You might be thinking to yourself that it’s too late to be even thinking about making Christmas cards for this year. Well the good people at Motif would like to say you’ve still got time to create  custom holiday cards for friends, family, colleagues, your letter/parcel carrier, or anyone else you’d like to extend holiday wishes to. 

But what is the right Christmas greetings wording for your holiday card? Well, that depends on who you’re sending it to. In this story, you’ll find several suggestions for the various types of cards you could be sending. If one doesn’t quite work for your card you might be inspired by what we included to come up with your own.   

• Types of Christmas card messages
• Religious Christmas card messages
• Funny Christmas card messages
• Christmas greetings for family
• Romantic Christmas card messages
• Christmas wishes to your boss and colleagues
• Create custom Christmas cards with Motif

Types of Christmas card messages

The note you put in a Christmas card depends greatly on the type of card you’re making. The message you put in a holiday card to a friend from school will be completely different than one that’s addressed to a person who belongs to your place of worship. General Christmas card messages are ideal if you’re printing multiple copies of one photo card you’re making. Classic Christmas card messages like, “Happy Holidays from the Soandso family,” also work well for a mass appeal. If you’ve got a lot on your plate, Christmas card messages from 2021 will do in a pinch.

Here’s a few other types of Christmas card messages you might consider for this holiday season.    

Religious Christmas card messages

If your faith is important to you and your family, then sending a religious Christmas card is a great way to share a blessed message. Consider a favorite passage that captures the spirit of Christmas. Here’s a few options to use or modify for your card:     

• May God bless you and let this Christmas season bring comfort and happiness to you and your loved ones. 
• May God’s blessings be yours this Christmas.
• Hosanna and blessings to us all as we remember the birth of our Lord and savior. Happy Holidays.
• Rejoice in the birth of our Lord and Savior. May the blessings of Christ be upon you and your loved ones this season and into the New Year.

Funny Christmas card messages

Should you always look for the humor in every moment of your life, funny Christmas card messages are a perfect option to consider. 

• Knock, knock! Who’s there? Mary. Mary who? Mary Christmas!
• What goes “Oh, oh, oh”? Santa walking backwards
• Get out the stretchy pants! Christmas is here!
• “You know you’re getting old when Santa starts looking younger.” – Robert Paul
• Christmas is a time for remembering family and trying to guess everyone’s sizes! Merry Christmas from our family to yours. 

Also, think about some favorite movie quotes from classics like Elf, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, A Christmas Story or Bad Santa. They might fit perfectly in your humorous holiday card. 

Christmas greetings for family

With the handy Motif photo app, making customizable holiday cards for just about everyone is easy. Sure, telling your family members how much you appreciate them during the holidays is easy enough, but taking the time to make a personalized card complete with your photos can really say so much more. It’s something they might even save as a memento or keepsake.  

• Thank you for sharing the holiday season with me and making it more special for me. Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, my dear family.
• Merry Christmas to my sister! All the wonderful memories we’ve shared together still fill my heart with happiness.
• There is no greater gift this holiday season than spending time with family around the Christmas tree. 
• What can be better than opening presents, eating food and singing Christmas music? Doing all of them with family like you!

Romantic Christmas card messages

Again, Motif lets you easily create custom Christmas cards to that special someone in your life. The holidays can be stressful and a strategically worded Christmas card delivered right in the middle of it all can certainly bring calm to the hustle and bustle of the holidays. Be sure to track down some mistletoe for the icing on that cake. Here’s a couple ideas to use or give you some inspiration for your own. 

• Merry Christmas my love. Sending all my love to you on this special occasion.
• Your love is the best Christmas gift for me. Merry Christmas, sweetheart.
• You’re still my favorite gift.
• You’re at the top of my Christmas wish list.
• I’m so lucky that I have you to meet under the mistletoe.
• Merry Christmas to the reason I feel merry and bright every day. I love you.
• You’re all the present I need.

Again, mistletoe. 

Christmas wishes to your boss and colleagues

It’s always a good idea to send a card to your boss and close work colleagues. They’re often the people you spend the most time with throughout the year. If you’re lucky enough to consider colleagues friends, there’s no better reason to wish them a happy holiday season. 

