Design your own Christmas Cards

Before&After

BAmagazine.com

®

i U X

Design your own

Christmas cards
W I S E
W I S E

M EN

M EN

S T I LL

EK H I M
S T I LL S E
W I S E M EN S T I LL S EEK

S EEK

H I M

H I M

H FAM

FROM THE SMIT
HOLIDAY PRAYERS

ILY

Desktop printers and a
$1 photo library have made
it easy to send beautiful,
personal greetings!

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

Continued 
HOLIDAY PRA
YERS FROM THE
SMI

THS FAMILY

Continued 

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


Before&After

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®

i U X

Design your own Christmas cards
Desktop printers and a $1 photo library have made it easy to send beautiful,
personal greetings! Here are a handful of ideas to get you started.

Sunset over the valley | Modesto, California
Taken on September 16, 2005 at 6:28 pm

ia
| Modesto, Californ
Sunset over the valley
16, 2005 at 6:28 pm
Taken on September

W I S E

W I S E

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

H I M

W I S E

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

H I M

H I M

W I S E

M EN

S EEK

S T I LL

H I M

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITHS FAMILY

RS FROM

HOLIDAY PRAYE

THE SMITH FAMILY

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

Print

Separate

Fold

Mail

Store-bought holiday cards are attractive but so commercial — the Christmas-card “tree” at
home looks just like the Hallmark shop at the mall! This year, send a card that can come only
from you . iStockphoto’s $1 photo library makes this practical; it puts a world of beautiful
images at your fingertips to use alone or with your own photos. The cool part is yours to do:

 2 of 10 

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


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i U X

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3 of 10

The Johnsons

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

1 Embellish There is no substitute for a great
family portrait. Embellish with a photographic
object and a beautiful typeface. Classy.

2 Knock out the background Delete a busy background, and you’ll freshen and focus your image.
Add dimension by sending headline to the back!
Dad’s in Iraq? Add news
to your card with captionstyle greetings from everyone in the picture! Be brief
and use small type; light
gray won’t steal the scene.

 3 of 10 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Angela

Maggie

Krissy

Jessica

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num

deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


Before&After

®

Design your own Christmas cards

BAmagazine.com

4 of 10

i U X

2005
CHRISTMAS

mas!
t
is
r
h

C
y
r
r
Me Grandma & Grandpa!
, Kathy and

2006 Katie

Karen

3 Pose creatively Rambunctious kids will
have fun posing in a circle! Cockeyed
portrait lends itself to an enthusiastic,
askew layout!

4 Crop radically Only true friends will let
you get this close! It’s a bold technique
and fun to try. White type centered atop
translucent year is quietly powerful.

 4 of 10 

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


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®

Design your own Christmas cards

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5 of 10

Merry Christmas, Becky

Happy Reindeer Day!

BEST WISHES FROM YOUR FRIEND BILL

FROM YOUR GODDAUGHTER, GENEVA ROSE

5 Use an object A photographic object makes a
beautiful card easily. Keep it simple, and personalize each greeting.
White makes it work
No matter what size or
shape the space, an object
alone in a field of white
gets seen. Here, the script
typeface is totally different
in shape, texture and style,
thus complementary.

Merry Christmas, Matt
BEST WISHES FROM THE MILLS FAMILY

i U X

6 Use an illustration or dingbat Whimsical artwork
and scribbly type make a happy card! Centered presentation lends formality and style.
Use beautiful type
Calligraphic typography
says Christmas! Use
alone or embellish with
an object or border. Here,
dark and light colors contrast beautifully on the
neutral-value background.

 5 of 10 

Gwen
Joy to You,

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


Before&After

®

Design your own Christmas cards

W I S E

W I S E

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

S T I LL

M EN

S EEK

H I M

H I M

W I S E

7 Create a theme Design a
series of cards on a single
topic. Keep type and layout repetitive throughout. Use scenics, flowers,
abstracts, a personal
portfolio. Expresses your
words in several ways.
Also nice when you can’t
decide on a single image.

i U X

BAmagazine.com

6 of 10

M EN

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM

S T I LL

S EEK

H I M

THE SMITHS FAMILY

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

Back

Front
Keep the type quiet Uppercase
headline force-justified spans the card
and makes a sophisticated statement;
soft color is sampled from the photo.
On the back, finish with a caption,
comment or logo just like Hallmark

does! Note alignment with the front.

