Tips for nice country walks

Hi all,

To get inspiration for new e cards, I like to go walking in the countryside with our dog Plum and the rest of the family. I like to have a really long walk and then stop off somewhere for a lovely cosy pub lunch and I have found a really useful website to help me which you might like too.

The British Pub Guide is a simple but very useful site which helps you to find pubs in the place that you want to go to and then lists the facilities. Its so handy and tells you; whether they serve food, real-ale, are kid-friendly, dog-friendly, have wheelchair access, have high chairs, serve coffee, have parking and even if they have a darts board! The facilities are listed in handy pictures (see below) so that you can quickly check without having to read through a long description.



You can also find out the address, name and contact details of the landlord as well as information on any nearby attractions and the opening hours.

You can sign up for their newsletter on the website which will tell you about new pubs and send information on special offers to treat yourself with.

Hope you find this useful, and let me know if you have any tips and ideas you want to share with us here!

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news as well as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.f

the new [Grandparents day e card] is on the website!

Hello all,

I hope you enjoyed the bank holiday weekend and it wasn't too rainy where you were. I can't believe the appalling rain that we had on Friday and over the weekend - it didn't feel like the latter end of August to me!

The new Grandparents Day e card is ready to send! We spent a long time on it so that it would look as though it was drawn by a child and I think its really cute!

Here is your first peak:



Please click on this link- Grandparents Day e-card to preview the new card and please let me know what you think! Remember - Grandparents Day is on the 11th of September in the US and the 2nd of October in the UK!

Katie x

What you up to this bank holiday weekend?

Hi all,

Hope you all enjoy your bank holiday weekend!

I will be spending my weekend adding some finishing touches to the Grandparents day e card so that I can add it to the website for you to see next week. Many of you may be going to the Notting Hill Carnival which is taking place this weekend, which is great fun and a brilliant way to witness the colour and music of other cultures.

The carnival has been taking place since 1959. Back then the event took place near St Pancras town hall but now begins at Emslie Horniman's Pleasance in Ladbroke Grove, winding through the narrow streets of Notting Hill.

I found this fun image of the carnival that you might like:



Hope you have a nice one, whether you are attending the carnival or not.

Katie x

New research findings about modern Grandparents

Hi all,

Whilst creating our new Grandparents day e card for Grandparents Day (USA 11th September, UK 2nd October), I have been trying to find inspiration along with information on modern day Grandparents. I'm sure we all agree that Grandparents today are more likely to be young, active and fun role models for our children, but this was not enough - I wanted to know what it is really like for Grandparents today so I went on the hunt to try and find out.

I was pleased to find some very interesting and supportive websites out there for Grandparents. As well as raising important issues, they also carry out important research and I found some results that caught my eye on The Grandparents Association who reported that new research from Aviva had found that half of all UK grandparents look after their grandchildren and help around the house while mums and dads work and 99.5% do this for free.

Grandparents are not only helping to bring up their grandchildren, but it seems they are also providing financial support:

•    15% said they help out financially with occasional household bills
•    28% regularly do the school run
•    26% cook occasional meals for the family
•    33% help their grandchildren with their hobbies
•    13% assist with gardening

In todays financial climate, Grandparents are supporting the economy more than many give them credit for as without their help, many parents would be unable to work because of the high cost of childcare, reasons that (amongst others) on Grandparents day, as well as every day, Grandparents globally should be shown how important they are. Please make sure that your Grandparents know that you care, or if you are one yourself, give yourself a huge pat on the back!

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news as well as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.

What does 'Grandparent' mean to you?

Hi all,

Its Grandparents day on 11th September for American's and the 2nd of October for the UK. We're just adding the finishing touches to the e card for you to send and this should be ready for you to pre-schedule deliveries in the next few days.  I will of course let you know when it is up and running, but for now I thought it would be nice to share our thoughts and feelings on Grandparents and what they mean to us.

To me, a Grandparent is the fun person who allows extra treats and cuddles just because. Someone supports mum and dad and always has a shoulder to cry on, whether it be because of a broken heart or a scraped knee.

I would love to know your thoughts on what Grandparents mean to you - whether you are a Grandparent yourself or simply want to share a special message, please comment and let me know what you think! To make a comment please visit my facebook page here and have your say!

Katie x

I hope you all had a nice weekend - and an interesting blog you might like

Hi all,

Well the weather didn't turn out too bad and I managed a couple of walks with Plum without rain!

I hope you all had a nice weekend too and are ready for the week ahead.