• Our team wouldn’t be the same without you. Merry Christmas!
• Happy holidays to a terrific mentor—looking forward to doing great work together in the New Year.
• I like seeing you at work– you add a bit of happiness to the place. Happy Holidays!
• Our team wouldn’t be the same without you. Merry Christmas!
• I definitely didn’t want this holiday season to pass by without me wishing you a Merry Christmas! P.S. I’m happy we’re on the same team!
• Merry Christmas to my co-worker. May your holiday season be as bright as you make our office.

Create custom Christmas cards with Motif

Now that you have a pretty good list of who you’re sending Christmas cards to, ideas of the messages you’d like to include, and the place you can make them, here’s how:

To create your custom thank you card, open Photos and then select the photo or memory you’d like to use in your card. Right click and choose Create, then Card, then Motif. Choose your card format, a fitting theme, then type your very own Christmas wishes to make it truly personal. Then sit back and reap the rewards of your holiday efforts. 

Bring your best photos to life with Motif.

Experience how easy creating personalized photo projects is with Motif. Our photo project app seamlessly works with Apple Photos in macOS and iOS. We do all the complicated stuff leaving the fun creative freedom to you.

The post What to Write in Christmas Cards in 2022 appeared first on The Motif Blog.

If you’ve ever had the privilege of changing the diaper of a baby boy, you might be confused by the subject of this post. To be clear, we’re not discussing those kinds of baby boy sprinkle mishaps.     

Actually, if this isn’t your first baby, you probably have a nice assortment of clothing and gear from your previous one or two. Maybe you’re picking out all your baby gear needs on your own. And maybe the idea of having a huge party when you’re really pregnant isn’t sitting well with you. If any of these apply, you might be thinking about a baby sprinkle shower instead of the usual baby shower. 

Quick Links

• What is a baby sprinkle?
• Baby sprinkle gift ideas
• Baby sprinkle games 
• Baby sprinkle ideas
• Capture memories with plenty of photographs
• Baby sprinkle invitations
• Creating personalized baby sprinkle invitations and baby shower invites with Motif

What is a baby sprinkle?

A baby sprinkle is basically an abbreviated baby shower. It still involves guests, gifts, food, and refreshments, but they’re in much smaller amounts than your typical shower. They’re gaining in popularity nationwide so don’t be surprised if you find a baby sprinkle party invitation in your mailbox soon. 

Baby sprinkle gift ideas

Baby sprinkle gifts tend to be smaller in value and often more practical. Items like wipes, diapers, bibs, and other popular toiletries make great gifts. Bringing a gift for the older sibling is a great way to make everyone feel appreciated. Diapers in general are never a bad idea to those with newborns. Parents will always be needing to eat between feedings, changings, and stealing moments of rest when possible, so a gift of some home cooked meals or food delivery service is also a great practical gift idea.  

Baby sprinkle games

With the first hour or so of your sprinkle going to chatting, eating, and opening a few gifts, games can easily fill the remaining time. Some popular games to try include guessing the celebrity baby from photographs, blindfolded diaper changing, playdoh baby making station, and pin the pacifier on the baby.

If you’re not a big game person but want something that can happen throughout the gathering, try games like “Don’t Say Baby.” Whoever goes the longest without saying “Baby” wins the prize. Have guests fill out cards that include parenting advice for the expecting parents. Even if they have one already, they might need advice on managing two or more. 

Baby sprinkle ideas

Choosing a theme for your baby sparkle shower might be as easy as a color. Baby girl sprinkle ideas in anything pink will do the trick. Baby boy sprinkle ideas in baby blue will certainly do. Whatever your color may be, baby sprinkle theme ideas can also be based on animals, or nursery rhymes, food, or even floral. One could even go with a cloud theme to match the “sprinkle” event. Decorations with rainbows and clouds are popular as are flowers and raindrops. 

Consider a hired venue if you’d rather not handle the cleanup or food and beverages. Outdoor events can be fun if the weather cooperates or a personal at home setting may all be considered.

