Create custom cards on your computer
By Cassandra Spratling
Detroit Free Press
Mark and Cheryl Sawicki began creating personalized Christmas cards as newlyweds 11 years ago. They'd grown up in metro Detroit, met at the University of Michigan and moved to San Francisco after they married.
The first year after moving away they decided to turn snapshots of themselves in front of San Francisco landmarks into holiday greeting cards.
"We did it to give folks from home a taste of our new home," Cheryl Sawicki explain s.
Since then, personalized photos have become something of a family tradition for the Sawicki family, which has grown to include daughters, Sophie, 7, Isabelle, 5, and Gretchen, 3.
They've created and sent a new photo greeting card each year, showing the whole family or just their daughters. They've used methods ranging from the film developing and formatted printing at Costco to creating cards themselves with online services such as www.shutterfly.com.
Personalized greeting cards and calendars are the only way to go for families like the Sawickis of Huntington Woods — back in Michigan since 2002.
"After the holidays, I throw away cards that are just a generic card and a signature," says homemaker Cheryl Sawicki, 35. "Photocards, they're a keepsake. It's nice to go back and see how the kids of friends and family members are growing up."
There's always a friendly debate as the couple sits down at their home computer to select background, fonts and even which photos they'll use.
"That's part of the fun of putting the cards together," says Mark Sawicki, 36, a vice president at Entertainment Publications of Troy, Mich. "We get into fun arguments about, 'I like this design.' 'No, what about this design?' We spend a lot of time deciding what's the most appropriate design for the picture."
"There are so many choices — whimsical, traditional, religious; every kind you can imagine," she says.
Now their daughters are old enough to have a say as well, although after looking over past years' cards 7-year-old Sophie couldn't pick a favorite.
"I like them all," she says.
Cheryl Sawicki's the primary planner for the card production. She usually starts by selecting photo possibilities or planning to have a particular photo taken before she sits down at the computer.
Last year the Sawickis created a card using cropped faces of their daughters from three different photos.
This year they're planning to take photos of their daughters during a Dinner with Santa outing with their grandparents
It's primarily a six-step process using an online service, the Sawickis explain.
Find the photo or photos you want to use and transfer them onto your computer.
Select or create a background from an online service.
Place the photo on the card, following the Web site's directions.
Create the text.
Preview the card online.
Order the desired number of cards, again following the Web site's instructions.
People can personalize cards without using a computer by taking the desired film or digital image to a myriad of photo printing places, including Sam's Club, Ritz Camera and most neighborhood drug stores.
The cards usually cost about $1.20 to $2.50 per card depending on the number ordered and complexity of the style. Usually, envelopes come with the cards.
This year Ritz Camera Centers introduced a one-hour digital photo production system. Cards, calendars and photo books can be designed from home through www.Ritzpix.com or finish the job within an hour at the Print Bar at any Ritz location.
The Sawickis usually send out about 100 cards. "And if you just can't get to it until after the holidays, there are New Year's designs, too."
Personalized greeting cards, postcards, calendars and more can double as gifts.
Having created cards using a variety of stores and services over the years, the Sawickis by far prefer using their digital camera and online sites. They've used www.shutterfly.com most often, because they like the broad variety of backgrounds.
You can change backgrounds easily, move photos around and play with the various positions, backgrounds and text fonts until you arrive at something you like.
"Digital cameras and computers have made it so easy, you can literarily sit at the computer and do this whole thing in your pajamas," Cheryl Sawicki says.
ONLINE DESIGN
A few places to create personalized cards, calendars and more. Although the sites are free, there is a cost for printing, and usually for shipping.
