I admire Postcarden because they have a great idea and coupled that idea with good design. Great idea plus good design equals excellent product. Basically they designed a greeting card that is a  pop-out card that transforms into a mini living garden. If you think about it, this is a long lasting gift card because it will entice the recipient to let the garden grow and enjoy it for longer, rather than a normal card where it will most likely end up in a shoe box.

http://www.postcarden.com
View PostCarden – A mini living garden Video

Brooklyn5and10.com has Postcarden for retail sale in the USA, $12.95. Postcarden is scheduled to arrive April 6 and will ship quickly after. They are currently taking backorders.

Postcarden
http://www.brooklyn5and10.com/category-s/232.htm

Homemade card using Gocco print

Don’t worry if you have never heard of Gocco before. It is a very interesting, compact piece of machinery used to print on small card sized paper. This method will increase your productivity and help you create unique prints.

To illustrate how a Gocco printer works you can view the video at the bottom which shows the process from start to finish of printing  homemade cards.

The Gocco printer was invented in 1977 and was made to be a fast home printing system that was very popular back then in Japan. It used flash bulbs to imprint the original image onto a screen, which you then use as a master screen to print on paper. If you notice that I am speaking in past tense, this is because Riso Kagaku Corporation, maker of Gocco printers, don’t make them any more. This probably has to do with the popularity of ink jet printers. There is a group called www.savegocco.com who are trying to get the Riso company to resurrect Gocco. Until that happens, those who are wanting to buy this printer will have to go to a supplying shop and see if they have any remaining stock, or buy one second hand.

If you design your own cards, whether you draw an illustration or want to duplicate an image, make sure that the image is sharp and made up of mostly contrast. As with most screen printers, the Gocco printer does not convey gradients 100%.

Here is an interesting video that shows the process of printing cards using a Gocco printer. If you want to read the process of how to print with a gocco printer take a look at this article called How to use a Gocco Printer to make your own cards. In the mean time enjoy this video and the pictures the follow afterwards below.

This is one of many ways to make homemade cards. So make a drawing and print it on a card with a Gocco Printer. Your recipient might like the personal touch of a printed homemade card.

Below are some homemade card designs made with Gocco printer. They are from group of people who are very enthusiastic about Gocco prints and have shared their designs on Flickr.

This card was designed by Sarah Parrot | Peony goes to the Caribbean

The Gocco print was designed by So_su | psst

This card was designed by Creativelyspun | Bird standing on a tree branch

This Gocco print was designed by Dee Beale | Cornflower Gocco Print 4

These cards were designed by Starashan | Spaceman

I hope that this has given you some new ideas for your next homemade card project.