W I S E

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

H I M

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

 6 of 10 

Donner Pass | Truckee, California
Taken on October 10, 2005 at 3:45 pm

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


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Design your own Christmas cards

BAmagazine.com

7 of 10

i U X

Card & envelope specs

Card size Standard snapshot Envelope A6 (6 Baronial)

Card size Standard picture frame Envelope A7 (A-Style)
7”

6”

4”

5”
5 1/4”

4 3/4”

71/4”

61/2”

Card size Letter sheet quartered Envelope A2 (5 1/2 Baronial)

Card size Letter sheet divided in thirds Envelope #9
8 1/2”

5 1/2”

3 2/3”

4 1/4”
4 3/8”

3 7/8”

53/4”

8 7/8”

 7 of 10 

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


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8 of 10

Design your own Christmas cards

®

i U X

Article resources

8b

1

8d

8c

Typefaces

2 9b

1 Sloop Script One | 20 pt

The Johnsons

Angela

Maggie

Krissy

Jessica

Ullaortion utat. Ut at

numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

10

3 Utopia Black | 8 pt

11 C0 M50 Y40 K15

4 Utopia Regular | 6.5 pt

12 C45 M0 Y50 K15

12

5 ITC Avant Garde Gothic Bold Cond
158 pt

13 C0 M0 Y0 K45

13

6 Minion Pro Cond Subhead | 27 pt

14 C90 M0 Y100 K30

7 (a–c) Zipty Do Regular | a) 40 pt
b) 20 pt, c) 12 pt

15 C0 M0 Y0 K50

11

3
4

8a 9a

8e

10 C0 M100 Y80 K30

2 Block Berthold Extra Cond | 65 pt

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

5

Colors

Images

6

8 (a–f) iStockphoto.com |
e f

2005

10

CHRISTMAS

9 (a–b) Rubberball.com |

a b c d

a b

14
15
8f

istmas!
MerGrrayndmCa &hGrrandpa!
2006 Katie,

Kathy and Ka

ren

7a
7b
7c

 8 of 10 

Design your own Christmas cards

0627


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9 of 10

Design your own Christmas cards

®

i U X

Article resources

Typefaces

Colors

1 Carpenter ICG | 32 pt
6

5a

2 Avenir 35 Light | 9 pt

7

3 Kid Type Crayon | 13.5 pt
4 (a–b) Adobe Caslon | a) 14.5 pt, b) 8 pt
7
5b

Merry Christmas, Becky

Happy Reindeer Day!

BEST WISHES FROM YOUR FRIEND BILL

FROM YOUR GODDAUGHTER, GENEVA ROSE

2

5c

3
2

6

C35 M55 Y70 K60

7

C0 M0 Y0 K40

8

C45 M30 Y20 K0

9

C0 M0 Y0 K70

Images
5 (a–f) iStockphoto.com |

e f

a b c d

1

W I S E

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

H I M

4a
7

5d

8
9

5e
HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

5f
4b

 9 of 10 

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0627


Before&After

®

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10 of 10

Subscribe to Before & After

i U X

Before & After magazine
Before & After has been sharing its practical approach
to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world
has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before &
After is dedicated to making graphic design understandable, useful and even fun for everyone.

Did you learn from this article? Subscribe, and
become a more capable, confident designer
for pennies per article. To learn more, go to

/>
To pass along a free copy of this article to

John McWade Publisher and creative director
Gaye McWade Associate publisher
Vincent Pascual Staff designer
Dexter Mark Abellera Staff designer

others, click here.

Design advisor Gwen Amos

E-mail this article

Before & After magazine
323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678
Telephone 916-784-3880
Fax 916-784-3995
E-mail
www

Join our e-list
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Copyright ©2005 Before & After magazine, ISSN
1049-0035. All rights reserved
You may pass this article around, but you may not alter
it, and you may not charge for it. You may quote brief
sections for review. If you do this, please credit Before

& After magazine, and let us know. To feature free
Before & After articles on your Web site, please contact
us. For permission to include all or part of this article in
another work, please contact us.

