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Hello ladies,
This might be a silly question but, what do you do with the cards that you make for challenges etc.
I have just started to explore the world of challenges and have made a few which have been used for occasions etc., but as there are only so many cards you can make for family, friends I have quite a few 'spares'.
I have a large stash of cards just sitting there to use when needed, which seems to be more and more often lately as the people at work know that is there and keep asking for them ;)
But Im also trying to organise donating cards to the Ronald Mcdonald house in Perth and looking for anyone else who would like to "adopt" their local house and send them boxes of cards every few months. PM me if you would be interested in this and I can help you get started!
There are many folks who take donations of cards and card fronts. Some of my favorites are your local Ronald McDonald House and I also support From Our Hearts. They are an organization that sends cards to our troops, so that our troops can write to their loved ones back home.
Hope this helps, however, you should get many other ideas here,
well you can send them to me....as I use all the cards I make and get for a card ministry for elderly, shut-ins, birthdays for elderly or children too for our church and in the community where I live..........it just makes someones day to receive a card and that you are thinking of someone else besides ourselves..........so I like to bring
a little sunshine into other's lives....
so PM me if you would like to donate to the card ministry....
Cards? We are actually supposed to make cards with all the supplies we buy?!;)
Seriously though, I just have them in a basket in my stamp room with the intention of actually sending cards to friends and family which is what I got into this addiction errrr hobby for in the first place...heehee
I send them to the school I retired from when they have a teacher who needs a 'pic me up'. Teachers rarely get fun things in their mailbox! Also, I send them to the memory care facility my mother was in and to people in assisted living I know.
mine go to the servicembers one way or another.. either to Fisher House( the military version of Ronald McDonald Hosue) or to one of the various groups out there that accept cards for the troops.. either blank one for them to choose from and send back to friends and family, or to injured ones needing a pick me up.
I also donate to those on here that ask for our cards. I keep a couple for my own personal use and I also give away cards to friends as gifts. You get to a point where you have trouble buying for friends and my friends do not make cards so I just ask what sayings or colors they want and make up packages for them. I tried selling my cards and had no luck so I just make them when requested for fun. I am just in the process of making another batch of wedding invitations.
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I have a large family (hubby is one of 7 kids and lots of nieces and nephews) so I do tend to send a lot to the family. But I also will send them to people randomly with a quick note inside--to cheer someone up, a little fun in the mailbox, etc. There is always someone who would we thrilled to receive some good news in the mail instead of a bill. Send away--to friends, family, acquaintances, etc. I have even sent them to a store for great service, to the manager to tell them about their great employee, to a caring doctor or nurse, you name it--always fun to have your day brightened. I would love to find a sweet something in my mail any day. Look around you and you will find a way t brighten someone's day.
I send out maybe 5 cards a month to friends and family. I also belong to a group that sends birthday cards out to group members each month. A few cards that I particularly like or want to use again as a sample to make more of that card, I save. The rest, about 80% of what I make, I donate to charities - primarily Operation Write Home. Some are leftovers from my stash, some I make specifically for the charity.
My mom sends lots of cards, so I give her a stash several times a year. I usually fix a card box or basket with 30 or so cards and donate to a church fundraiser (silent auction) and also one at work for the Combined VA Campaign. I sell some, send some...they always seem to find a home somewhere!
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Wanda Cullen ~ Dirty Dozen Alumni, On design team for Papertrey Ink, Designer for Color Throwdown and Fusion Card Challenges Cullen-ary Creations[/URL]...my blogHERE'S MY GALLERY[/URL]
You can donate them to Sr Citizen homes. Many of those especially in the independent or assisted living homes are very active and would love to have them to send out or give to family or friends. Saves them some money and the cards are enjoyed by many as the look at them at the homes and then again when mailed.
I sell some of mine in our Community Art Center's craft store and I give some to my busy/non-crafty friends - they love to have some cards on hand. I also sent a bunch for Canadian troops.
I don't have a ton of spares, but I often will gather a set of 10 or so of my better ones and package them up cutely and give as gifts. EVERYONE uses cards, and giving a batch of handmade cards to friends or family is always appreciated. I have also thought about donating a bunch to Operation Write Home.
I make about 15 to 18 per month for my church ministry. They go out all over the world through the ladies prayer group. That is my first list. Then I make for personal needs and for anyone else who asks. I don't know if I would make them so much if they didn't find a home. Isn't it great when your hobby can be a blessing to others!!
It's time for a clearout of my card stash (so I can make more!). Thank you peebsmama for the information about Operation Write Home. That is where my cards are going! TFS!
