Unique Holiday Photo Cards

In recent years, more and more people have become turned on to the idea of sending unique holiday photo cards out for their holiday greetings. The allure of photo cards is huge. It offers senders the opportunity to create something seemingly personal without having to put too much thought into it. Simply go in to have the annual family portrait made, select a card from the photographer's templates, order, and pick up your photos and Christmas cards all at the same time with little left to do but address the envelopes.

While this is probably the easiest way to go about your Christmas cards, it isn't necessarily the best way. As this trend becomes more popular, most people are beginning to realize just how little thought and effort goes into these types of cards. So finding ways to personalize your holiday photo cards is more important than ever. With a little time and creativity, you can send out some truly unique holiday cards that people will know you devoted more than just a couple of minutes into designing.

Creating Your Unique Holiday Photo Cards

The first step in creating a card that is genuine and special is choosing a layout. You may want to stick to one photo on a unique background, but creating a collage of several photos will add an extra touch to your cards. You can use the family portrait as the large focal point and then have individual portraits of each family member surrounding it. You can make your cards as large or small as you want them to be in order to accommodate the multiple photographs.

Once you have decided on a layout you will need to choose a backdrop. Ideally this should be something that is festive for the time of year and complements the wardrobe used in the pictures without blending too much. You are not limited to candy canes and Christmas trees, so long as the general feeling of Christmas resonates from your card. Lastly, use a heartfelt inscription for your greetings so that your recipients know this is something that came straight from you and not selected from a list of generic greetings.

Getting Ready to Send Out Your Unique Holiday Photo Cards

As careful as you may be in the design of your unique holiday photo cards, you may find that they still seem a bit impersonal. If this is the case, consider handwriting a message on the back of your card personalized for each recipient. Just be sure to use a pen made specifically for writing on photo paper lest an impression be left on the front or the ink bleeds. You may also consider adorning your carefully crafted creation with ribbons, bows, tiny jingle bells, or even strings of beads made to look like pearls.

Whatever embellishments you choose to make, your friends and family will know that there was no way you preordered your card from the photographer; these additions had to have been applied by hand and it was your hand that took the time to do it. Put the final touch on your holiday photo cards by hand addressing each envelope and you will have created something that your friends and family will feel honored to receive.