Capture memories with plenty of photographs

Photographs, besides the sprinkle gifts and empty beverage containers, will be the one thing that lets you remember the fun event. So be sure there’s someone designated to take photos of your baby sprinkle. If not just one person, remind everyone to snap liberally and then create a shared folder for everyone to contribute to. Any one of them could be used to create a personalized thank you card. Companies like Motif make it easy. Putting them a good assortment together in a photo book makes a great piece to revisit the moment whenever you feel like it. 

Baby sprinkle invitations

Instead of buying invitations from a store, use any photo of your own like a pregnancy shot to create an invite for the event. You’d be surprised how easy it is. Your guests will be amazed at how customized you were able to make them. They might even save them. 

Creating personalized baby sprinkle invitations and baby shower invites with Motif

Using your very own photos of the family to be or even any of the baby bump photos you’ve taken, creating personalized invitations is easy. Download the free Motif app to your Mac, iPhone, or iPad. Motif works within Apple Photos so there’s no real need to upload photos unless of course you’re getting them from a friend or family. You can try Motif for free. Make as many projects as you like to see how fun it can be. Buy what you like. 

On your Mac laptop or desktop, open Photos and select the photo or memory you’d like to create your sprinkle/shower invite with. Right-click or in the File menu select Create, then Card, and then Motif. 

On your iPhone/iPad, simply open the Motif app and then select New in the upper right corner, then choose the product Card.  

Motif then magically places your selected photo into your card format. Add whatever text you’d like including time and date of the event. You’ll be surprised how easy it is.  

Bring your best photos to life with Motif.

Experience how easy creating personalized photo projects is with Motif. Our photo project app seamlessly works with Apple Photos in macOS and iOS. We do all the complicated stuff leaving the fun creative freedom to you.

The post Baby Sprinkle Shower Ideas appeared first on The Motif Blog.

If you or someone you know was asked and you or someone you know said yes, congratulations! Someone’s getting married! So at some point, there will be a wedding where friends, family and loved ones will gather to bear witness to this union. All those people are going to need to know where to be and when they should be there. Knowing what to write on a wedding invitation is the key to a proper wedding with real live guests in attendance.   

Quick Links

• What to include on wedding invitation
• When to send wedding invitations
• RSVPs on wedding invitations
• What should the wedding invitations look like
• How do you define the dress code for your wedding on the invitations 
• How soon should the wedding thank you card be sent out 
• What should not be included in a wedding invitation
• Do you need to give all guests a plus one
• Can you invite some guests to the reception only
• Create your wedding invitations with Motif

What to include on wedding invitation

The key to getting all those friends, family, and loved ones to your wedding is a properly worded wedding invitation. This is an invitation you check, double-check, and check again before printing. Because one wrong digit or direction could mean empty seats and a lot of leftover chicken and fish. 

In your invitation, be sure to include these basics:

• Bride and groom names 
• Wedding date and time 
• Location of ceremony and reception if held elsewhere.
• Attire requested

Should you want to add more info to your invite, do so with caution. We’ll cover more throughout this story.  

When to send wedding invitations

The answer to this question depends mostly on the location of the wedding. If it’s a local ceremony with a majority of the guests being local as well, invitations should be sent out 8 weeks before the wedding date. This gives your guests ample time to plan and rsvp for the event. 

However, if you’re planning a destination wedding, those invitations should be sent out 12 weeks before the wedding. A passport isn’t something that is created or renewed as quickly as we’d always like. 

Also, include a return address on the envelope. If their address is incorrect due to a move, you’ll get the invite back and you’ll know they didn’t receive it. Sure beats a, “I never heard about your wedding,” response.  

RSVPs on wedding invitations

What the heck does RSVP stand for anyway? Well, the abbreviation RSVP comes from the French phrase répondez s’il vous plaît, which means “please reply.” Typically, an RSVP is a separate card that’s mailed with the invitation that guests indicate their intent and then mail back. The invitation is something the guest retains as their reminder and for some a keepsake. 

Be sure to include an “RSVP by” date on your RSVP cards. When should RSVPs for the wedding be due? That “RSVP by” date should be at least two weeks before your wedding. Your caterer will need that much time to determine an accurate headcount. Include a pre-addressed envelope to mail the reply back. Some RSVPs can be done via email, a phone number, or online. Don’t forget to put a stamp on the return envelope. 

