When should I send my Christmas cards?

No one really likes to receive a Christmas card in November; it feels far too early, as after all the big day is still nearly a month away. However, you need to avoid going to the other extreme and not sending your cards in time, or your recipients won’t receive their card till into the New Year. Although it doesn’t apply to those cards you can hand deliver, don’t forget that with a lot more people sending cards and parcels at this time of year the postage is a lot slower than it would usually be. Within the UK this year, the last day that Royal Mail can guarantee that your card will be received by Christmas is 18^th December for second class postage and 20th December if sending first class.  However, if you are sending cards to friends and family abroad, you need to leave yourself more time; for cards going to Asia and Australasia by airmail you need to post them in early December. It often makes sense to include a gift card within your envelope if you want to send a present, but don’t know what item to get. Remember though that if you are including any other items that it is essential to have your package weighed, as if the correct postage has not been paid, you risk the parcel not reaching them in time for Christmas. When including gifts you can be safe in the knowledge that the firm will have courier insurance, so should the item be lost or damaged, it will be covered. 

Which Christmas cards should I buy?

Although your selection will somewhat be determined by your budget, however much you have to spend on cards, you will probably be spoilt for choice. Whether you go for a traditional biblical scene, one depicting a winter landscape or a more modern design, the choice of image displayed by your card is down to your personal preference and what you think your recipients would like. Although Christmas cards are most commonly sold in multiples, luxury cards (often hand-made with fancy additions such as ribbons, beads or a seasonal cut-out) or those aimed at a specific family member are often available individually to buy. You might decide to buy the majority of your cards as those in multipacks – it does tend to be more economical to do this - but buy a small number of individual cards for those closest to you. This means that while you can’t choose a specific card for everyone, you can tailor your choice of card for those people that mean the most to you. It might be traditional to shop for cards at department stores and card shops on the high street, but don’t forget to look at internet card stores, as they often stock a different range of cards to those available elsewhere, some of which will be unique.

For Your Special Hand Made Luxury Christmas Cards www.gibsondoyle.co.uk

When should I buy Christmas cards?

Although some people will tell you that the only time that you should buy Christmas cards is in the January sales, it’s a shame that you restrict yourself to what hasn’t sold. While the 50-75% reduction on cards is very tempting, do you really want to send your nearest and dearest last year’s left overs? For most of us the answer is a resounding no. 

In this case ensure you buy your cards when you have the greatest selection from which to choose from. This doesn’t mean buying up your cards when they first appear in some shops at the end of August, as you won’t be able to see the full range available – and who wants to think about Christmas so early anyway? Instead wait until early November to start looking for your cards; by now most stores will have their whole collection of cards available for purchase, but you will have bought them in sufficient time to have them written, addressed and sent without the whole exercise being one huge rush. Although there will be plenty of choice still available into December, by this point you won’t have the time to necessarily look around so many stores and mull over your options, forcing you to make a snap decision and perhaps buying the same cards to send to everyone.

At Gibson Doyle all our Christmas Cards come with free personalisation http://www.gibsondoyle.co.uk

What our customers say.......

The quality of the cards is exceptional however I really must commend the customer service which is absolutely 'on point'. The attention is immediate and personal and enhances the emotion behind the item being purchased - makes it so much more special. I bought both birthday cards and an anniversary card and the responses were just heartwarming. Thank you Gibson Doyle, you put the 'fairy dust' on something wonderful! 

Donna 



I was delighted with my order from Gibson Doyle. 

They were able to come up with several options and solutions for the extensive wording I needed on my birthday invitation. I went with an insert they designed to complement the invite which was only £1 extra per card. 
You can tell each invite is hand finished, with mounted layers of card giving it a high quality finish that will not bend or curl making them look very expensive. 

My total order with delivery only cost me £48 for 10 invites 10 inserts and gold envelopes, all printed and delivered in a hand tied box within a few days. 

I would definitely recommend this company for specialist cards. 

Louise 

And loads more see here 

Wedding Invitations Parents and Step Parents

Every family has different of types members in them, some are modern ones that wedding books and etiquette guides are struggling to keep up with. So how can you include everyone in such a way that all are equally important?

The simple answer is, you can’t. There’s only so much room on an invitation, but for those that you must, there is a way to handle them in an invitation.

When it comes to step parents, most couples feel that they are  different from their biological parents, however they may want to incorporate them into the invitation as well. Traditionally, the parents are only included, so how do you put in step parents names?

Most invitations start off with “Mr. and Mrs. Smith  would like to announce the marriage of their daughter Sandra to John, son of Mr. and Mrs. Brown.” 

In order to include step parents, you can just add them in at the beginning and end, denoting it with son of Mrs. Smith and her husband Bill.

If there is a parent that has been absent for the child’s life, then they do not have to be put into the invitation.

If one of the couple members would like to include a parent that has passed on, they can say something to the effect of ‘son of Mr. Smith and the late Mrs. Smith.’ That works just fine. If both parents are deceased, you may want to note that as ‘son of the late Mr. and Mrs.’

If someone has recently passed away, then you may want to include it in your wedding invitations as a separate note  a good way to let your guests know and avoid any awkward moments. This is especially true if it was a recent event.

When in doubt do what feels right for you. A lot of the time, you can write and rewrite the wording to include everyone but still only end up satisfying yourself. Read your words aloud then can see what something sounds like to a reader, and make your choice from there.

At Gibson Doyle all our invitations come with free personalisation http://www.gibsondoyle.co.uk

New Wedding Stationary

We've lots of new wedding stationary designs online, from classical to contemporary see here and we supply Save The Dates, Day Invites, Evening Invites, Reply Cards, Menus, Order of Service, Place Cards, Guest Book, Table Plan and Thankyous  to match our Cassical wedding stationery designs. Alternative colourways can also be accommodated.

Selecting elegant wedding stationary need not be another wedding chore

Wedding stationary is one of those aspects of a wedding, which make a lasting impression of the day itself. Invitations are the first part of your wedding event that your guests will see, the order of services will be hoarded away for years to come by members of your family and the table plan can save your reception from utter chaos. Choosing the right stationary can make all the difference.

 As you plan your wedding, the pressure can lead to many decisions becoming a chore as the bigger items taking priority such as the venue, wedding rings and the dress. Wedding stationary can easily fall into this category, as it is depended on several other aspects coming into place before you can action it. Before commissioning your wedding invitations you need to know the time, venues for both the ceremony and reception and the guest list. If you are looking for matching stationary, you will also need to know the order of the service (including songs) and the table plan. Gibson~Doyle can offer a stress free solution to your wedding stationary needs. We offer handmade invitations in a wide variety of designs, which you simply will not find on the high street. We have ranges of traditional styles, as well as more contemporary designs and as such we are confident that you will find stationary to fit the theme and tonality of your wedding day.

We appreciate that when planning a wedding, time is an infinitely valuable commodity and as such we even offer the option of the service of printing the individual guest’s names on the invites, which will save you a considerable amount of time. More details of Gibson~Doyle wedding stationary lead times can be found here, along with details of our proofing policy.

Here at Gibson~Doyle we have been designing and creating specialist cards, wedding invitations and party invitations since 1996 from our base in West Yorkshire. We pride ourselves on retaining design as one of the fundamental elements of our service, which when combined with the highest levels of handmade quality, we are sure you will love your stationary from Gibson~Doyle.