All the stockings were hung on display with care . . . .  We had a wonderful time at our annual Salutations Holiday Open House last Thursday!  Everyone got into the Season of Giving spirit, as we collected some great donations for the Second Harvest Food Bank and for the Salvation Army Christmas Angel programs, and we gave away some amazing SWAG bags and lots of special holiday discounts.

Our vendors and neighboring merchants were so generous in providing us with fabulous treats for our SWAG bags.  Smock Paper providing gorgeous letterpressed holiday card & gift tag sets; Dauphine Press sent sets of wonderful letterpressed correspondence cards; Crane & Co. donated copies of their hardcover Blue Book of Stationery; Midori Ribbon sent gift boxes of green organdy ribbon; Inviting Company provided some very fun notepads; Wiley Valentine provided sets of letterpress offcuts assembled into notepads; Modern Salon and Spa provided samples and 20% off coupons; JesseBrown’s contributed $10 coupons; Kilwin’s provided “Buy One Get One Free” ice cream coupons; Her Therapy shared 20% off coupons; and I.C. London provided $10 coupons.  We love our vendors and neighboring merchants, who are so supportive of Salutations.

Would you like a way to make your holiday season a bit less stressful?  Well, we can’t make dear Aunt Fannie refrain from critiquing your turkey or hang your Christmas lights for you, but we can make pulling together your holiday photo card a quick and painless process.

We are so excited to announce the new Salutations Holiday Photo Shoot!  On Saturday, October 10, 2009, you can have a session with a professional photographer and save on your holiday photo cards all in one stop.  We have teamed up with two fantastic local photographers who specialize in environmental portraiture of children and families ~ Jennifer Gaston of Jennifer Gaston Photography in Charlotte and Nancy Ray of Nancy Ray Photography in Chapel Hill and the Triangle Area.

For $20, you will receive a 15-minute photo session and a link to view your photos online.  You will then be able to order prints and, if you’d like your photo printed right on your holiday card, a digital image of the picture(s) of your choice will be sent to Salutations for use in ordering your printed photo cards.  In addition, you will receive a certificate for 15% off your holiday photo cards purchased by October 31, 2009.

Only 15 slots will be available from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on October 10^th.  Appointments will be taken on a first come, first served basis and will fill fast, so you’ll want to book yours quickly!  Feel free to pass this along to your friends.

How great will it feel to have your holiday card photo taken and your holiday cards ordered {at a discount, even} by Halloween?!

Can you believe that, for all intents and purposes, the summer is over?!  The older I get, the more I sound like a cliché {”Where does the time go?”}.  However, the turning of a calendar page does have its perks.  For instance, it’s now time to take advantage of the annual holiday promotions offered by our vendors on custom holiday items ~ greeting cards, photo cards, and invitations.  Your favorites like Crane {including Martha Stewart and kate spade for Crane}, William Arthur, Whitney English, and many others are offering 10-20% off their custom orders.  But don’t wait too long ~ most of these promotions expire at the end of September.  {Be careful ~ if you’re like me, it will be October before you know it!}

Oh, the weather outside IS frightful, but our Christmas in July sale is going to be delightful!  We are celebrating our store anniversaries {7 years in Chapel Hill and 3 years in Charlotte!} with a blizzard of holiday savings from Thursday, July 16th through Saturday, July 18th.

All holiday items in stock from last year will be offered at unbelievable savings.  Take advantage of this great opportunity to stock up on holiday greeting cards, photo cards, invitations, and decor and have that checked off your list before the kids are even back in school!

On Thursday, all holiday items in stock will be priced at 40% off the regular price; on Friday, the savings will jump to 50% off the regular price; and, on Saturday, the savings will skyrocket to 60% off the regular price.  But don’t wait too long ~ Santa’s elves may scamper off with the best items early!

You can also order your custom holiday cards and invitations at 20% off during our Christmas in July sale.  And, since we’re really feeling the holiday spirit, our Christmas in July gift to you is a savings of 20% off all non-holiday merchandise in stock throughout the sale when you mention the Christmas in July sale.  You can even take the 20% off already-reduced sale items.  For online orders, we will calculate the savings and let you know your new total before processing your order or charging your credit card.  {Just mention the Christmas in July sale in the order notes.}

The more the merrier . . . please pass this along to your friends!

They say that, in difficult economic times, people reach out and communicate with friends and family more than ever.  I think it’s because, at times like these, we tend to focus on what is really important to us - like staying in touch with the people we care about.  Most of us don’t have the time throughout the year to let these people know that we’re thinking of them.  But saving up all of that well-wishing for the holiday card season can get expensive.  And, with Thanksgiving falling so late this year, most of us are scrambling to check all of our holiday to-do’s off our list!

Salutations is making it easier and less expensive for you, our Inspirations readers, to send your holiday wishes with an incredible promotion that you can tailor to your preferred savings!  We can print within 2 business days any holiday greeting cards or photo cards we have in stock!  And, for a limited time, you can choose either 20% off any in-stock holiday item (cards, photo cards, invitation, ornaments, decor, gift wrap, gift tags, etc.), free personalization of your holiday cards or invitations, or free printing of your recipients’ addresses.  See our Holiday Gift to You from Salutations post for all of the details.  Remember to mention the promotion and the option you’d like when you’re in the store.  If you’re shopping online, tell us your choice in the Order Notes during checkout.  Please feel free to pass this fantastic promotion on to your friends!