What should the wedding invitations look like

Since it’s your wedding, your wedding invitations should look like you want them to. However, whatever your design is, it’s important that whatever information you’re trying to convey is clearly visible. A really cool design that makes the date and time hard to read becomes very uncool to your potential guests. Companies like Motif let you print cards and include photos of your own like engagement photos. 

How do you define the dress code for your wedding on the invitations

Communicating the dress code for your wedding can be made by identifying the specific code or a range. For example, if it’s a casual attire ceremony, guests can look up casual wedding attire online and get a good idea of what that encompasses. If it’s black tie optional to semi-formal, your guests will know. Whatever the dress code, it should ultimately match the formalness of the bride and groom. 

How soon should wedding thank you cards be sent out

Ideally, wedding thank you cards should be sent within 3 months after getting home from your honeymoon for gifts received on your wedding day. If gifts were sent to you before your wedding, you have a two-week window. It’s just good manners to let them know you received your gift. 

What should not be included in a wedding invitation

Most experts agree putting registry info on your wedding invitation is a no-no. That can be included on an information insert or a wedding website. It also cannot be stressed enough that incorrect information should be avoided at all costs. So, proof those invites before printing.  

Do you need to give all guests a plus one

If cost is an issue you certainly don’t have to give every single guest a plus-one. The unmarried or not in a serious relationship are acceptable to extend a solo invite. Most people will understand that without “and guest” or another name on the invitation, they can’t bring a guest.

If you find that nearly everyone attending will be coupled up, you could extend a plus-one invitation to your few single friends and family members.

Can you invite some guests to the reception only

Intimate wedding ceremonies followed by a larger reception is becoming increasingly popular. That being said, keeping your ceremony guest list small and inviting additional guests to the reception only is acceptable. Your invitation wording should be clear so everyone knows what to expect.

Create your wedding invitations with Motif

With all this wedding invitation info, your personalized wedding invitations, save the date and thank you cards are only a click or tap away. Simply download the free Motif app to your Mac laptop/desktop, iPhone or iPad. You can start those cards without having to purchase anything. Buy your creation if you like. But by all means, please give this option a try.  

On your Mac laptop or desktop, open Photos and select the photo or memory you’d like to create your wedding invites with. Right-click or in the File menu select Create then the Card, and then Motif. 

On your iPhone/iPad, simply open the Motif app and then select New in the upper right corner, then choose the product Card.  

Motif then springs into motion and magically places all your photos into your selected card format. Then, customize it with text, color, themes, and patterns. You’ll be surprised how easy it is.  

Bring your best photos to life with Motif.

Experience how easy creating personalized photo projects is with Motif. Our photo project app seamlessly works with Apple Photos in macOS and iOS. We do all the complicated stuff leaving the fun creative freedom to you.

The post Nine Tips For Wedding Invite Etiquette appeared first on The Motif Blog.

A child’s baptism and christening is one of their first important religious events. Given the fact that they are just a few months old when it happens is a great reason to photograph the event. Because when you’re only 3 or 4 months old, you’re not thinking to yourself, “why is this guy in a funny hat pouring water on my head?” And to parents, this only happens once in a child’s life so we’re taking pictures. Lots and lots of pictures. It’s important those photos are printed in a place for family and friends to see. A personalized christening photo album is that perfect place. 

Quick Links

• 5 baptism photoshoot ideas & tips
• Capture candid shots of the service
• Take formal photographs of your family
• Include photos from the party afterwards
• Always check if photographs are allowed during
• Be aware of the lighting you will be working with
• Christening photo album formats to try
• A keepsake from the day
• Capture memories with a guestbook
• How can you personalize your baptism photo album?
• How to make your own christening photo album with Motif

If this is your first child or you’re looking to improve after a previous baptism photo book, here’s a few tips and ideas to consider.    

5 baptism photoshoot ideas & tips

With companies like Motif, printing your favorite christening photos in a christening photo book is so much easier than it used to be. If you decide to photograph the event yourself or assign the task to a trusted family member, it’s a good idea to have some idea of what you’d like before the event takes place. Winging it may not produce the results you’d like. Repeating the event can be difficult. Even if you decide to hire a photographer it’s still good to plan some shots beforehand.  

