Bubby and Bean ::: Living Creatively: Our 2018 Family Holiday Cards

Those of you who have been following me for a while know that I hold a special place in my heart for greeting cards - especially holiday cards. Exchanging cards is such an endearing holiday tradition for me, and in my mind, genuinely represents the spirit of the season. And while I don't share a lot of truly personal pieces of my family's life here on the blog or in social media, our annual holiday card is one thing I am happy to share. I get so excited to send them to friends and family, but also feel like I'm sending them to each of you when I write this post each year. (This year is year four!)

Years ago, I only sent cards that I designed myself for the Bubby and Bean Art shop, but when Essley was a toddler, decided that I wanted to find a place where I could order them that (1) was separate from my job and (2) could include a photo of her on the card. I was also at the end of my pregnancy with Emmett, was in the midst of my busiest season for work, and my husband was getting ready to leave the country for his job. So the the task of stuffing, sealing, addressing, stamping, and sending holiday cards sounded really freaking overwhelming. I did all sorts of research into various card companies that offered customization, and when I came across one that had what I considered to be the hippest, more stylish cards around, was blown away to discover that they also offered a service that would do all of the addressing and sending work for me. Four years later, here I am, once again using my forever crush for everything holiday cards, Postable.

If you're not already convinced of Postable's awesomeness just by the gushing I've already done, let me go on. (Side note: I was not paid to say any of this or to review them. True story. I just love their stuff, man!) First, they have a massive selection of truly gorgeous (and funny, and whimsical, and pretty much any other style you want) designs to personalize. Second, they use 100% post-consumer recycled or tree-free 100% cotton in all their cards and envelopes. That's huge. Third, the process is so quick and easy, you won't even know what just happened. It took less than ten minutes for me to upload the photos, greetings, names, and fonts for the writing on the envelopes (the smart font we always choose looks identical to Robbie's handwriting which is a great way to trick their recipients into thinking we wrote them all my hand, mwahahaha), choose addresses from my address book (which is super easy to fill; when I first started using Postable I uploaded a spreadsheet and voila), and check out. And finally, they print, stuff, stamp, address, and mail all of your cards directly to everyone in your address book - which, in their words, saves you thousands of hours of agony and a life of carpel tunnel. I can personally attest to this, friends. The quality of their cards is also top notch. No flimsy, poorly printed cards here guys. Postable's cards are framable. For real.

The style we chose this year is a different than what I've opted for in the past. I usually go for designs that are a little bolder and more in your face, but something about the understated, clean, elegant look of the design we ultimately chose really spoke to me. I love it so much. (That doesn't mean it didn't take me ordering 6 different samples before making a decision though, as seen in the image above. Indecisive and proud, man.) For the back, we went with the only real family photo we got this year, which was from Halloween, was snapped with a cell phone, and is so us. (Wish we could just dress in those costumes everyday, tbh.)

Using Postable for our holiday cards takes a huge weight off my shoulders each holiday season. I've said it before and I'll say it again: they seem to be really nice people who make dope cards and have a very innovative service. And while I do partner with them for these projects, they don't pay me to review their cards. I just genuinely love them and want to share. Oh, and here's something else great about them: they're giving you a whopping 20% off your entire order with code BEAN18. Spreading holiday joy, they are! Told you they're the best.

Who else finds immense pleasure in the act of sending and receiving holiday cards? (Come on. I know I'm not the only one.) Any other mega Postable fans?