__________________ Mary.
My SCS Gallery: Muffin's Mama
Create Serendipity: Produce a happy accident or pleasant surprise.
Thankyou to all who replied. Certainly a lot of food for thought there.
Donating to a charity seems a great way to go and as I am a true animal lover I think that maybe I will take my 'leftover' cards to the RSPCA Op Shop for them to sell.
I really try to take the opportunity to use them for anyone I know, church members, community people who are seriously ill or have passed away. I think people really like it when they know the community cares when it is a death, or a childs' illness, and of course, donate to a good cause.
__________________ Carolyn
my avatar: (such desparation), Dear God, if you can't make me thin; make my
friends fat"
I was asking the same question earlier.....what do I do with all these cards? I went through about 350 cards (some swaps), but mostly my own creations using a variety of techniques and a ton of embellishments because that is MY style. I packaged up a bunch for a church, set aside plenty for personal use, sold some.....but I still have 120 full size and 30 card fronts left and these "organizations" that ask for donations are awfully picky for things that are FREE! When you buy Hallmark for $4-6, you pay for the privilege of being selective, but these are free!! I find that so frustrating!! By the time you check off the list of things you can't do....u basically have a folded piece of paper in your hands with a sticker on the front. I can see obvious rules about size and appropriate content, but if I made it then NO, I DON'T WANT TO LEAVE THE BACK BLANK SO YOU CAN STAMP IT WITH YOUR INFORMATION? Srsly? I should supply an envelope and it should be blank??:eek: No glitter, no bulky embellishments, blank on the inside, blank on the back....Oh, I read a dozen or more rules that just befuddled me to no end! Like if I had your organization in mind when I made it......oh no, it would have been for sale because you usually pay for custom specifications like those. I've decided to either salvage them for the embellishments and card stock or sell the whole lot on eBay and let that buyer do exactly that. The more I thought about it, I decided I don't use flimsy card stock or cheap embellishments....so I'm not willing to bend over back wards for charity. Charities should be a little more grateful for what they're getting.
There were a few sources here that I had not checked into, so thank you ladies. I will give those a look and see. My husband is a Vet, so when I want to give a bunch of cards to a squadron, he just calls up one of his friends and gets the First Shirt to give me an idea of how many troops, who is married, who is deployed, who has grown/young children...etc.
Besides my own that I make, I like to ask around at garage sales when people are getting rid of scrapping stuff, to see if they have any extra cards. I actually use a lot of them for the purpose they were made. IE, get well, birthday etc. However, some of them I actually use on scrapbook pages. I hear a gasp as some of you think that is a no, no to tear up someone else's card, but I just need the front. I can use the back side for something else.
Most of my spare cards are sent out as RAKs to the members of the Splitcoaststampers RAK group. Fellow stampers really appreciate getting a handmade card in the mail.
Most of my spare cards are sent out as RAKs to the members of the Splitcoaststampers RAK group. Fellow stampers really appreciate getting a handmade card in the mail.
I also keep an eye on the Card Requests forum.
Now that has got to be the one thing I didn't think of....where better to find "like minded" people who appreciate a little humor, some glitter...the agonizing lengths we go to wrangling with embellishments and tying tiny bows...lol:p
God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. Romans 5:8 & 9
Thank you! I think this will be the most satisfactory solution for me....that and stop making so many cards!:rolleyes: I think I do 3 or 4 a week and I did 21 for DTGD11 week.
Here is what I do with mine:
Troops
Church birthday and anniversary ministry
Church bookstore
Church youth groups to sell so they can raise money for camp
Support two swim teams with cards to sell (one took last year off)
My sis and her hubby (he is minister at another church) have said they would like some for a fund raiser.
Help a sweet friend by giving her cards to sell at her school. She is struggling to get by and sells a lot of cards at school to supplement her income.
ummmm....I think that is all for now. I make and donate a LOT of cards besides my cards I send to the troops...secret is mass produce..lol
blessing.
Here is what I do with mine:
Troops
Church birthday and anniversary ministry
Church bookstore
Church youth groups to sell so they can raise money for camp
Support two swim teams with cards to sell (one took last year off)
My sis and her hubby (he is minister at another church) have said they would like some for a fund raiser.
Help a sweet friend by giving her cards to sell at her school. She is struggling to get by and sells a lot of cards at school to supplement her income.
ummmm....I think that is all for now. I make and donate a LOT of cards besides my cards I send to the troops...secret is mass produce..lol
blessing.
I think I've got the "mass produce" down....now I need to make them a little more charitable worthy, lol!