As well as making e cards, I really enjoy sitting down with a cup of tea and having a good old search on the internet for new ideas, blogs and anything interesting to share with you and I try to do it whenever I can. This weekend I came across a lovely blog called Chocolate and Carrots which I think that you might like. Its written by a young woman called Caroline and she blogs about her life, interests, dog, her husband and cooking. My favourite posts of all are about her cooking!

She is obviously a very good home cook but what I love about her food is that she has a really good mix of really healthy and easy recipes like the 'almond crusted fish tacos' and her 'whole wheat chicken dumplings', then a selection of naughtier treats which she has made more healthy such as her 'wickedly healthy carrot cake muffins' and the 'crispy baked sweet potatoe fries'. And finally, to satisfy all those greedy cravings, she adds an assortment of really indulgent recipes such as the 'salted caramel chocolate cake' and the 'chocolate peanut butter mouse tartlettes' (mouth watering pictures from Chocolate and Carrots follow):

As far as I can see, Caroline's approach to food and cooking is a very healthy and balanced one. She is obviously a real foodie, but knows you can't just stuff your face with indulgent treats and not suffer the consequences and so balances it out with healthy eating and cuts out unnecessary excess when she can - a method, I feel, more people should take heed of.

I found her blog interesting and will definitely be trying out some of her recipes so thought that some of you might like it too. Take a look and let me know if you have any comments or have found blogs or websites that you want to share.

Katie x

P.s. Don't forget that Labor Day is on the 5th of September - schedule your Labor Day e cards today!

What are you up to this weekend?

Hi all,

At the moment we're working on a new Grandparents day e card which is very sweet and will be ready for the American Grandparents day (the 11th of  September) and the UK Grandparents day (on the 2nd of October). I think this day is an excellent way of celebrating all those amazing Grandparents out there who are helping and supporting their familie's in any which way that they can. I know that I (and Molly and Joe) want to mark the occasion for my parents and I'm sure you do to. I'll let you know as soon as we add it to the site so that you can pre-schedule to delivery.

The weather is threatening to be nice this weekend (lets all keep our fingers and toes crossed!) and I really hope it is. I am fed up with walking Plum in the rain! We don't have any plans and so I'm just going to fly by the seat of my pants I think. Any suggestions for fun things to do are appreciated!

Anyway, hope you all have a great one. In the meantime, I'll leave you with these pictures I took a while ago of some beautiful flowers. Enjoy.

Katie x

Calling all businesses - e cards are a great marketing tool!

To all of you business owners, marketers and senior staff - corporate e cards are a great way to re-engage your customers!

A recent study by Pew Internet has revealed that whilst 65% of americans use social media, a whopping 92% use email and search which further reaffirms why businesses need to make sure that they are using all forms of marketing to attract new customers. This is a great reason to try the effectiveness of sending your customers a company e card and there isn't a better time to do this than Christmas!

Business e cards are quick, easy to use, cheap and environmentally friendly and at Katies Cards we offer 3 different types to fit all budgets:

Please contact us for further information and we will be happy to help.

Katie x

Somewhere to find all sorts of eco-friendly products

Hi all,

As you may or may not know, I am passionate about environmental issues and feel that if we have the opportunity to save energy, recycle and buy eco-friendly products then we should try to, as every little adjustment we can make counts (this was one of the reasons that I started making environmentally friendly e cards).

I understand that it can be hard to follow a strict environmentally friendly routine and I have to admit that I cannot always do the things I need to and stay green. We all need a little help and guidance sometimes, so in the name of sharing useful information, I wanted to tell you about a really useful site I have been using for the last couple of years.



Nigel's Eco Store is a website dedicated to environmentally friendly products. It has an eco-friendly version of practically everything you could ever need in your day-to-day life, from eco-friendly paints, kettles, lawn mowers, toys, to camping equipment and gifts plus, Nigel writes a really good blog full of useful tips and advice covering subjects such as what to do for special occasions, how to clean green, eco money and much more!

Click here to take a look for yourself, hope you find it useful!

Katie x

Send your loved ones our new Labor Day e card

Hi all,

For those of you who don't know, Labor Day this year takes place on the 5th of September and to celebrate this historic event we have created an inspirational Labor Day e card that encapsulates the spirit of the day with an animation of people working together using various building and joinery skills to build a huge 'Happy Labor Day' sign. As usual with all Katies Cards e cards, accompanying the animation is some uplifting music which has been specifically composed for the card.



