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Best Websites for Valentine’s Day Cards by Martha Miller Though sending Valentine’s Day cards may have originated in Victorian times, showing the ones we love how much we care will never go out of style. Lucky for us, we can now go online to send Valentine cards, so it’s easier and more fun than ever. The only downside is wading through all those search results, so we researched online options for you and point Cupid’s arrow to our favorite sites in several categories. With just a few key strokes you can send an e-card customized with your choice of music, colors, fonts, and “stamps.” Make it more personal by downloading your favorite pictures for photo e-cards. If your child wants to make homemade valentines, check out our list of do-it-yourself Valentine cards. Another option for kiddie cards are cards for kids made by kids – skip down to cards with a cause where you’ll find adorable, fold-and-send Valentines designed by young cancer patients. And while you’re sharing the love, don’t forget to send to our troops. Here’s your chance to let those who protect us know how much we love and appreciate them. e-Cards The History Channel might seem an unlikely source for Valentine cards, but their well-edited designs—only 5—were refreshing after perusing hundreds of options on other sites. The four steps to sending a free e-card couldn’t be simpler, leaving you plenty of time to read up on the history of Valentine’s Day while you’re there. While many sites offer free e-cards, some charge for upgrades with more features. If you send a lot of cards year round, e-cards.com, which has three levels of membership, might be the one for you (E-cards.com). The basic Bronze account is $12 a year and includes a virtual card box to keep track of your saved and sent cards, a reminder calendar, e-mail address book, and special virtual stamps. We liked the option here of creating the card and sending it at a later date. Silver and Gold accounts, priced at $17 and $20 respectively, offer additional features and storage space. Photo e-Cards Tip: Choose a horizontal or vertical template to match the orientation of your photo. My 78-year-old mother had no problem opening the card we sent as a test. And I received an e-mail notification with the date and time she “picked it up.” Another nice feature on this site is the ability to send the card to multiple addresses with different messages without having to download the photo again. While there wasn’t a virtual storage box, you could save the card for the future by sending the card to yourself; cards are automatically saved under “Personalized e-Cards” and can be re-sent whenever you’re ready. Do-It-Yourself Cards Crayola.com made the list as the site with the most fun ideas for making holiday cards and crafts. Click on “Coloring Pages” or “Crafts” to choose an activity. Print and color Valentine coupons for a hug and kiss, a household chore, or a fill-in-the-blank coupon here. Valentine mailboxes are fashioned from recycled tissue boxes, while other options require Crayola inventions like the ColorWonder™ Sprayer to make stenciled cards. One of the coolest make-your-own designs involves creating plaids and swirl patterns with Crayola Color Changeables™ Markers. This craft is for children 4 and older and requires adult supervision. Check out FamilyEducation.com for “10 Valentine Cards Kids Can Make.” These cute ideas are simple enough for toddlers, but also have lots of room for tweens to express themselves. If you’ve waited until the 11th hour to get ready for your child’s Valentine party, don’t sweat it. DLTK offers two versions of Valentine cards that kids can make: color or black and white (click here). Choose color if you want to just print and cut out the cards or black-and-white if your child wants to decorate them. DLTK offers generic and popular cartoon graphics for free, including Scooby Doo, Sponge Bob, Pokemon, Blues Clues, and Powerpuff Girls. A special card for teacher is available here. Cards with a Cause E-cards.com, mentioned above, offers cards to purchase and free cards. Their website promises that “every card sent generates a donation for wildlife and nature.” Send to our Troops More links for showing appreciation to military personnel Group opportunities for teachers and youth leaders (Click on “Guidelines for Teachers and/or Adult Youth Project Sponsors,” “Ways to Support our Troops,” and “Care Package Ideas and Mailing Information.”) P.S. Valentine Postmark |
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