Updated: Kate is our winner and has been emailed! Thank y’all so much for participating! :)

I’m sure I’ve mentioned here before that I have a strict moratorium on almost all things Christmas before Thanksgiving. There are two exceptions. First, I will shop for Christmas gifts early (can’t miss out on Black Friday!). And second, I always make sure our Christmas cards are ordered before Thanksgiving. And our cards always come from Minted! Want to help me choose which one we’ll send this year?

1. Charming Gingham | 2. His Wondrous Love | 3. Joy to the World the Love is Come | 4. Angels Sing | 5. Bright New Life

It’s killing me, because they are SO CUTE, but we will likely be using a photo from our upcoming session with Nancy, not our newborn photos with Graham, for our card. I’m sure the new photos will be cute, too, but BABY JUNE!! Killing me.

Speaking of killing it, Minted’s card designs are as delightful as ever. This year, I was really drawn to all the Christmas carol designs, including this one, this one, this one, and this one in addition to the ones above. The great thing is that with their sophisticated design software, you can easily adjust your photo as well as the placement of text elements, fonts, colors, and sizing. (But, a tip: if you’re taking a photo specifically for your card, try to choose a favorite design before your session, so that you can coordinate your outfits and poses accordingly!) Minted also offers the most darling envelopes, shiny foil designs, free addressing, extra-thick stock, and custom card shapes – whew.

Now for the extra-fun part: I have a $150 Minted gift certificate to give away!! To enter, just comment below with either your favorite option from our Christmas card finalists, or the Minted design you’d most like to order for your family! (Or both!) I’ll randomly choose a winner next Monday! If you’re ready to get started, you can use code CHEER for 15% off orders. (Or just take a peek at their site whenever you’re ready to order – they almost always have a discount code!)

Minted has graciously gifted us our Christmas cards, but I chose to write this post, and the opinions are my own! I have loved everything about Minted — especially their crowd-sourced designs — for many years, and I love sharing what they’re up to with y’all.

Update: We have a winner! Congratulations to Breanne, commenter number 47!

For as long as I can remember, Christmas cards have been a treasured part of my Decembers. I love the whole process — browsing potential designs, choosing a favorite, writing notes, receiving cards from loved ones, and displaying them in our home. I love that with so much sadness and darkness in the world, Christmas cards are a small reminder of the true light of the world. In fact, we still have Christmas 2014 cards pinned up in our kitchen because they make me so happy!

For the third year in a row we’ll be sending a Minted design, and I would love your help choosing a favorite!

1. Joy to the World Starbursts | 2. Wonder Filled | 3. More Joy | 4. Winter Brush Foil-Pressed | 5. Peaceful Pines

The wonderful Perry Vaile took a few photos of us for a Southern Weddings project earlier this year, and we’re so happy to have her talents gracing our card! The fall hues in the background lend themselves well to some of Minted’s mustard-y options this year — unexpected, but I like it!

I’m sure y’all are well aware of how amazing Minted’s offerings are. With their sophisticated design software, you can easily adjust your photo as well as the placement of all text elements, fonts, colors, and sizing. They also offer the most perfectly coordinated envelope designs, free envelope addressing, extra-thick stock, and custom card shapes!

BUT the thing I most wanted to highlight from Minted this year is their new completely custom art options! For example, send them your child’s drawing and they’ll print it either in letterpress or foil — what an amazing gift for grandparents!! I’ve said it before (here when they debuted their custom fabric), but this company continues to amaze me with their creativity and commitment to excellence. I am a forever fan for sure!

Now for the extra-fun part: I have a $200 Minted gift certificate to give away!! To enter, just comment below with either your favorite option from our Christmas card finalists, or the Minted design you’d most like to order for your family! (Or both!) I’ll randomly choose a winner next Monday! If you’re ready to get started, you can use code FOIL for a free foil upgrade or code JOY for 10% off orders of $100+.

P.S. Yes, our newsletter will be back! I’ve gotten many emails about this, so I wanted to say it here: I’m opening up three spots to design similar newsletters! $100 for a ready-to-print file, customized with your family’s stats and news. Email me at em (at) emformarvelous.com to reserve your spot or ask more questions!

Minted has graciously gifted us our Christmas cards, but I chose to write this post, and the opinions are my own! I have loved everything about Minted — especially their crowd-sourced designs — for many years, and I love sharing what they’re up to with y’all.

Update: We have a winner! Congratulations to Molly L., commenter number 99!

I love Christmas cards! I love browsing potential designs, I love choosing one, I love writing notes, I love sending them, I love receiving them, and I love displaying them in our home. The whole process is one of my favorite holiday traditions! Like the last two years, we’ll be sending a Minted design, and like the last two years, there are too many good options! So once again, I’m enlisting y’all’s help. Which one is your favorite?

1. Snowy Love and Joy | 2. Very Merry Lettering | 3. Be Merry Pine Branch | 4. Merry Typography | 5. Hap-Happiest Time

Best believe I’m using a photo from Natalie + Joe’s wedding, courtesy of Meredith Perdue! We don’t look this good too often :)

Minted’s editing software is seriously sophisticated – I love that you can adjust your photo and the design elements so easily. Their foil-pressed options are also amazing, but I think the real star this year is their new envelope addressing! The envelope designs coordinate with the card designs, and they offer recipient addressing for free!! I love doing my envelopes in calligraphy, but the designs are ridiculously cute…

Now for the extra-fun part: I have a $250 Minted gift certificate to give away!! To enter, just comment below with either your favorite option from our Christmas card finalists, or the Minted design you’d most like to order for your family! (Or both!) I’ll randomly choose a winner next Friday!

P.S. Yes, our newsletter will be back! I’ve gotten many emails about this, so I wanted to say it here: I’m opening up three spots to design similar newsletters! $100 for a ready-to-print file, customized with your family’s stats and news. Email me at em (at) emformarvelous.com to reserve your spot or ask more questions!

Minted has graciously gifted us our Christmas cards, but I chose to write this post, and the opinions are my own! I have loved everything about Minted — especially their crowd-sourced designs — for many years, and I love sharing what they’re up to with y’all.

Update: Congratulations to reader no. 23, Laura Kittrell, our lucky winner! An email is on its way to you!

Since I’ve been searching for and saving home inspiration, this photo has always been one of my favorites:

It captures so well the colorful but classic, clean, happy, comfortable vibe I’m hoping for in our home, which is why I included it in my home color post! Truly, pretty much every photo from Caitlin Wilson could have been included in that post – her aesthetic is just a perfect fit for mine!

Y’all know I do not splurge easily, but I think her patterns can really add a “pop” to a room and bring a color scheme together – and the Mint Fleur Chinoise pillow I finally purchased last year does just that.

The kind folks at CWD somehow found my home tour post where it was featured and offered up another pillow for me and one for me to giveaway! I hemmed and hawed for a long time over which to choose, but finally settled on a Greige Greek Key lumbar pillow for our guest bedroom:

I love supporting such a smart woman-owned, mama-owned business that is doing so many things right, including offering up a giveaway for y’all! :) Please leave a comment with your favorite CWD pillow pattern and I’ll choose a random winner to receive the 14×20 or 20×20 pillow cover of their choice next Friday. Good luck!!

P.S. Anyone can use code MARVELOUS10 for 10% off of their purchase!