Christmas cards you'll love.

Hi dear readers!

//if you missed my post this weekend, you can read it & catch up here :) //

I'm truly excited to share one of my newest sidebar sponsors with you tonight. Partly because it has to do with Christmas (can we believe Thanksgiving's next week!?) and partly because the shop I'm about to feature is run by such amazing, godly people and I love supporting wonderful shop owners and small businesses!

Amos, of DTS Christmas Cards, answered some of my questions so you can learn all about their shop! I actually went to college with Amos! He worked as one of our school's security guards and always had a friendly smile for those who passed by the guard shack! He's recently married a beautiful young lady and I'm so excited for you to get to know them & their shop.

I hope you visit their website & consider choosing them to help you create beautiful Christmas cards to send to all your family & friends this year!

1 // Introduce yourself and tell us all about your shop!

My name is Amos and I am a freelance part-time graphic and web designer. I also work in the sales department of a local audio-visual company here in Santa Clarita, CA. I've been married just under a year and a half to a wonderful woman of God. We are involved at our church on a regular basis and serve as leaders in our college group. I get a lot of graphic design work which comes from DTS Prayer Cards. DTS Prayer Cards is a really cool company. We provide both short-term and long-term missionaries with custom prayer cards. The DTS team has about 12 designers who work together to provide our services. Our prayer card service is unique because our team of designers have stepped forward saying they are willing to make less money if they are designing cards for missionaries that are doing the Lord's work. Our team of designers is no less skilled or qualified; on the contrary, our prayer card design team is made up of a talented crew of individuals around the globe who want to give back by using their talents in a unique way.

2 // Why did you start it and what is the passion behind it?

Out of the experience DTS Prayer Cards has with custom postcard designs, we decided to diversify our offerings with DTS Christmas Cards, which is brand new this year. The idea has been around for a few years, and this year we were finally able to create enough designs to see it all come together. Everything you see on our site is original (often inspired by something else we've seen, but never bought or copied from someone else) and reflects various design styles. We love design, and we love working with fellow Christians all over the world. Now we can provide those same services to a broader (AKA non-missionary) audience and reach out to build new relationships with people through this Christmas card avenue.

3// Can you share what types of cards you offer and specialties that make your shop unique?

We offer three different sizes of cards: 4x6, 5x7, and 4x9 cards and envelopes. Each card is printed on 15pt stock (350 gsm) and coated on both sides with a satin matte finish. What does that mean? It means that we use the highest quality, most durable, and thickest postcard-style paper that produces a crisp image.

Card quantities of 101 or more are printed on offset presses. Offset printing offers superior quality and employs a shockingly high resolution of 4800 dpi to make sure that your images are full of brilliant colors and vivid details. Quantities 100 and fewer are printed on premium digital presses using techniques to make your cards look as stunning as if they were printed on an offset press.

The most unique part of the DTS Prayer Card offering is our commitment to a one-on-one relationship. When an order is placed, your personalization information is collected and we will send you a proof within 24 hours for your approval! This isn't like walking into your local drugstore, loading an image into a kiosk and then hoping it turns out the way you want it to. Every step of the way is guided by our professional staff and you get to see exactly what you are ordering before it is printed. No surprises!

4 // What else do you want my readers to know?

For the month of November I have a discount code for your readers. When they checkout on the DTS Christmas Card site look for the spot in the shopping cart for a coupon and type in 'ARHOLIDAY12' to receive 10% off of your order! Another cool feature is that you can suggest new designs; visit our Contact Page and let us know! We are always looking for new inspiration and would love to see what your readers are liking right now.

We also are offering a partnership program for photographers who would like to offer our cards to their clients. Shooting quality pictures is a lot of work, and this is a wonderful way to add value for your client. More details are available on our website www.dtschristmascards.com.

5 // What is one thing you would like to accomplish with your business?

I think the end goal of DTS Christmas Cards is to build relationships and provide an outlet for our designs, while maintaining our focus on the clients we work with as real people with real stories to tell, and using our talents to help them tell those stories! Long term it would be great to see this business grow and provide an opportunity to switch to full-time design!