enJOY it

an archived personal and craft blog from Elise Blaha Cripe.

IMG_2767 I have actively had an etsy shop for about 15 months. In the same amount of time, I have had about six different versions of business cards. The first ones I typed out on a typewriter. When my typewriter ran out of printer tape, I ordered a stamp (from simonstamp.com) and started stamping them. Then I bought an embosser and added a raised "joy" to each card.

Busicards

Once I added letterpress to the shop and started to bring in a few more sales, I decided to order cards. I used vistaprint.com and was very happy with the results. The online printing service runs amazing sales. Their premium business cards (you pick a design, they print full color) are $19.99 for 250. But they usually have promotions that reduce the cost of the cards to free. Even when the printing is free, you still have to pay to upload your custom design ($4.99), to add a full color backside ($12.99) and upload a backside design ($4.99). But that equals out to about $23 + shipping. Not too bad for 250 cards. (ps. just want to be clear that I am not sponsored by vistaprint – just a happy customer.)

IMG_2765

My theory on business cards is : DO NOT SPEND A LOT OF MONEY. I mean, spend a lot of money if your job is flipping houses. Or if you create expensive wedding invitation suites. If you normally ship out $5 worth of merchandise, like I often do – sending a $1 business card with the purchase is like throwing away 20% of your profit before you even consider your costs. Not genius. Your primary concern with business cards should not be, "Oh no, I am going to run out!" Instead it should be, "Oh, man, I hope I run out!"

IMG_2766

Because ordering cards from an internet print shop is relatively inexpensive, I have no qualms about giving out cards and mailing them along with purchases because I can always get more. And the sooner I get to order more, the sooner I get to do a re-brand for myself and come up with different colors and different designs.

IMG_2759

On my newest cards, the "enjoy" and the "elise joy blaha" are my own handwriting. (I decided I am not going to make a font because I like how I write words, not how I write individual letters.) To get them on to the card, I wrote them on white paper with black pen and then scanned them into the computer. I played around with the magic wand tool in Photoshop Elements to make them the right color/size.

I am happy with the result. It is something much different than the photo-heavy cards that I have been passing out for the last year. I am sure I will change it all over again when these start to run out – but that's my favorite part.

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23 responses to “re-brand.”

  1. Elaine R Avatar

    ooooooo! these are wonderfulicious. i need new ones too i think… i should probably do that… happy sunday!

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  2. Jennifer Avatar
    Jennifer

    lookin’ good – the gray/orange/white combo is really working for you πŸ˜‰

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  3. molly Avatar

    i want some.

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  4. courtney Avatar

    sweet! i love their simplicity – and i love gray and orange.
    your handwriting rocks.. i’ve been meaning to integrate mine into some more of my stuff but just haven’t had the time to make it into a vector so i can play around with the size.
    someday! πŸ™‚

    Like

  5. ~Kristina Avatar

    I second all your vistaprint high five. they are cool.
    THIS POST is brilliant! so true. I’ve been struggling with cards not being enough or being more than I want to spend and I’ve been stuck on it. THIS POST has me shaking in the direction I want to go. Thanks for the inspiration. I hope I run out πŸ™‚
    Your new cards are beautiful.

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  6. Leah Eggers Avatar

    these look great!

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  7. the craftivist Avatar

    love your cards! and i love vista print as well – we actually ordered all our wedding invitations through them. if you get the linen paper, it’s actually fancy enough to pass for nice invites, and at a fraction of the cost!!!
    business cards are definitely my next project!

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  8. sarah Avatar

    love these! I am the same way. Each time I run out of business cards I design completely new ones. It is the best part!

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  9. Melanie Avatar

    i’m loving the new cards! great redesign!

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  10. islandjen Avatar
    islandjen

    love your new cards…!

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  11. Chelsea Avatar

    first off, i love your new business cards! second off, i think the best part about being in the craft business is that you have the opportunity to redesign & rebrand yourself every so often… and it’s praised! “wow, you’re so creative” hehe
    how often do supermarkets or insurance companies or large corporations get to do that?! we’re very lucky my friends!

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  12. Melissa Mann Avatar

    those are fabulous! think i may have to order something from you so i can get one!!
    Have a great weekend!

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  13. Mel Avatar
    Mel

    Looking at the pics of the earlier cards I think these newest ones are definitely the best yet. Love the simple yet stylish design. And of course, the colours :0

    Like

  14. leni Avatar

    I think they’re fabulous! You did such an amazing job on them.

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  15. Lisa Martin Avatar

    Not to mention if you take Pauls last name you’ll need new cards next year anyway!

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  16. Hubbers Avatar

    Please don’t use Vistaprint or recommend it to your readers.
    Using Vistaprint could very likely lead to you being signed up to FAKE discount clubs and hundreds of dollars benig taken from you Visa/bank without your knowledge or permission.
    I have a huge blog post with all the details of all of the different scamming sites Vistaprint and Adaptive Affinity run and how best to get a refund.
    http://www.hubbers.com/index.php/i-got-scammed-by-vistaprint-and-adaptive-marketing-and-adaptive-affinity-ltd-and-amazon/
    If you don’t believe me check this blog and the scores of comments form people who have been ripped off!
    http://www.thegeneva.com/vistaprint-scamvprewards-scam-warning/
    According to the Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/06/AR2006050600160_pf.html this negative option selling scam earned the parent company Ventura $650 million in revenue in 2006.
    If you have already used Vistaprint, start checking your bank statements.

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  17. elise Avatar

    hey folks –
    this is the first I have heard of bad press for vistaprint. I’ll be honest, that I am not concerned, but please do research if you are interested!
    e

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  18. Chelsea Avatar

    I have used VistaPrint on multiple occassions and haven’t had any problems, but I suppose it’s better to be safe than sorry!
    Another site is Nextdayflyers.com, they have good pricing although if you want something “next day” you will have to pay about $30 more for overnight shipping, so don’t let the title fool you. They do great work though
    -Chels

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  19. Rachel Avatar

    The new cards are lovely, Elise. And in the wedding colors! πŸ™‚

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  20. Heather Avatar

    AMAZING!! Love love looove the new ones!!

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  21. Christina Avatar

    Your newest cards are my favorite!

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  22. Carina Avatar

    Love the new cards! My favorite element is the personal touch of the handwriting.

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  23. Mark Simmons Avatar

    Thanks for the great ideas. The new cards look great.

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