I quit swapping--that decreased the number of cards I have. I send out most of the cards I make. To Who?? My neighbors, the mail lady, my hair lady, several friends have had parents pass away so I send sympathy I also might send them 10 thank you cards as I know they will need them. I have 50 nieces and nephews someone is always graduating, going on a mission, getting married or having a baby.
My mom sends 100 birthday cards a year, I make all of them.
I have 6 kids and 14 grandchildren, birthdays, baptisms, cheer you up, I love you etc. I send cards faster than I can make them. A card is just a vehicle to let someone know that you love them. If we don't write a thoughtful message and send our card to someone needing a lift it is just paper and glue. Can you tell I feel strong about this.
Send them sisters, send them!
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One thought is to join Card Angels. I did that for about a year. Just "google" card angels. They match you someone who has cancer (maybe other illnessness too) and you agree to send your person at least one card per week. It is a really great program.
__________________ All I want is the chance to prove money won't make me happy!
One thought is to join Card Angels. I did that for about a year. Just "google" card angels. They match you someone who has cancer (maybe other illnessness too) and you agree to send your person at least one card per week. It is a really great program.
Like Divine Secret Siblings on SCS....or Stampin' Flybabies (sp.) sounds like something I could handle.....
...these "organizations" that ask for donations are awfully picky for things that are FREE! When you buy Hallmark for $4-6, you pay for the privilege of being selective, but these are free!! I find that so frustrating!! By the time you check off the list of things you can't do....u basically have a folded piece of paper in your hands with a sticker on the front. I can see obvious rules about size and appropriate content, but if I made it then NO, I DON'T WANT TO LEAVE THE BACK BLANK SO YOU CAN STAMP IT WITH YOUR INFORMATION? ....Oh, I read a dozen or more rules that just befuddled me to no end! Charities should be a little more grateful for what they're getting.
dkessler, I was thinking that donating some would be a great idea for me as I can't sell allllll that I make lol! What are some of the charities that were so particular? I don't use glitter anyway, but I'd like to have some free creativity and if I take the time to create one, I'd like to have my name on the back at the bottom real small but there ya know?
I have a nephew in the service, I could send a box to him. He and his friends would surely love it.
dkessler, I was thinking that donating some would be a great idea for me as I can't sell allllll that I make lol! What are some of the charities that were so particular? I don't use glitter anyway, but I'd like to have some free creativity and if I take the time to create one, I'd like to have my name on the back at the bottom real small but there ya know?
I have a nephew in the service, I could send a box to him. He and his friends would surely love it.
dkessler, I was thinking that donating some would be a great idea for me as I can't sell allllll that I make lol! What are some of the charities that were so particular? I don't use glitter anyway, but I'd like to have some free creativity and if I take the time to create one, I'd like to have my name on the back at the bottom real small but there ya know?
I have a nephew in the service, I could send a box to him. He and his friends would surely love it.
The reason for no glitter on the cards that go to Operation Write Home is so it doesn't get on the uniforms of our soldiers. Glitter can be picked up by night vision goggles..... I understand that. I love to create with glitter but I would hate for my love of bling to be the cause of a tragedy.
I can't speak for the other organizations mentioned but OWH is run by volunteers - if you don't provide the envelope, who will? Blank cards are requested so the troops can use them to write letters home, not just sign their names. The bulky embellishments can cause a card to be mangled at the Post Office, resulting in that card arriving damaged - and that could be the last card a loved one ever receives from their hero - a sobering thought, right? There are lots of sound reasons for their guidelines.
And yes, I support OWH And when I do, I make cards with their guidelines in mind so I do understand what you are saying about donating cards that you have already on hand, this is just another way of looking at it and the reasoning behind the requirements.
The reason for no glitter on the cards that go to Operation Write Home is so it doesn't get on the uniforms of our soldiers. Glitter can be picked up by night vision goggles..... I understand that. I love to create with glitter but I would hate for my love of bling to be the cause of a tragedy.
I can't speak for the other organizations mentioned but OWH is run by volunteers - if you don't provide the envelope, who will? Blank cards are requested so the troops can use them to write letters home, not just sign their names. The bulky embellishments can cause a card to be mangled at the Post Office, resulting in that card arriving damaged - and that could be the last card a loved one ever receives from their hero - a sobering thought, right? There are lots of sound reasons for their guidelines.
And yes, I support OWH And when I do, I make cards with their guidelines in mind so I do understand what you are saying about donating cards that you have already on hand, this is just another way of looking at it and the reasoning behind the requirements.
I can see the reasoning, but that rules out a LOT of the cards I already have on hand.;) I've put a pretty good dent in the hoard...so I'm happy!
What do you do with all the cards?
