Do you buy charity Christmas cards?

[Posey]

If so, do you support any particular charity, or just charities in general?
Just interested as I always buy birthday cards from unicef as they do some lovely packs, and this year have bought some Christmas ones too.
Always but British Heart Foundation ones too.

Well, I have always bought charity cards. But I think I'm not going to this year.

There are a couple of charities that I and dh support, I like to spread awareness and goodwill at Christmas and I'm interested to get charity cards from others and sometimes find out a bit more about issues they find close to the heart.

But I am tight. Charity cards are relatively expensive. I tend to view cards as a charity donation add-on. I prefer to give directly, less showy but more effective.

SO might get the cheap ones this year. Unless something persuades me otherwise.

Sorry if I have killed the spirit of your thread - I've been thinking about this recently

I think that there was a report last christmas that such a small amt goes to charity that it is better to buy the cards you like and then make a donation to charity seperatly

If it helps, tescos are selling boxes of 50 xmas cards for about £1.50 with 2 boxes for £2 and they are charity cards with monies going to charities like the Samaritans and Whizzkids etc. I also donate money to shelter and nspcc at xmas and do one of those shoe box gift things.

I do usually and last year I spent alot on them but tbh so little goes to the charity I won't be buying them again. I shall and do make donations to my favourite charities instead.

Oh

The charity ones I really liked were the ones I bought from ther macmillan hospice where dh died. They were designed by one of the nurses and all the profit went to Macmillan. I suspect you can buy direct from these charities perhaps though AICR have never sent me a brochure so maybe not.

Do you get a brochure from unicef posey as I've started to pay monthly to them this year. If all the money goes to them, I don't mind.

Posey, you sound sad and disappointed. We have killed your thread spirit, haven't we?

No not really. I really like the Unicef cards, very nice quality and designs, and I do like the idea of helping a charity. Didn't realise they get so little out of it though.

It all adds up, posey. And if they didn't make a reasonable income from it, then the charities would stop doing cards. So it is worthwhile.

Posey, it varies I think. I have seen packs of 5 selling for about £4 of which 5p goes to the charity which seems a tiny percentage.

I buy Oxfam ones which are quite reasonably priced (the ones I've bought this year were 20p/card). They say the cards are supplied by Oxfam Activities Ltd, which covenants 100% of its taxable profits to Oxfam by gift aid. No idea how much Oxfam actually gets though.

I always get charity cards and tend to try and vary the charities I support - ie I definitely don't buy the cards of the charities I support anyway so try and buy cards of charities that I think are less popular but do make some concessions in terms of taste: I won't buy any that are too hideous! Despite doing this, each year I am at how little of the card cost actually goes to the charity. Still, hopefully every little drop counts and, as I say, these tend to be charities that I otherwise wouldn't give money to.

i think more money goes to the charity if you buy them in the charity shops - eg in an oxfam shop rather than in tesco/ m&s where a small amount will go to the charity.

I think you are better buying them directly from the charity rather than buying them from a supermarket/other chain which then donates a set amount/percentage to the charity IYSWIM. We were in Blackpool last week and my Mum went in the lifeboat station and bought some cards.

We always buy them from SANDS direct and give a donation in memory of DT1

snap popmum.

I always get a number of catalogues from the charities themselves (Barnados, Mencap, Save the Children) and Always choose Christmas cards from those. That way I know the charity gets the profit.

One organisation has centralised some of these the Goodwill Shop

If you look at The Meningitis Trust website, you can buy cardsf rom them

At a talk recently, they said that this was a really good money raiser. All the profits got to them

I alwyas get a few packs. Inside they have the number to call if you ever have any wories about Meningitis

I have bought Charity cards this last few years from national Autism Society.

for me its less about the donation and more about the awarness it raises.

i used to get the cards from the foot and mouth painters as i always found them incredibly interesting to look at the beautifull artwork and think of the fact that they were not painted using hands.

Agree that if you buy the cards directly from the organisation they must get a much higher percentage than the supermarket ones.
But, like Countto10 mentioned, Tescos are selling a variety of charity cards so cheaply I can't see any point in not buying charity cards even if the charity only receives 1p per pack it's better than nothing.

Agree with those saying direct buying from charities better.

I think a lot of the people buying them from supermarkets or card shops believe that all or most of the money does go to the charity and would be shocked that it is so little. I was shocked when i found out anyway.

We get them from the local combined charities card shop (aka volunteers with stalls in a church). They reckon that 84p in each pound actually ends up with the charities once printing/distribution is accounted for.

This year i have bought my cards from Naomi House childrens hospice, as have most of the family.
They looked after amyjades Freya during her final hours, and were wonderful tp amyjade and Dp afterwards too.

I also donate to them Freyas christmas present money, so that other children will benefit from what she should have had.

yes always. If you but them direct from the charities, either form the shops or catalogues a lot more of the price goes to the charity. I wouldn't but them from other retailers TBH. Christmas cards are a pointless luxury let's be honest, and at least buying them from a charity contributes something worthwhile.

Having said all that I'm making my own this year. But I did place a huge christmas order with Traidcraft - just didn't bother with the cards this time.

Thanks everyone for your responses. Feelig a bit better that it isn't totally pointless. I do get them direct from the charities rather than the Woolies/supermarket ones.