Capture candid shots of the service

One of the best christening photo ideas is to shoot candid shots. Too many staged and expected photos can fall flat when capturing this once in a lifetime ceremony. Some of your best photos happen when your subjects don’t realize you’re photographing them. 

Try this experiment: take a picture of your kids having fun. Then, ask them to pose for a photo. More times than not, you’ll see a difference in the smile. Candid photography tends to capture the purity of the moment. 

Take formal photographs of your family

A healthy balance of candid and formal photos captures the ceremony completely. Formal photos are good to capture the group in attendance. They can also encompass and frame up the individual parts of the ceremony.  

Include photos from the party afterwards

Once the seriousness of the baptism/christening is in the books, it’s time to relax and enjoy the people who came together for this event. Spirits are high and collars have been loosened. It’s a perfect time to photograph the party fixings and those enjoying them. 

Always check if photographs are allowed during

Before you even take one photo, be sure to ask if photos are allowed. Churches are sacred spaces and may have rules about taking photographs. In recent times, it’s much more common for photography to be allowed. Here’s a few things you might want to ask before the ceremony:

• Ask where you can stand and where to avoid
• Ask what you can and can’t shoot
• Ask your priest if they mind being in your photos
• Can you use flash and if so when (sometimes flash photography can upset an infant so use sparingly) 

Be aware of the lighting you will be working with

Light can be a challenge when shooting baptism photography. Most churches can be quite dim and a bit gloomy. Taking bright and crisp photos might be difficult. So concentrate on the moments, embrace the lighting available, and find out beforehand how an adjustment to your ISO settings on your camera could help your photo results. 

Christening photo album formats to try

Transforming all your favorite photos from the baptism and christening from a digital format to print is really easy these days. A professionally printed personalized baptism photo album lets you display photos how you choose and have at hand whenever you reach for it. Here’s a couple ideas to consider.  

A keepsake from the day

Assembling all your favorite shots from your christening into a printed photo album is easy. You can also include photos from friends, family, and photographers you might have hired. A christening photo album can also include descriptions of the event and also important details about who attended, dates and whatever you feel important to record. Your christening photo book can live on a bookshelf with your other photo albums. Maybe next to their sibling’s baptism photo albums. 

Capture memories with a guestbook

Another great idea to include with your personalized christening album is a guestbook. It may not contain photos from the christening but it’s an opportunity for guests to sign in and leave a message for the family. Pull this out on the child’s 16th birthday to read over the well wishes everyone wrote down that many years ago. Prepare this one before the christening with a few baby photos you might have a few of and be sure to leave a bunch of blank pages to write on.  

How can you personalize your baptism photo album?

A baptism photo album by companies like Motif becomes personalized as soon as you add your own photos to it. Then, pick a theme to match the tone of your christening. Select the colors and patterns that you prefer. Describe the who, the what, the when, and whatever else you’d like with a powerful text tool. Put their name on the cover and the spine if you like. Put photos basically anywhere you’d like.  

How to make your own christening photo album with Motif

Your personalized christening photo album begins by downloading the free Motif app to your Mac laptop/desktop, iPhone or iPad. You can start your photo project without having to purchase anything. Buy your creation if you like. But by all means, please give it a try.  

On your Mac laptop or desktop, open Photos and select the photo or memory you’d like to create your christening photo album with. Right-click or in the File menu select Create then the Photo Book, and then Motif. 

On your iPhone/iPad, simply open the Motif app and then select New in the upper right corner, then choose the product Photo Book.  

From there, the Motif app springs into motion and magically places all your photos into chronological order into a photo book format. It will also select the best photos from your group and prevent duplicates from showing up in your book. Then, customize it with text, color, themes, and patterns. You’ll be surprised how easy it is.  

Bring your best photos to life with Motif.

Experience how easy creating personalized photo projects is with Motif. Our photo project app seamlessly works with Apple Photos in macOS and iOS. We do all the complicated stuff leaving the fun creative freedom to you.

The post Create A Christening Photo Album appeared first on The Motif Blog.