I have always loved holiday cards for as long as I can remember. Even as a kid, I loved opening mail around the holidays, especially when it was photos, cards or packages. We lived far away from family and the photo helps us feel more connect to our loved ones far away. In such a digital age, there is something so meaningful about opening a piece of snail mail. During chemo letters, cards and momentos sent to me meant so much. They made me feel less alone and loved from afar by friends, family and strangers. I find holiday cards a special way to connect with loved ones near and far

Holiday Cards During Chemo

In December 2015 while I was going through chemo Robin from Robin Lin Photography offered to do a photoshoot with my husband and I for the holidays. We met at my friends wedding, which she was shooting and she captured some amazing photos of us there as well. I was so touched by her generosity and decided to get all dolled up for the shoot.  Bald, one boobed (in between surgeries) and going through chemo blues, it was perfect timing. I decided to have my makeup done professionally, since there wasn’t much I could do with my “hair”. Alexis, who has done my hair and makeup to this day made me feel like a beautiful star.

Bald and Beautiful

My amazing cousin designed and constructed a custom tulle skirt for me to wear at the shoot as well. When the day came, I felt like a beautiful princess. What an amazing escape the photoshoot ended up being. Robin Lin’s photography is stunning and she make me feel strong, stylish and badass. I can see how far I have come looking back on those images now. To this day, I am so grateful for those images as they document my journey and give me strength for the future.

Holiday Cards: A Celebration of Life

When you face something so scary, time takes on new meaning. I decided I wanted to celebrate life more and photos are how we decided to document that gratitude — both for my health and for our family. We have done holiday photoshoots now for the past three years and I look forward to both the experience and the resulting photographs. Last year we shot with the amazing Gambol Photography in Charlotte and this year we worked with Lindsey Cash Photography in Raleigh. If you are looking for photographers in either area, I highly recommend both of them.

NYC Photographer: 2018

In October Mac and I went on our first big vacation in a few years and stopped in NYC for a few days to see his cousin. While we were there I convinced Mac to shoot with Olga of Miss O Photo, who is the best! I shot with her back in August in NYC and was so excited to capture Mac and I’s special time together.

Holiday Cards: My Favorite Shops

As an artist and creative thinker, I am always looking for the perfect card to display our stunning photos. I have used many sites to have our photos printed in the past, but this year I tried somewhere new after investigating photo quality. I designed my own card using PicMonkey (free online editing tool) and Adobe Illustrator.

Then I order our cards and prints of the photoshoot images from Mixbook.  I have to say I was blown away with the ease of use on the website and the photo quality – both card weight and resolution. I could not get over the quality of the prints as well. So many other sites completely change the resolution and the color balance when printing, but that was not the case with Mixbook. You can see the image to card comparison below and the main difference is the card’s warmth, which is more from the kitchen lighting than anything else.

Holiday Card Deal

I highly recommend you all check them out for your card and photo printing needs. They have a variety of pre-designed templates you can use, or you can upload your own like I did. The best part is I have a deal to share with you. Use Code MIXMAS through January 1st, 2018 for $25 off your order. If you want to get an even bigger deal, set up an Ebates account (which I shared about in my Black Friday post) and get an additional 5% cash back on your purchase. As an avid online shopper, Ebates is the best creation ever. You literally get paid to shop and it’s a much higher rate of cash back than any credit card.

I hope that you all enjoyed this trip down memory lane with me and I would love to know if you take holiday photos with your loved ones.  Do you enjoy sending or receiving cards? I always love to hear from you all and see how you’re doing. Tag me in your photos on social media @mycancerchic or use #mycancerchic.

This is not an ad, I just really loved my experience Mixbook and wanted to share the deal with you all. This post does contain affiliate links so if you purchase your cards using my links, I will receive a small commission. Thank you for supporting My Cancer Chic and the companies we love.