it was to hang out with them! It felt like we’ve all been old friends for a long time. It was so much fun and so enjoyable getting to spend an afternoon with them.

Here are some of my faves from our photo shoot! So you can see the face behind RLPCo (moi) and the man who keeps me sane. There are lots more photos and more about our afternoon on Erin’s blog!

If you’d like to have photos done (maybe you just got engaged at Christmas or are ready for nice shots of your family), I’d absolutely most definitely recommend Tin Can Photography. Because if you’re not friends before you get there, you will be when you’re done.

Find Tin Can’s website here, and make sure you like them on Facebook here!

We’re expanding our popular line of {not sent from my iPhone} cards with a version perfect for Valentine’s or just to say “I love you” anytime.

Meet our newest card:

(Any Zelda fans?) And its cousin:

Both are available in the shop now!

Now, they’re offering it up for a vote to see, out of those 12 items, which is the readers’ favorite. You can vote once a day till 6 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18.

So I’m asking: Will you pretty pretty please with cheese on top vote for me once a day through Sunday at 6? I’d really appreciate it! Click this link and then click the green VOTE button at the top of the page. The Readers’ Choice Award will be announced on Dec. 19, just in time for last-minute Christmas shopping. (Which, um, it looks like I’ll be doing a lot of myself.)

If you reallllllly wanna see the other items so you can decide mine really is your favorite before you vote, you can see all of them here.

Thanks for your support!

When my husband and I got married, neither of us had any long-standing family Christmas traditions. We decided to make one. So every Christmas, we buy a new ornament for the tree. It can be something representative of the year, something from a vacation, or just something we both really liked. This year, we thought it would be fitting to buy a handmade ornament off Etsy, since I’ve spent a good bit of my time on the site managing my own shop and browsing through others, as well as building friendships with other sellers. Oh, and even my husband has made a few purchases off Etsy this year after I turned him on to it. I’ll show you the one we bought in a minute, but first I thought I’d show you some cool ones we also considered.

I love the dark amber color and the etching on this hand-blown glass ornament by Wolf Art Glass. And, even better, they’re environmentally conscious, using a “low-energy consumption hot-shop powered in part by renewable wind energy.” Awesome!

This three-dimensional ornament by SNL Creations is cool. Make sure you click through so you can see all the different angles. I like that it’s not just a traditional ball, and could be hung as a sun catcher at any time of year.

This wooden ornament by I’ve Got Wood gets bonus points for its unbreakableness. (It’s a word. At least, it is now.) Isn’t it pretty? Again, I like the 3D-ness and the simple but beautiful pattern cut into the wood.

It was a tough decision, but in the end, this is the one we bought:

It’s made with horse hair! And while we have absolutely no link to horses, we love the stark wintry look of this ornament and the uniqueness of it. It’s made by Cherie Ramsdell of Dakota Bones, and you can — no, SHOULD — go read more about the process of how it’s created. Fascinating.

So that’s this year’s ornament! And the end of this installment of Red Letter Loves. What are your Christmas traditions?

BLACK FRIDAY

You either love it or hate it. Black Friday is the busiest shopping day of the year (and we can FINALLY be excited about Christmas). On Friday, Nov, 25, get 20% off your entire RLPCo purchase — maybe Christmas cards for you, 1000 Words cards for your friend and an art print for your loved one — with the code BLACKFRIDAY20.

SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY

This shopping holiday was started last year by American Express to encourage buyers to support small businesses. I’ll definitely be looking to support small businesses this year when I’m Christmas shopping. On Saturday, Nov. 26, buy any 5-pack of cards (Christmas or otherwise) and it will become a 7-pack! You must type “SMALLSEVEN” into the “notes to seller” as you check out for it to apply! (This is not a coupon code…just type it right into the notes!)

BONUS DAY

There’s not really any cool selling holiday on Sunday, but we’re just gonna keep the deals right on going! This one’s perfect for gift-giving: On Sunday, Nov. 27, buy one art print, get the second 50% off. Here’s how it works: Contact me before you purchase. I will make a special listing that includes both of your prints, taking into account the discount. (Shipping will still total the cost for two items.)

CYBER MONDAY

Cyber Monday has gained ground in the last few years as the day when many people return to work after Thanksgiving and spend the day online Christmas shopping. As long as your boss isn’t watching, on Monday, Nov 28, buy three sets of Christmas cards and get the fourth set free! (Don’t add a fourth set to your cart, type the code FOURTHSET in the “notes to seller” as you check out, and tell me what you’d like your fourth set to be.) You must request the free fourth set if you want it!

BONUS DAY

Let’s have one last Day of Deals, shall we? On Tuesday, Nov. 29, enjoy free shipping on your entire RLPCo purchase with the coupon code SHIPFREETUES.

***All deals go into effect at midnight Eastern Time and last for 24 hours.***

And one last thing…

Everyone who makes a purchase using a Day of Deals code will be entered in a random drawing to win a $20 gift card to Red Letter Paper Company! Use it yourself or give it as a gift. But make sure you get your daily deal first! (Each buyer will be entered only once; entry is not dependent on number of items bought or amount spent.)

Now…who’s ready for some shopping?

—–

I’m thankful for Thanksgiving. Is that weird? I love that there’s a time for us to BE thankful. Not that we shouldn’t be all day every day, but many times we forget. And so I’m thankful that we have this holiday to gather with loved ones and give thanks to Him for, well, everything.

Occasionally, I get messages from people who really love my work but want a card without the Bible verse on the back. Or just recently, I got one asking if “Merry Christmas” inside a Christmas card could be “Happy Holidays” instead.

Part of me thinks, “that’s not really what I’m about.” I do modern Christian cards. The whole No Vacancy line is built around Christmas cards that celebrate Jesus’ birth, or at the very least, say Merry Christmas as opposed to Happy Holidays. But the other part of me thinks, you know, one of the reasons I love doing this is because I hope I’m providing something for people that they couldn’t find elsewhere. Is it so wrong if those people don’t happen to want a Bible verse or Merry Christmas on their cards? Shouldn’t I “serve” anyone, no matter what? Religious snob is not the person or business owner I want to be.

So what do you think? As a Christian business, is it bad if I agree to remove a Bible verse or say Happy Holidays at the request of a customer? Or does it speak more volumes if I’m willing to work with people who might not be exactly like me?

Candle by Luminology

You guys know I’m an active member of the Etsy community, where you can buy and sell handmade and vintage items. But let’s think about that handmade thing for a sec. For many artists, it takes time to craft items. Maybe you want a custom-scented candle for your mom. Or a gorgeous scarf for your sister. I’ve already seen a couple shop notices that say you must order by early December to receive gifts in time for Christmas. If artists don’t start getting their items in front of you now, it’s going to be too late for you to buy them for Christmas. And they really would like for you to buy them for Christmas.

Scarf by Shelly6262

So next time you see a Christmas commercial or hear a little jingle in the grocery and think, “it’s too early!”, maybe just start creating that list of gifts you’d like to give this year. ‘Cause if you wait till after Thanksgiving, you won’t have a lot of time for giving handmade goodness.

—-

Today I’m thankful for…

My mom. I talk to her often, but moreso in the last couple days since I busted up my arm. Nobody knows you like Doctor Mom, right? But besides doctor, my Mom is one of my best friends and biggest supporters. She’s awesome. And I’m thankful for her! (And my dad, too, who not only played a HUGE role in getting my new website up and looking amazing, but also is a large part of my  cheering squad.)