JULY PIN-UP : THANK YOU CONNOR APP

Chrsity O'Connell

{ Hi! I’m Christy O’Connell living and loving it in San Francisco. I am truly honored that my dear friend of 20+ years, Lisa Janvrin invited me to be a guest blogger this month for YouthfulNest. }

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Thank Yous, Invitations, Save the Date, Baby Showers, and Birthdays…Have you ever thought about how many cards you send each year? My grandmother and mother were the two women in my life who truly appreciated the “thought that counts” by receiving a beautiful card in the mail. Not only was the creativity in choosing the appropriate card, the message inside was just as poignant. They both were my influence to remember birthdays, holidays and send thank-you notes. In elementary school when everyone was busy trying to write as fast as they could to learn cursive handwriting, I was busy writing as slow as I could to perfect my handwriting. One of my classmates in school and I would compete over whose handwriting was best. Then there’s the pen or writing implement. Markers, Calligraphy pens, metallic paint pens, you name it, I’ve used it. Combine all three elements — perfect penmanship, your ideal writing implement and a momentous event to appreciate equals a perfect card. I truly enjoy sending cards.

This past holiday card is a good example of my personalized, handwritten notes

Another hand lettered holiday card from from me and my cat

Picking the ideal card for each individual is dependent on the reason for sending said card. For years I would just buy cards for no reason. For example when I was traveling, or happen upon a great illustration or original letterpress design – of course choosing ones that were blank on the inside, because you never know when they will come in handy.

Lisa saved this one for years – it's on display in her home among other unique post cards

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Cards, cards and more cards

One aspect many are taking into consideration more and more these days is the amount of paper accumulating in their homes. Between the catalogs, unopened mail, documents to be shredded, cardboard from Amazon Prime shipments or food packaging, the recycling bin is overloaded. And what do you do with all those cards afterwards? Save them? Pitch after a month? Recycle and use for kids art projects? Quite possibly, none or all of the above. Personally, I save them and eventually toss the ones that aren’t sentimental anymore. This alone is reason to think about e-cards. The space they’ll occupy and clutter is only your inbox. They might not be tangible, but they still end up in your mailbox.

Many aspects of the written card have changed due to technology. I recently came across a site that promotes e-cards. Connor, in partnership with Barneys New York has an app that is free to download and works with both Apple and Android. They have many themes to choose from whether handwritten, monograms, photo, kids, baby shower, etc.

Some of the categories offered on the Connor App perfect for the busy millennial mom

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The image, paper color, text style and font color are all up to you. Just as would pay for a card at the store, some of these designs you do too. In order to see if this would be something I’d add to my future recipients, I had to try it. I chose to thank Lisa for giving me the opportunity to write for YouthfulNest again and sent her a card.

Screen shots using the Connor App

Final look of free digital note card

Once sent, I received a copy and I was pleasantly surprised how realistic it looked. Instead of my handwriting, I choose a sans serif font that complimented the image.  All it required was inputting her email, writing a message and sending it off. Easy peasy and no paper accumulation in the recycling bin.

So, if you're feeling the pressure to write thank you notes from all those baby gifts trickling in, or you have everyone's email address and not their home address this is where the app truly shines. Think of the time saved by choosing your favorite design, writing a custom message to your recipient and "clicking", sending it via email – versus dealing with the USPS. The time saved by not standing in line for stamps alone is worth it! You also don't have to address and lick all those envelopes.

The most time consuming part of the Connor App is initially creating your address book with all your email addresses. However, once that's complete you won't have to deal with it again. Imagine wanting to send another batch of thank you cards down the road and everything is right there at your finger tips – literally, you can send them from your smart phone while waiting at the pediatrician. Truly a convenient and money saving way to satisfy our on-going need to communicate with family and friends.

For me the ritual of buying and sending cards, will never change because I enjoy it too much. However, the addition of sending e-cards I could possibly adopt as well.  Check back with me the next time I want to recognize a birthday, send a thank you or just send a card to let someone know I’m thinking of them.

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For More From Christy
Facebook : chrsitylinno
Instagram : chrsitylinn

YouthfulNest :
Mamaste -Mom, Bow To The Divinity In You, by Christy O'Connell May 6, 2016
SF Yoga Mag :
Wanderlust 108...San Francisco Style, by Christy O'Connell. April 19, 2016.
Yoga In A Bar, Make it a Double..., by Christy O'Connell. April 10, 2016.
Super Soul Yoga Hike, by Christy O'Connell. February 26, 2016.