 10 of 10

|

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Before & After is made to fit your binder
Before & After articles are intended for permanent reference. All are titled and numbered.
For the current table of contents, click here. To save time and paper, a paper-saver format of this article,
suitable for one- or two-sided printing, is provided on the following pages.

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Paper-saver format 


S EEK
H I M

S T I LL
S EEK

H I M

H I M

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

M EN

Sunset over the valley | Modesto, California
Taken on September 16, 2005 at 6:28 pm

LY

W I S E

SMITHS FAMI

RS FROM
HOLIDAY PRAYE

ERS FROM THE

H I M

Y
THE SMITH FAMIL

EK H I M
S T I LL S E
W I S E M EN S T I LL S EEK

| Modesto, California
Sunset over the valley
16, 2005 at 6:28 pm

Taken on September

S EEK

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

W I S E

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

H I M

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

Fold

W I S E

M EN

S T I LL

S EEK

H I M

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITHS FAMILY

Mail



S T I LL

FAMILY

Desktop printers and a
$1 photo library have made
it easy to send beautiful,
personal greetings!

Design your own

M EN

HOLIDAY PRAY

S T I LL

W I S E

M EN

M EN

FROM THE SMITH

Separate

Design your own Christmas cards

0627

Christmas cards
W I S E

W I S E

HOLIDAY PRAYERS

Print

1 of 5

Before&After | www.bamagazine.com

Store-bought holiday cards are attractive but so commercial — the Christmas-card “tree” at
home looks just like the Hallmark shop at the mall! This year, send a card that can come only
from you. iStockphoto’s $1 photo library makes this practical; it puts a world of beautiful
images at your fingertips to use alone or with your own photos. The cool part is yours to do:

0627 Design your own Christmas cards



The Johnsons

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Angela

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Maggie

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Krissy

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Jessica

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2 Knock out the background Delete a busy background, and you’ll freshen and focus your image.
Add dimension by sending headline to the back!
Dad’s in Iraq? Add news
to your card with captionstyle greetings from everyone in the picture! Be brief
and use small type; light
gray won’t steal the scene.
Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

CHRISTMAS

2005
4 Crop radically Only true friends will let
you get this close! It’s a bold technique
and fun to try. White type centered atop
translucent year is quietly powerful.

Design your own Christmas cards

0627



Karen

1 Embellish There is no substitute for a great
family portrait. Embellish with a photographic
object and a beautiful typeface. Classy.

, Kathy and

2006 Katie

istmas!
MerGrrayndmCa &hGrrandpa!

2 of 5

Before&After | www.bamagazine.com

3 Pose creatively Rambunctious kids will
have fun posing in a circle! Cockeyed
portrait lends itself to an enthusiastic,
askew layout!

0627 Design your own Christmas cards




FROM YOUR GODDAUGHTER, GENEVA ROSE

Happy Reindeer Day!

M EN

S EEK

H I M

Joy to You,

Gwen

Back

Donner Pass | Truckee, California
Taken on October 10, 2005 at 3:45 pm

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

S T I LL

H I M

H I M

SMITHS FAMILY

M EN

S EEK

Use beautiful type
Calligraphic typography
says Christmas! Use
alone or embellish with
an object or border. Here,
dark and light colors contrast beautifully on the
neutral-value background.

S T I LL

H I M

W I S E

S EEK

THE
HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM

S T I LL

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

Design your own Christmas cards

0627



BEST WISHES FROM YOUR FRIEND BILL

W I S E

S EEK

6 Use an illustration or dingbat Whimsical artwork
and scribbly type make a happy card! Centered presentation lends formality and style.

Merry Christmas, Becky
5 Use an object A photographic object makes a
beautiful card easily. Keep it simple, and personalize each greeting.

Merry Christmas, Matt

S T I LL

BEST WISHES FROM THE MILLS FAMILY

M EN

Front
W I S E

M EN

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

3 of 5

Before&After | www.bamagazine.com

Keep the type quiet Uppercase
headline force-justified spans the card
and makes a sophisticated statement;
soft color is sampled from the photo.
On the back, finish with a caption,
comment or logo just like Hallmark
does! Note alignment with the front.

