It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I know it’s the day before Thanksgiving, but Christmas is right around the corner.  I realize that this holiday is very over-commercialized in the world, but I still look forward to this time of year.  Some of my favorite things of the season include listening to Christmas music, watching the snow come down as everyone’s homes are lit up with twinkle lights, and getting Christmas cards in the mail.  I especially like it if there is a photo included! 

I have sent out Christmas photos the last several years.  It has really ended up that I put it off, and then rush into Wal-Mart where I stand in a long line, get frustrated with the machine, and the lack of options.  The photo greeting card selection has gotten pretty slim, and many of them are as generic as “Happy Holidays”.

This year will be different.  Since I now live in New York City and it is not as convenient to just run down to the non-existent Wal-Mart on the corner, I have learned the convenience of shopping online. 

Enter Shutterfly.

I would like to tell you about this great online site for ordering photo prints, creating unique photo gifts, and designing your 2010 Christmas card.

Shutterfly has over 800 different holiday card designs to choose from.  You can go with the popular 4x8 photo greeting card, a flat stationary card, or the more traditional center-fold card.  I like that they have a large selection of designs that say “Merry Christmas”, and also many religious designs. 

One of my favorite features is that all of their products are completely customizable with your own text, greeting, font, color, and of course photo.

These are a few of my favorite designs from the 2010 collection:

     

You can even find Christmas gift tags and calendars at Shutterfly! 

It is so easy to create your own Christmas card – just create a Shutterfly account, upload your photo, select your design, drag & drop your picture, and customize. 

Last year I created photo books of Elaine’s birth as gifts for the grandparents and great-grandparents.  After shopping several different photo websites, I found that Shutterfly has the best prices and the best selection.  Their system was also very easy to use and I could choose from dozens of backgrounds and fonts.  It was easy to give the photobook a look that was my own.  I have also created a Shutterfly wall calendar, and it was just as easy as the photo book.

So…be sure to check out Shutterfly for your Christmas cards and photo gifts this year.  There are usually several different specials and coupon codes to help you find a bargain!