Vote for your favorite!

Last week I showed you my favorite greeting card that wasn't my own and promised you that there would be more fun with it. Today is the start of that fun (actually, last Thursday was, so I'm behind ... help me make it up and send your friends over here to vote, too, if you would)!

Behind the scenes at Greeting Card Universe it is a fun family-type atmosphere among many of the Card Designers. We share ideas, inspirations, critiques-for-improvement, and we let our followers know about other designers. There are a LOT of talented folks creating greeting cards just for YOU over there! A Blog Mash Up Challenge was issued - those of us who wanted to participate would pick our favorite card (that we didn't design) and then YOU would vote for your favorite. The artist chosen will get a fun little surprise for winning. Without further ado I present to you: Artists' Favorite Cards and the Poll (hint: I chose number 4 - isn't it a fun way to cheer up a dreary day?!)

1. 2. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7.

8. 9. 10. 11.

12. 13. 14.

There are some creative cards there, aren't there? Have some fun, vote for YOUR favorite, and make an Independent Card Artist smile!

VOTING CLOSES ON FEBRUARY 7th - ONE VOTE PER PERSON
Poll: Vote For Your Favorite Card!

2/9/2012 Results! - congratulations to the designer of Card #11, and the nominator! They each won their choice of a $10 Amazon Gift Card or 5 free card credits from GCU!

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In case you are like me, and find it interesting to know why people do what they do, here is a master list of the blog posts where artists nominated the cards they chose - happy reading!

1. Judith Cheng nominated Studio Porto Sabbia
2. Aqua Lee nominated Lauren Reeser
3. Doreen Erhardt nominated Stephanie Laird
4. Peggy Mundell (me!) nominated Colleen @ Great Scott Designs
5. Cindy Johns nominated Ramelle Richardson
6. Annie Lim nominated Judith Cheng
7. Elizabeth nominated Dreaming Mind Cards
8. Betsy Bush nominated Sharon Fernleaf
9. Robin Chaffin nominated Barbara Schreiber
10. Sharon Fernleaf nominated Betsy Bush
11. Sri Devi nominated Susan Alison
12. Laura J. Holman nominated Betty Matsumoto-Schuch
13. TANITU nominated Betty Matsumoto-Schuch
14. Robert Bulanadi nominated Makiko Kimura

Have a great rest of your weekend and thanks for being a part of the fun!

My favorite card (for today) ...

Ooohh!!! I have SO many favorites! It changes depending on my mood and the occasion! OK, if I have to pick just one (grumble grumble grumble) I choose (insert drum roll here) ... this one --->
(of course, the actual card doesn't have the © info plastered across the front). Why am I posting a favorite card? Why did I choose THIS card? And who is Great Scott Designs (the card creator)? Read on and the mysteries will be solved (where that missing sock went to after you put it in the dryer? I don't have any answers for THAT mystery, sorry!) ...

Why am I posting a favorite card?
The peeps behind the scenes at Greeting Card Universe, the place where I host my greeting card designs, are holding a contest for the designers. We've been challenged to pick ONE favorite card that isn't one of our own. There will be a followup post on this card and this contest next week (and it will get even more fun at that time).

Why did I choose THIS card?
Like I said, my moods and the occasion all have something to do with what card is a favorite at any given time. But for THIS occasion at THIS time I chose THIS card. I like to think of myself as an upbeat, optimistic person in general. Life's Challenges hit all of us at one time or another and for me, a little humor is sometimes all I need to get perspective on the situation, so that's usually what I reach for when offering support to a friend in need. Great Scott Designs has no shortage of humorous cards and this one is a reflection of that fact. Of course an animal theme will catch my eye every time!

And who is Great Scott Designs (the card creator)?
I first "met" Colleen quite a few years ago when I was active on just one POD site. And when I stumbled upon her at GCU, it was a neat feeling almost like finding an old friend again. Here is an except from her "about me" (you can read more on the home page of her own greeting card store - Great Scott Designs at GCU):

" ... I'm really no "artist" but my goal is generally to make you (and me) smile in a real life sort of way ... The background story...single Mom set out to make one single band t-shirt for her son and kept going from there. Quite simply, I had to make a living in this everchanging world and it's been a blast!"

Click on thru to see Colleen's card for yourself. Did you know that GCU makes it super-duper-easy for you to change the inside text of any card during your order process? Go ahead, give it a try! You can even add your own text to blank cards if you'd like. Love it. And ... check back next week to see what the next phase of this little contest has in store for us all ...

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You didn't REALLY think I'd let you go without showing you a few more of my favorites, did you?!

1/10/2012 - DogBreedz Specials of the Week!

CURRENT SPECIALS

Shop and Save!

Have you been wanting to get a DogBreedz calendar, greeting card or other fun goodies? Now is the time with these current specials!

***** DogBreedz 2012 Wall Calendars at Lulu: Buy one, get the second at 1/2 off! Even tho the promo info says "book" I tested it and this code works on calendars, as well. Save up to $50 on your next order through January 15, 2012. The fine print from Lulu: Enter coupon code ONEMORETHING305 at checkout and receive 25% off your order. The maximum savings for this offer is $150. Sorry, but this offer is only valid in US Dollars and cannot be applied to previous orders. You can only use this code once per account, and unfortunately you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer expires on January 6, 2012 at 11:59 PM PST, so don't miss out! While very unlikely, we do reserve the right to change or revoke this offer at anytime, and of course we cannot offer this coupon where it is against the law to do so.Enter coupon code SECONDHALF305 at checkout and receive your second book for 50% off. You need to have 2 books in your shopping cart for this coupon to work. The maximum savings for this offer is $50. Sorry, but this offer is only valid in US Dollars and cannot be applied to previous orders. You can only use this code once per account, and unfortunately you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer expires on January 15, 2012 at 11:59 PM, so don't miss out! While very unlikely, we do reserve the right to change or revoke this offer at anytime, and of course we cannot offer this coupon where it is against the law to do so.

