Christmas cards

In these tough times financially I am sure they would understand. They probably are thinking along the same lines.

Last year a lot of people I know sent me messages on FB,texts etc that they wouldn’t be sending cards but donating to a charity instead. I understand the reasoning behind this but was sad to see the dwindling number of cards to display.

I have cut mine down drastically. From well over 100 I now send about 30. Quite a few of my friends and relations have done the same, the cost of the stamps is outrageous.

I post around 30 to family and faraway friends but wouldn't mind an e-mail at all - in fact it makes financial and environmental sense.

Most people cut back at some point and 150 does seem excessive unless it's a business. Apart from family I would ditch people that you never see and just email the others with your plans to reduce the number of cards.

I only get one e-card and it’s so lovely. I don’t know how to go about getting them but I’m going to look into it.

85p 1st class 66p 2nd 😱 - I've just looked it up.
Over the last few years I've had a few E-cards & happy to receive them. Some are delightful - less waste & clutter too.

I'm going to use my (3 books - how did that happen?) Of 2nd class stamps & then, that's it! - is the plan anyway.

I'm sure it's fine. There are so many more ways to stay in touch these days.

I'm thinking the same thing. I've spent £35 on postage stamps this morning alone and of course the cards themselves are more expensive this year. All of my relatives and many old friends live some distance away but I was quite shocked when I started totting up the costs.

This is also a bone of contention here too. We are in a second relationship so have quite a big 'family' between us. OH insists on buying the biggest, flashiest cards that fall into the large letter category for posting; you can imagine the cost for air mailing them! To add insult to injury, we rarely get many back from his side; in fact they don't even bother with birthday cards for either of us and I find that hurtful.

One year we put a little note in most of our cards saying here is our telephone number and e-mail address if you want to keep in touch but we would not be sending cards in the future.
I am really glad I did it .

Tell everyone you're putting the money you'd normally spend on cards and stamps into a charity (could be your own charity, as charity begins at home).
You can still wish everyone a happy time of year by mouth or email!

Thank you all for the replies. Ecards it is!

Harris27

I only get one e-card and it’s so lovely. I don’t know how to go about getting them but I’m going to look into it.

Jacquie Lawson - you’ll soon find her via Google. So many lovely ones - for an annual sub (£15 last time IIRC) you can send as many as you like.

I do still send charity cards but the list has gone down quite a bit - maybe 50 now. I do like receiving them too - blu tacked to various vertical painted surfaces they form part of our decorations.

We culled our list when we moved. Many people we never heard from one year to the next. It seemed a bit pointless. I put a note in last years card saying we were cutting back to family only and nobody batted an eyelid.

I think sending one last one with a warning (as above) is a good idea if you are moving over to e-cards.

That said, don't like e-cards.
If a friend isn't worth the cost of a stamp and the time it takes me to make a card for them then why send it at all?
I have cut out everyone I feel like this about.

I have cut down this last few years, but it's difficult to cull any more as those left are people I really like. But it is getting ridiculously expensive.
My post office warned me yesterday to post everything really early this year, by the way. Strikes are planned.

An old school friend sends a Jackie Lawson ecard always similar, with cottages, birds carrying ribbons flowers etc. Nearly didn’t bother opening it last time but did in the end out of politeness, but it was so twee and rather resented the time spent watching yet more little birds.
Good idea about a note in this year’s cards.
Though it’s probably the only time I receive anything personal in the post.....will have a think about it.

My husband is a member (and both of us are recipients) of Jacquie Lawson cards and we sent e-advent calendars last year - but I still don't like them and I think the advent calendars were a waste to be honest.

I regularly don't even open the e-cards when I get them. They just sit in my inbox for ages until I feel I "ought to". But you can miss out all the guff and skip to the message.
And JL cards are basically all the same style so you know what you're getting.

One friend always sends me a "Christmassy" image and a link to a Christmas Carol.
I never bother to open that one.
I can choose my own carols if I want to hear one.

When I'm "doing emails" I don't want this. I'm too polite to say anything about it to old friends.

silverlining48 it's not just you!
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I spent almost £50 on stamps alone last Christmas. I buy charity cards but notice they have also gone up a lot. I love receiving them but do think the tradition is starting to die out now, especially amongst the younger generation. People keep in touch all year round on FB etc. I do look forward to hearing from old neighbours & work colleagues from years ago, especially the ones with the little news letters in. I do think streamlining the list is a good idea though, someone has to make the first move but there are people I wouldn’t want to cross off and I’d miss getting a card from them.

I don't send any cards, and the few I get go in the recycling straight away.

Over the last few years I have culled the Christmas cards I send. My close female friendship group that meet up at least once a week (at the gym) decided several years ago not to bother with cards, I pop immediate neighbours cards through the letter box, don’t bother with further down the road.

I used to get AC and wives/partners cards along with individual for each GC, not anymore just from our house to your house ones. Send to family who we are in contact with along with couples who we see a couple of times a year.

I told DH if he wants to continue to send them to his friends from various charities he has been involved with over the years he can buy, write and send them himself.

The size of my family has dwindled a lot over the years, so I don't have a lot of cards to send anymore. If I send a card and don't receive one back then I don't bother the following year. Some friends have actually sent me a text me to say they aren't sending cards anymore.

silverlining48

An old school friend sends a Jackie Lawson ecard always similar, with cottages, birds carrying ribbons flowers etc. Nearly didn’t bother opening it last time but did in the end out of politeness, but it was so twee and rather resented the time spent watching yet more little birds.
Good idea about a note in this year’s cards.
Though it’s probably the only time I receive anything personal in the post.....will have a think about it.

I feel the same as you silverlining about these JL e-cards. They are twee!

I’m glad I don’t do the from you to me’s any more (work departments, book club members - out of your handbag at a table and into mine). Those groups you can just say ‘Happy Christmas’.

I send about 30 - all by post - now.
They’re written & stamped now, sitting on the hall table waiting to be posted after next week.

Must say I do really like some of the Jacquie Lawson Christmas e-cards - especially the very first - the Christmas Cottage, and the ones with the dogs making a snowman, etc. Yes, very corny, but if you can’t be corny at Christmas….

I still send proper cards to nearly all our list, though.