Labor Day is an extremely historic day and the first time this day was observed was on September 5th 1882. It became a federal holiday in 1894 following a number of workers deaths during the Pullman strike. The first Labor Day celebrations were outlined in the first proposal of the holiday and were a street parade for workers and then a festival involving family and friends. Today people across the globe celebrate this holiday with barbeques and fairs involving their communities and the Labor Day e-card certainly reflects the 'coming together of a community'. So in the spirit of Labor Day, why not use your Katies Cards personal membership account to pre-schedule a delivery of this commemorative card to all of your friends and family to show that you care?

You can easily pre-schedule cards in your membership account by selecting the card that you want to send, adding your own personal message and then setting the delivery date for the desired date you want the recipient to receive it. If you have any questions on how to use any part of your membership account please send us an email and Racheal will answer your query very quickly.

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news as well as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.

40 is definitely the new 30!

Hi all,

I may be wrong, but I believe that us 40+'s seem much younger and more active than older generations were when they'd hit their 40's. My friends and I have talked about it on a few occasions, usually at a birthday party (when one of us has hit a milestone age) that we remember our parents in their 40's seeming a lot older than we are now. Maybe we're more active nowadays? Or we have more choices available to us such as traveling and hobbies which weren't as easy an option way back when. Or maybe its just because we're all living longer?

Whatever the reason, there is a definite difference in the milestones of hitting 40th, 50th 60th and 70th birthdays and we're no longer condemning people to the sort of 'its all downhill from now' expectations that we used to, which is why in my daily research of all things birthday, I was delighted to see an article on the Detroit Free Post website about how women are celebrating turning 40 in a fun and glamourous fashion!

You can read the full article here. The writer notes that women nowadays are approaching the milestone birthday of 40 with a zest. One lady who celebrated her birthday by flying to Mexico with her friends and explained that her mother thought her plans were over the top as no one did anything like that when she turned 40. I don't agree that this type of celebration is over the top as I think if you have the spare cash to do something like that then you should! My 40th was spent with friends and family in a big get together and it was lovely. I felt like it was decadent because everyone was spending a lot of their time and attention on me and I did have a brilliant time. I received tones of birthday cards (and some birthday e cards from my own collection!) and presents and really let my hair down.

So to anyone out there who is turning 40 today - a big Katies Cards HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I hope you're celebrating in style and remember, its the new 30!

Katie x

Somewhere nice for a break in Suffolk

Hi all,

Nick and I have been thinking about having a weekend away with the kids sometime soon and we both fancy going to Suffolk for a couple of nights. I have been doing a little research and came across the most beautiful bed and breakfast, so nice that I just had to share it with you!

This place is called The Old Rectory and you can have a look at their website here. I would highly recommend looking at the website if you're planning a trip away as the rooms are decorated beautifully and the gardens are lovely too.

My favourite rooms from the website are Oak and Yew (below), both of which look light and airy and I could imagine waking up in either of them with the sun streaming through the window calling me out into the beautiful Suffolk countryside where I am sure to find some excellent inspiration for some new e cards. The dining facilities also look fantastic and I'm now craving a cooked breakfast after seeing the breakfast page!



Let me know you're thoughts. I'd love to hear your tips and advice on things to do in Suffolk so please leave a comment!

Have a nice weekend.

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news as well as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.

Katies Cards Facebook competition!

Hi all,

I hope you're all well today.

I have a fun challenge for you all today - the first person to get 10 of their friends to 'like' the Katies Cards Facebook business page will win a free 1 year subscription to Katies Cards, allowing them to send as many e cards as they like to as many people as they like for one whole year!

Tell your friends, tell your family, tell EVERYONE!

Just direct people to the Katies Cards Facebook page (here) and tell them to press the 'like' button.

When 10 of your friends have 'liked' our page, just send me a quick message listing your friends. The first person to do so will be awarded with their prize!

Get going quickly!!!

Katie x

The UK riots - remember that not all youngsters have caused trouble

Hi all,

Like most of you, I have been shocked and disgusted by the scenes of rioting across the country. I can't believe things have come to this, where some young people feel they can do what they like and not suffer any consequences.

What makes me terribly sad about the actions of these youngsters is that not all youngsters were involved in these disturbances and I worry that these events will change the way other innocent young people will be perceived and treated going forward. Will people be even more scared of groups of teenagers on the street? Will the brave reaction of some people going out to defend their streets turn into anything more sinister?

I guess we will have to wait and see how this pans out over the next few weeks. After a relatively calm night in London last night, who knows whether anything more will happen? All I know is that once again, in the face of adversity, it is heart warming to see that the majority of people are decent and will come together to support each other and their community. This is my favourite image from the Clapham clean up:



You can read more about this story here.

