Charity Christmas Cards

PS with that pva glue I could evne make some funny ones.

Thanks Chewbacca and all, 80gms card.I will start making pretty soon. I really like the idea. I can do Easter and b'day cards too. I might get some of these brillaintly coloured pencils or pens that people use for colouring-in and do free hand designs.

This year I did a mix of some cross stitch cards; some decoupage and some rubber stamped matt and layering. I was surprised and rather pleased when a friend told me that she'd kept every single handmade card I'd ever sent her for Birthdays and Christmas! I don't do a lot though; only for people I really like!

Well done, I hope people keep them Bluebelle

I did make some (a very few) from counted cross stitch one year but wondered what happened to them in the end.

I have made my own for a good few years usually paint a picture or find some other craft to make them a bit different a bit unique most people comment and seem to enjoy getting them I make about 50 during November to send of or give beginning of December
For me it’s the best part of Christmas but I get less back each year as people say they will give the money to charity maybe they do maybe they don’t it’s a tradition I am sad to see disappear

I have made them with a craft group but never thought the ones I attempted were good enough to send out although other people's efforts were lovely.

However, you could buy the pack of cards from eg Hobbycraft; some have a hole on the front cover where you can insert a photo or whatever you like - a picure cut from last year's cards, Christmas ribbon in a pattern etc.

Any plain coloured 80gsm card Alexa; a tube of pva glue to stick whatever you like to the front of your folded card and you're done.

I am glad I read this thread I only wish it had been out weeks ago as it has inspired me to make my Xmas cards myself which I will enjoy if I am still here next November. I even thought "I will ask the craft Grans which sort of card they would recommend for making greetings cards". Sleepless, I lay in bed planning for next November.

They're not Chinese prisoners SalsaQueen, as you would know if you'd read the news article.

No problem with prisoners working SalsaQueen. I think it's the conditions they may be in that's the issue. They were pleading for help.

All the cars I've bought this year have been from various charities:
R.S.P.C.A.
SPANA (working horses and donkeys abroad)
Hillside Farm (all animals at a sanctuary in Norfolk, I think)
Children In Need

I wonder why so much fuss is being made in the news about these cards being made by Chinese prisoners - those in prison have committed crimes, so they aren't in there for a holiday - unlike our prisoners in the U.K. who have an easy time of it.

Here's the reply I received from Cards for Good Causes:

Thank you so much for getting in touch with your valid concerns. We only deal directly with charities and the cards that they publish themselves and are confident that their cards are all sourced ethically. For the production of our own cards, The 1959 Group use UK based publishers and when cards have been sourced from overseas, we have an ethical audit for the factory that was used.
You make an excellent point about stating on the item listing about whether the cards have been printed in the UK or elsewhere. This is something that we will definitely be putting into place in the new year. I would also like to point out that, unlike most High Street retailers, Cards For Good Causes passes back every penny possible to the charities (we don’t make a profit ourselves) , which last year was a minimum of 74p in the pound.
Please be assured that we will be reviewing how we monitor the production methods of all the charities that we work with in the light of this distressing story

As I’m on GN it referred to some of the responses. Sorry if I didn’t make myself clear. I’m trying to steer a fine line here Calistemon in case some over-sensitive soul reports me to HQ.

Those who have read my posts on other threads know where I am coming from probably.

I think the Great British Card Company has been taken over by new owners and will continue to operate out of the same HQ in Gloucestershire, NotSpaghetti.

A box of 'charity cards' for £1.50?! How could they possibly be ethically produced at that price?!

Why do I not believe some of what I’m reading?

I think it was reported in the press yehbutnotbut - was it fake news?

I've just checked a few I have left over and the Cards for Good Causes were either 'printed in the UK' (and packed there?) , the Great British Card Company and 'printed in the UK using recycled materials and vegetable based inks'.

I don't think Tesco or other supermarkets give much of the profits to good causes. Best to buy from the charity shops or an outlet for the Good Causes cards if you want the proceeds to go to charity.

Apeilrise, you are right of course in that it is wise not to break the law in any country if you don't want to end up in prison.
The argument with some countries is that you don't actually have to break the law to end up in jail.
There is plenty of evidence of trumped up charges for political and financial gain in China. I don't think it's just that the laws are "stricter".
I don't know if you read the journalist Peter Humphrey FT article about his arrest and conditions at that particular prison? His incarceration seems to have been a combination of political revenge and an extortion racket.

Thanks for that info NotSpaghetti
The cards were some I bought from my local newsagents, maybe the year before last, reduced after Christmas!

Calendargirl, the Great British Card Company has gone into receivership this year. Not sure where the cards were made though. When they were small they were certainly made here.

They would , wouldn't they :-(

Maybe they would, maybe they wouldnt. I dont know. I have just stated as I read. Not that the comment about its fakeness was unsympathetic , it seemed to feel that it was used as a means of drawing attention to a cause and was not malicious.

I will stand by my harder stance than the media. If you are in prison then maybe being made to pack cards or work for your keep is not unreasonable. If you get yourself chucked in prison in a foreign country, then maybe it would have been wiser to not go there or not break their laws? Many regimes are stricter than ours . Its not my place to criticise another country in that way.

Why do I not believe some of what I’m reading?

aprilrose: They would , wouldn't they :-(
The journalist whose name was on the card had been incarcerated in that prison himself, and knew this was no lie.

Some media are reporting this morning that this note may be fake.

MiniMoon, DH buys those too

I send very few cards and this year bought mine from the Dogs Trust. I didn't look to see where they were produced.