***** DogBreedz Greeting Cards at Greeting Card Universe: Special Offer: Order 10 or more cards and pay only $1.99 per card! Use code 2012JAN199. Ends TODAY January 10, 2012.



(Top photo: Valentine's Card featuring Smidgen the Pug;
Bottom photo: Valentine's Day Card featuring Spenser the American Cocker Spaniel)

1/3/2012 - Specials of the Week!

CURRENT SPECIALS

Shop and Save!
Have you been wanting to get a DogBreedz calendar, greeting card or other fun goodies? Now is the time with these current specials!

***** DogBreedz 2012 Wall Calendars at Lulu: 25% off any
order! Save up to $150 on your next order through January 6, 2012. The fine print from Lulu: Enter coupon code ONEMORETHING305 at checkout and receive 25% off your order. The maximum savings for this offer is $150. Sorry, but this offer is only valid in US Dollars and cannot be applied to previous orders. You can only use this code once per account, and unfortunately you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer expires on January 6, 2012 at 11:59 PM PST, so don't miss out! While very unlikely, we do reserve the right to change or revoke this offer at anytime, and of course we cannot offer this coupon where it is against the law to do so.

***** DogBreedz Greeting Cards at Greeting Card Universe: Special Offer: Order 10 or more cards and pay only $1.89 per card! Use code 2012JAN189. Ends TODAY January 3, 2012.

***** DogBreedz Gift Items from Zazzle: 20% off all mugs and t-shirts! The fine print from Zazzle: Enter code PHOTOMOMENTS at checkout in the "Zazzle Coupons/Gift Certificates" box. 20% of the mug and/or t-shirt net sale price will be deducted when one or more qualifying products are purchased and the coupon code PHOTOMOMENTS is applied at checkout. Offer is valid until January 5, 2012 at 11:59pm PT. This promotional offer does not apply to screen printed apparel. This offer does not apply to past purchases and may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater. Offer valid on Zazzle.com only.

12/14/2011 - Specials of the Week!

CURRENT SPECIALS

Shop and Save!
Have you been wanting to get a DogBreedz calendar, greeting card or other fun goodies? Now is the time with these current specials!

***** DogBreedz 2012 Wall Calendars at Lulu: 25% off any order! Save up to $150 on your next order through TODAY. The fine print from Lulu: Use coupon code COUNTDOWN305 at checkout, for 25% off your order. Maximum savings with this promotion is $150. You can only use the code once per account, and you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer ends TONIGHT at 11:59 PM so try not to procrastinate! While very unlikely we do reserve the right to change or revoke this offer at anytime, and of course we cannot offer this coupon where it is against the law to do so.

***** DogBreedz Greeting Cards at Greeting Card Universe: Special Offer: Order 10 or more cards and save 35%. Use code 2011DECSAVE35. Ends December 18, 2011.

***** DogBreedz Spoiled Rotten Stickers and Gift Items from Cafepress: Save 20% off your order from CafePress.com, excluding shipping charges, gift wrap charges and applicable sales tax. Fine Print from Cafepress: Excludes specially priced or discounted items, Gift Certificates, Flip products, SIGG bottles and bulk orders. Coupon code NOEL20 must be entered at check out. Promotion starts on December 12, 2011, at 12:00 a.m. (PST) and ends on December 14, 2011 (TONIGHT!), at 11:59 p.m. (PST). All orders must be from the CafePress Marketplace (go to Cafepress.com and enter "DogBreedz" as a search term). Offer valid online at CafePress.com only, cannot be combined with any other coupons or promotions and may change, be modified or cancelled at anytime without notice. This promotion cannot be applied to past orders.

***** DogBreedz Gift Items from Zazzle Including "My Best Friend" iPhone covers and Holiday Breed Ornaments: 15% off all products AND free shipping on orders $50 or more! The fine print from Zazzle: Enter code: WISHCAMETRUE at checkout in the "Zazzle Coupons/Gift Certificates" box To qualify for this free shipping offer, one or more Zazzle products must be purchased with a net sale price equal to or greater than 50.00 dollars. The free shipping offer is for standard shipping to U.S. addresses only. Offer does not apply to shoes, custom framed prints, or screen printed apparel. Shipping charges will apply to oversized orders and orders being shipped on an expedited basis or outside the U.S.15% of the Zazzle product net sale price will be deducted when one or more qualifying products are purchased and the coupon code WISHCAMETRUE is applied at checkout. For most products, the net sale price is the price of the product (excluding shipping and taxes). For Zazzle Custom Stamps, the net sale price is the difference between the price of the Zazzle Custom Stamps (excluding shipping and taxes) and the face value of the postage. Offer is valid through December 16, 2011 at 11:59 PM PT. This promotional offer may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater. Offer valid on Zazzle.com only.

***** DogBreedz Photo Galleries: 10% off orders of $25 or more (tax and shipping excluded). Use coupon code Blog12142011 at checkout (enter it on the same screen you enter your payment information). This offer is good for prints and gift items at DogBreedz.SmugMug.com ... order the 2012 breed wall-print calendars ... the breed Holiday Gift Tags or Greeting Cards - or prints of your dogs or your favorite breeds and more! Coupon expires 12/19/2011.

(Top photo: Holiday Gift Tags featuring Itty Bitty the Toy Poodle; Bottom photo: Clarence the Yorkshire Terrier)