Katie x

I was feeling organised

Hi all,

I hope you all had a nice weekend and are feeling ready for the week ahead!

My weekend was filled with nice homely duties of tidying, organising and baking (though I have to admit that Molly did most of the baking).

For some reason I woke up on Saturday feeling like we had accumulated too much clutter, and so I dedicated my day to getting rid of the old, ugly and un-used in an attempt to make our house a clean and tidy one! The first thing on the agenda was sorting the huge pile of trainers which had somehow grown at the back door, which undoubtedly built up from our regular walks with Plum.



I gradually made my way through the house and by the time I had finished, Molly had pulled out a freshly baked tray of chocolate chip cookies so I was able to take a well earned rest with a cookie and a cup of tea! I was exhausted! The way I had been buzzing round the house you would have thought someone had put a timer on me - it reminded me of our birthday e card for mum - though I was just saving us from clutter and dust, not saving the world!

Once I got through the house I felt I really deserved to relax for the rest of the weekend, which I did with the help of Nick, the kids and Plum.

Hope you all enjoyed your weekend.

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news as well as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.

What are you up to this weekend?

Hi all,

What a strange weeks weather we have had here! Some days beautifully sunny and others (like yesterday) rainy and awful. I really hope that the weather this weekend as I am hoping to have another BBQ!

We don't have much planned this weekend which is great as it means Molly and I will do some baking together. She is much better than me and makes the most delicious chocolate chip cookies! She got the recipe from Nigella's book and I managed to find it for you online here incase you want to try it. If you do, please let me know what you think!

I do love a bit of baking, although it doesn't always turn out well though I suppose thats why its interesting - because you never quite know whether your recipe will work! Thats where the inspiration came from for the birthday cake maker birthday e card - its a recipe that always works out well!

Anyway , hope you all have a great weekend!

Katie x

New e cards!

Hi all,

Just a quick one to let you know that we have added a new Labor Day ecard as well as versions for wishing someone Get Well Soon, Happy Birthday, Well Done! and Good Job!

Labor Day is coming up on the 5th of September so don't forget to schedule your Labor Day card to go out on time!

Katie x

Meet the Katies Cards team

Hi all,

As promised, here are a few snaps to help you get to know me and the rest of the team better.

Our office

First of all, here are two photographs of the Katies Cards office. The building with the bluey-grey 'Engravers House' sign above the window is the our office where all of our ecards are created. The building is a converted butchers shop and is bright and airy. There are 3 companies in the building altogether as well as my ceramics studio which was built at the back of the office.

The Katies Cards office

The office is in Teddington, a small and pretty town in Middlesex in the south of England. Its right next to a gorgeous park called Bushy park, where we go at lunch time and where I walk Plum.

The team

We are a small, close-knit team who enjoy working together to create our e cards in our lovely office in Teddington. We often listen to music in the office and because of Nick's wide taste, usually leave the selection up to him. There are a few pubs nearby where every now and then we go to have a lovely pub lunch.

Nick

My husband Nick works with me to come up with ideas for new e cards and helps bring my drawings and paintings to life on the computer screen. He helped me to create my first e card for my Mum and has been instrumental in getting Katies Cards where it is now.

Prior to Katies Cards, Nick studied animation at University. Once qualified, he embarked on a successful 8 years as an animator before deciding to go it alone and use his skills to work as a frelance animator for TV and film, which was how we met Barry.

Nick has an eclectic taste in music and enjoys food, cycling, films and spending time with friends and family.

I am very lucky to be able to work alongside my husband who is extremely talented and committed to producing such high quality cards for you!

Barry

Barry is a talented illustrator who has worked with us to create our e-cards from a very early stage. He has made many of the backgrounds and characters you see in our collection and has also been instrumental in helping to shape the seeds of my ideas and come up with new ones!

He studied illustration at University and has since had a very successful 7 year career as an illustrator. When I asked him for some facts to write in the blog, he proudly told me that as a student, he designed the characters in a number 1 Playstation game called 'Prisoner of war' which is very impressive!

He is a keen follower of football and art and enjoys playing golf.

Racheal

Racheal is new to the team, having only joined us 1 month ago. She was brought on board to help us grow Katies Cards due to her 7 years experience in marketing for both large and small companies. Unusually for a marketer, Racheal actually studied Sculpture at University, but after completing the degree realised that she didn't want to follow the creative path and went on a search to find the right career. After joining a small publishing company as a customer service advisor, she was quickly moved over to the marketing department and rose up the ranks. Since then she has worked for another large publishing company and a disability organisation, planning and implementing marketing campaigns and developing marketing strategies.