W I S E

White makes it work
No matter what size or
shape the space, an object
alone in a field of white
gets seen. Here, the script
typeface is totally different
in shape, texture and style,
thus complementary.

7 Create a theme Design a
series of cards on a single
topic. Keep type and layout repetitive throughout. Use scenics, flowers,
abstracts, a personal
portfolio. Expresses your
words in several ways.
Also nice when you can’t
decide on a single image.

0627 Design your own Christmas cards




5

8e

1
8c
8d
2 9b

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Maggie
Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Krissy
Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

Jessica

Karen

Angela

e, Kathy and
2006 Kati

s!
y ChGrrianstdpma! a
Merr
Grandma &

10

11

12
13

3

4

10

15

14

8f
7a
7b
7c

7
5b
3
2

Typefaces
1 Sloop Script One | 20 pt
2 Block Berthold Extra Cond | 65 pt

10 C0 M100 Y80 K30

Colors

4 Utopia Regular | 6.5 pt
13 C0 M0 Y0 K45

12 C45 M0 Y50 K15

11 C0 M50 Y40 K15

5 ITC Avant Garde Gothic Bold Cond
158 pt
14 C90 M0 Y100 K30

3 Utopia Black | 8 pt

6 Minion Pro Cond Subhead | 27 pt
15 C0 M0 Y0 K50

a b

a b c d

9

8

7

6

C0 M0 Y0 K70

C45 M30 Y20 K0

C0 M0 Y0 K40

C35 M55 Y70 K60

Colors

7 (a–c) Zipty Do Regular | a) 40 pt
b) 20 pt, c) 12 pt

8 (a–f) iStockphoto.com |
e f

Images

9 (a–b) Rubberball.com |

Typefaces
1 Carpenter ICG | 32 pt
2 Avenir 35 Light | 9 pt
3 Kid Type Crayon | 13.5 pt

a b c d

4 (a–b) Adobe Caslon | a) 14.5 pt, b) 8 pt

Images
5 (a–f) iStockphoto.com |
e f

Design your own Christmas cards

0627



7

H I M

Ullaortion utat. Ut at
numsan ea feummy num
deliqui smodipit lor si.
Cummy nos augiam dio
eu feum iniatet utpat lore
magnit, cum quis at.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

8b

Article resources

8a 9a

The Johnsons

6

6

Article resources

CHRISTMAS

2005

5a

FROM YOUR GODDAUGHTER, GENEVA ROSE

S EEK

7

4a

8
9

5f
4b

4 of 5

Before&After | www.bamagazine.com

HOLIDAY PRAYERS FROM THE SMITH FAMILY

S T I LL

Happy Reindeer Day!

1

M EN

BEST WISHES FROM YOUR FRIEND BILL

2

W I S E

Merry Christmas, Becky

5c

5d
5e

0627 Design your own Christmas cards




Subscribe to Before & After
Before & After magazine
Before & After has been sharing its practical approach
to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world
has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before &
After is dedicated to making graphic design understandable, useful and even fun for everyone.
John McWade Publisher and creative director
Gaye McWade Associate publisher

Vincent Pascual Staff designer
Dexter Mark Abellera Staff designer
Design advisor Gwen Amos
Before & After magazine
323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678
Telephone 916-784-3880
Fax 916-784-3995
E-mail
www
Copyright ©2005 Before & After magazine, ISSN
1049-0035. All rights reserved
You may pass this article around, but you may not alter
it, and you may not charge for it. You may quote brief
sections for review. If you do this, please credit Before
& After magazine, and let us know. To feature free
Before & After articles on your Web site, please contact
us. For permission to include all or part of this article in
another work, please contact us.

Design your own Christmas cards

0627



Did you learn from this article? Subscribe, and
become a more capable, confident designer
for pennies per article. To learn more, go to
/>E-mail this article
To pass along a free copy of this article to

others, click here.
Join our e-list
To be notified by e-mail of new articles as

5 of 5

Before&After | www.bamagazine.com

/>
they become available, go to

0627 Design your own Christmas cards