Columnist Lisa Ferguson: Sun Lite for Dec. 8, 2003

Lisa Ferguson

Monday, Dec. 8, 2003 | 8:26 a.m.

Getting carded

Ladies and gentlemen, pick up your pens: It's high time (heck, it's bordering on past time) for you to crack open the old address book and begin conjuring some sticky-sweet sentiments to include in this year's batch of holiday cards.

But first, a wee bit of history to whet your appetite - if not your tongue, after licking all of those envelopes shut - from greeting-card conglomerate Hallmark: An Englishman named Henry Cole receives the credit for coming up with the idea of holiday cards in 1843, when he was "too busy" to send personalized seasonal missives to his pals - 'cause we all know how harried the 1800s were. He instead hired an artist to craft a card featuring holly sprigs (symbolic of chastity) and ivy (to symbolize "a place where God has walked").

Still, it wouldn't be the holidays unless someone complained: Turns out a temperance group took offense to Cole's card, as it also featured a family raising wine glasses in a toast. On the plus side, legend has it that the controversy boosted the popularity of sending Christmas cards.

Holiday cards have, of course, evolved over the years.

Most greetings from the late 19th century were without religious symbols, while those from the 1920s were typically hand-painted and reflective of the decade's art-deco influences.

Cards from the '30s "poked fun at poverty and prohibition"; and those from the war years of the '40s were emblazoned with patriotic messages. Modern themes were prevalent in the '50s; psychedelic colors went on cards in the '60s; and space-themed cards were all the rage in the '70s.

Sophistication was en vogue and birthed "stylish" cards in the 1980s; while a return to family life was evident on greetings throughout the '90s. Today's cards, it seems, follow in the spirit of Cole's objective - to "simplify his Christmas communication" - with many people opting for technology's assistance by sending cards online. Or not ...

Return to sender?

The more things change, the more they stay the same. According to the Washington, D.C.-based Greeting Card Association (representing more than 280 American and international wholesale card publishers, producers and distributors), count on 92 percent of consumers to buy old-fashioned paper greeting cards this holiday season.

Most of those pre-fab box cards - thanks again, Mr. Cole - will be addressed to kinfolk who live out of town (74 percent), nudging ever-so-slightly past those destined for "close, out-of-town friends" (73 percent). And don't forget to be witty: 38 percent of consumers say it's important to offer up a laugh with the message inside a holiday card, compared to 29 percent who prefer to pass along religious notes. Guess the other 33 percent are content to simply scribble their name and stick on a stamp.

Here's where the seasonal guilt sets in: 62 percent of people assume they're "obligated" to forward a card to someone when they receive a card from that person. Care for a little spite with your eggnog? Turns out, 24 percent of, um, well-wishers, will nix people from their list of card recipients if said ingrates drop the ball by failing to acknowledge their card or reciprocate by sending one of their own. So much for those "Peace on Earth" cards - won't be needing those this year.