August 24th Full Sturgeon Moon

August - The fishing tribes are given credit for the naming of this Moon, since sturgeon, a large fish of the Great Lakes and other major bodies of water, were most readily caught during this month. A few tribes knew it as the Full Red Moon because, as the Moon rises, it appears reddish through any sultry haze. It was also called the Green Corn Moon or Grain Moon and the Ripe Berries Moon.

Buck Moon July 25th

July - is normally the month when the new antlers of buck deer push out of their foreheads in coatings of velvety fur. It was also often called the Full Thunder Moon, for the reason that thunderstorms are most frequent during this time. Another name for this month’s Moon was the Full Hay Moon and the Strong Sun Moon in the western tribes.

LEO THE LION ZODIAC, JULY 23 TO AUGUST 22

Drama, pride, and commanding leadership are characteristics ingrained in Leo. This attention getting sign gives a royal and classy gloss to planets located within it. Favorable aspects enable planets here to be expressed in ways which draw respect and admiration, while negative vibrations influence planets to put on too much of a show and demonstrate a great deal of arrogance. Leo is a sign concerned with creativity.
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Summer Soltice June 21

Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, the shortest night, and a tipping point: from here on out the days get shorter and the nights get longer. The solstice, sometimes called midsummer because by now farmers have long done their planting, is technically the first day of summer. It both ushers in the warmest season, and reminds that the season is short, slipping away day by day. For those who revere nature, summer solstice may be celebrated by a bonfire, and staying up to greet the dawn. Celebration may be a small private event, or a large communal event such as the Pagan Spirit Gathering held on beautiful rural land in Missouri, with ritual, prayers, altars and sacred space.

Angel Cards

Why angels? Lord knows. Many tasks have been assigned to them in Jewish and Christian tradition, in folklore and folk theology. People have been guessing at it for 4000 years, probably longer. One helpful view is that angels are sent by God to bring the truth, especially the big truths, to specific people in critical situations. The biggest truth (the one that Jesus Christ was living, dying proof of) is that God is with us and for us, and an angel is sent here as a part of that. God's message can be a warning, or be a comfort in times of danger and. There's more going on than the careless eye can see, so God's messenger points it out. Since God is way too much for us to take, the messenger is sent in God's stead, like a diplomatic envoy. What happens then is between humans and the Lord. God chose this way (among other ways) to keep in touch with us and not be a far-off Deist god.

KingCards, King is a dog

KingCards is named after my first and best boyhood dog friend, King. So if you see a lot of cards with dogs on them you know why. There are lots of cats too. Cats are a natural, fun and expressive with big eyes bright and many colored fur.

Finally my appreciation to you, the people who are willing to spend some time with me. That connection is my greatest joy, knowing there are people out there from all over the world who get a laugh a smile a little break from it all.
Always, Andy

New Moon Cards

In astronomical terminology, the phrase new moon is the lunar phase that occurs when the Moon, in its monthly orbital motion around Earth, lies between Earth and the Sun, and is therefore in conjunction with the Sun as seen from Earth. At this time, the dark (unilluminated) portion of the Moon faces almost directly toward Earth, so that the Moon is not visible to the naked eye.

The original meaning of the phrase new moon was the first visible crescent of the Moon, after conjunction with the Sun. This takes place over the western horizon in a brief period between sunset and moonset, and therefore the precise time and even the date of the appearance of the new moon by this definition will be influenced by the geographical location of the observer. The astronomical new moon, sometimes known as the dark moon to avoid confusion, occurs by definition at the moment of conjunction in ecliptic longitude with the Sun, when the Moon is invisible from the Earth. This moment is unique and does not depend on location, and under certain circumstances it may be coincident with a solar eclipse.

Mothers Day Cards

Mothers Day Greetings

Mother’s Day is always the second Sunday in May.
Carnations are the official flower for Mother’s Day -- pink for mothers living, white for those passed away.
Mother’s Day is the third-largest card-sending holiday in the United States, with 162 million cards exchanged annually.
Mother’s Day is the second most popular holiday for gift-giving, following Christmas.
Mother’s Day is observed across a wide range of relationships. In addition to mothers, grandmothers and wives, the celebration extends to daughters, sisters, aunts, mothers of loved ones, friends, and any others who play a mother-like role.

Mother's Day Quotes

“A mother is not a person to lean on, but a person to make leaning unnecessary.” – Dorothy Canfield Fisher

“Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs ... since the payment is pure love.” – Mildred B. Vermont

“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.” – Washington Irving

Full Moon Greeting Cards

Full Pink Moon – April This name came from the herb moss pink, or wild ground phlox, which is one of the earliest widespread flowers of the spring. Other names for this month’s celestial body include the Full Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and among coastal tribes the Full Fish Moon, because this was the time that the shad swam upstream to spawn.
See full moon cards at KingCards.

Greeting Card Artist

George Burkhardt.   In 1941, a small group of greeting card publishers under the leadership of George Burkhardt of Burkhardt-Warner established the Greeting Card Industry, predecessor of today's Greeting Card Association. Formed in response to a War Department order to reduce paper use by 25%, the organization successfully fought the possible elimination of paper used for greeting cards during World War II by launching "Defense Stamp Christmas Cards" and V-Mail greeting cards to help promote defense stamps and war bonds. Another effort named "Greeting Cards in Wartime" showed how greeting cards helped keep families in touch and boost the morale of soldiers fighting abroad. Millions of greeting cards were provided by the association through the Red Cross to wounded servicemen.