Racheal is a keen cook and a lover of all things food, fashion and interiors.

Me

You may already feel like you know a lot about me so i'll try to keep it brief. I am Katie and I am the person who started this process 5 years ago. I am passionate about saving the environment and I am always on the look out for eco-friendly ideas, which is how I realised that there weren't any good quality e cards to send to people five years ago when I was looking for an eco-friendly e card for my Mum's birthday. I decided then to make my own e card, taking some time to make sure it was really good quality and I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to do more! I came up with some more ideas for Nick and I to get to work on and then planned how we could sell them to people on the internet. 18 months later we launched katiescards.com with just 25 cards and have steadily been adding more to the collection over the years - we now have over 160 in the collection for all sorts of occasions such as birthdays, Christmas, Easter, Valentine's day, Mothers day, Fathers day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Independance day, St Patrick's day, engagement, wedding day, anniversary, new baby, new home, Canada day and many more!

Click on the link to see the first birthday e card that I created for my Mum (you can send this card also if you like it).

I love what I do and that I am able to combine the things that I love in my job - art, environmental issues and working with Nick. Like Racheal, I also studied Sculpture at University and after leaving went onto become an art director for film and TV. After becoming a mother, I decided I wanted to take a step back from my career so that I could bring up our children Molly and Joe. Now that the children are older and turning into young adults, I have more time and thats another reason Katies Cards came along at just the right time for me.

I enjoy tennis, art, film, traveling and spending time with friends and family. I also enjoy taking long walks with our Jack Russell Plum (who you will hear more about later). I love making e cards and genuinely wish to make you and your loved ones feel special when one of our cards is sent.

Plum (the office dog)

Me and Plum in Bushy park

Plum is our Jack Russell but we bring her to the office every day so that she doesn't get lonely. We have a garden here that she enjoys running around (and terrorising next doors cats!) and because we are right next to the beautiful Bushy park, I can take her for good lunch time walks which she loves.

Plum

Plum is 5 years old, is great fun and a loving dog. She is, just as all Jack Russell's are, she's very stubborn and territorial and we often have moments when she goes completely crazy! But she is a great character and we love having her here in the office. She is also a brilliant source of inspiration and our walks together have been where alot of my ideas have formed. She got her name when, at only a few days old, we took her to meet my mum. My mum has a Plum tree in her garden which some Plums had fallen off, and the new puppy picked one up in her mouth and brought it to me, dropping it at my feet. Out son Joe said 'Plum's a good name!' and we all agreed!

Me and Plum in Bushy park

That's it for now. I will keep updating you on our team news and add some more pictures so that you know what is happening here but I hope you feel you know all of us a bit more now.

Hope you're all having a nice Wednesday,

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news as well as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.

Photographs of summer trips

Hi all,

We are in the process of taking some photographs of the Katies Cards team, the office and Plum so that you can get a better picture of what its like in the office where we create our ecards. I really want you to feel like you know us as you put a lot of trust in us to create heartfelt e-cards for your loved ones that are the perfect for the occasion and the person.

I am planning to finish the photo's this week so look out for them. In the mean time, I thought you would enjoy some snaps I took recently whilst we were away in Cornwall with the kids. These beautiful scenes are a real inspiration to me, I hope you enjoy them.

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news aswell as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.

Lovely summery e cards for lovely summery birthdays

Hi all,

Thank goodness that this weekend brought some sunshine and hopefully it is going to remain sunny all week!
I had a wonderful weekend, I hope you did too. My niece's birthday party was lovely and she loved her birthday gift which I was really pleased about. As the weather was so nice we decided to have a BBQ with some friends on Saturday evening and spent Sunday walking the Plum in the countryside which reminded me that we have some really nice summery birthday e cards in the collection that you can use to wish someone happy birthday. My favourite summer e cards are the 'Terrace' (click here to preview) and the 'Dandelion' (click here to preview).
For many of you today marks the beginning of Ramadan and to celebrate we have the perfect Ramadan e card for you to send to your loved ones.

Anyway, better get on with the beginning of the working week!

Katie x

P.s. I have recently joined Facebook and would be delighted to become your friend. I am new to social media but will be using my Facebook profile to help keep you up-to-date with the Katies Cards news aswell as posting interesting gift and lifestyle ideas and advice. Click here to visit my Facebook page and request friendship with me.