Greeting Card Artist

Joyce C. Hall: Joyce C. Hall arrived in Kansas City, his inventory of postcards fit into a couple of shoeboxes, but his dreams couldn't be contained. "It was 1910 and the Norfolk, Nebraska, teenager was determined to make his mark in the business world. Little did it matter that his first office would be a room at the YMCA, or that he had so little cash he couldn't afford to pay a horse-drawn cab to get him there. He had big plans and the energy to make them happen. "His instincts held true." By 1915 Hall Bros. was manufacturing its own cards, on its own presses, in its own plant. In 1923, J.C., and brothers Bill and Rollie Hall, along with their 120 employees, moved from tiny offices and rental space in four separate buildings into a brand new six-story plant." The rest is history.

Greeting Card Artist

Ellen H. Clapsaddle.   Undoubtedly the most prolific postcard and greeting card artist,  Ellen H. Clapsaddle's artwork was first published in 1906 by the Wolf Company an outlet for the International Art Company.  Ellen H. Clapsaddle's story is probably the saddest of any of the pioneers of the greeting card history.  She died unknown and penniless the day before her 69th birthday.  Today her cards are among the most collectible and sell in the range of $10.00 to $200.00, with the mechanical cards going for $450.00 and more.

Greeting Card Artist

Kate Greenaway.  Holiday cards designed by Kate Greenaway, the Victorian children's writer and illustrator, were favorites in the late 1800's.  Most were elaborate, decorated with fringe, silk and satin.  Some were shaped like fans and crescents, others were cut into shapes of bells, birds, candles and even plum pudding.  Some folded like maps or fitted together as puzzles, other squealed or squeaked.  Pop-Up Cards revealed tiny mangers or skaters with flying scarves gliding around a mirrored pond.

Easter Cards

Easter
The tradition to send Easter postcards to relatives and friends proceeded in the end of the 19th century. During the year 1898 there were not many Easter cards sent but the amount of sent Easter cards increased in the following years all over the world. Soon it was courteous and polite to mail Easter postcards. The first cards were, monochrome with some colored was added. Most of the time in the center of the cards was a large colored egg. Easter postcards often had part of the front side empty. This was the space for the greetings of the sender because the post office only allowed the address and the stamp on the back side. Because of that, the artist creativity was suppressed and cute illustrations were deformed. In 1905 the post in Austria and Germany separated the back side of the cards in two halves. The right half served as before for the address and the stamp and the other one was the new space for the message. 1906 this was officially allowed by the world-post-congress in Rome.

In the years around 1910 on the cards were mainly monochrome pictures which were sometimes colored with drawings of children in context with lambs, chickens, ducks and eggs. Young girls were a symbol for luck and hope. The Easter bunny which was a symbol for fruitfulness was often portrayed with eggs. German publishers were leading in the production of Easter postcards before the first world war.

During the time of the first world war the children were replaced with soldiers and a military appearance of the Easter bunny was quite common. After the first world war, photos were not the foundation for Easter postcards anymore but drawn colorful Easter sketches. At this time a very popular motive was Jesus in the open countryside surrounded by sheep. Also cards with flowers were sent very often too such as the Easter lily. In the time of prosperity during 1898 and 1918 the basis of the cards was color lithography. There reveal very impressive cards with silver, gold and relief-stamping.

A huge drop in Easter postcards occurred through the second world war. After the war, the amount of sent cards raised slowly but in the last ten years it fell rapidly because of the

• Full Moon names date back to Native Americans, of what is now the northern and eastern United States. The tribes kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to each recurring full Moon. Their names were applied to the entire month in which each occurred. There was some variation in the Moon names, but in general, the same ones were current throughout the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior. European settlers followed that custom and created some of their own names. Since the lunar month is only 29 days long on the average, the full Moon dates shift from year to year. Here is the Farmers Almanac’s list of the full Moon names.
• Full Worm Moon – March As the temperature begins to warm and the ground begins to thaw, earthworm casts appear, heralding the return of the robins. The more northern tribes knew this Moon as the Full Crow Moon, when the cawing of crows signaled the end of winter; or the Full Crust Moon, because the snow cover becomes crusted from thawing by day and freezing at night. The Full Sap Moon, marking the time of tapping maple trees, is another variation. To the settlers, it was also known as the Lenten Moon, and was considered to be the last full Moon of winter.

April fools
The most common belief is that the observance of April Fool's Day began in France after the adoption of the reform calendar by Charles IX in 1564. When New Year's Day was changed to January 1. People who still celebrated New Year's Day on April 1 were the 'butt' of many jokes. They were called "Poisson d'Avril" (April Fish) because at that time of year the sun was in the zodiac sign of Pisces, the fish. In France it became customary to play tricks on family and friends.  French children fool their friends by taping a paper fish to their friends' backs. When the "young fool" discovers this trick, the prankster yells "Poisson d’Avril!"
In England, tricks can be played only in the morning. If a trick is played on you, you are a "noodle". In Scotland you are called an "April Gowk" or cuckoo bird. It lasts for two days there. The second day in Scotland is called Taily Day and is dedicated to pranks involving the buttocks. The Scotts can be given credit for the "Kick Me" and the 'to be the butt of a joke' expression.
Send an April Fools card by email to your friends, KingCards, fun free email cards.

Valentine's Cards

Greeting Cards
The oldest known greeting card in existence is a Valentine made in the 1400's and is in the British Museum.  New Year's cards can be dated back to this period as well, but the New Year greeting didn't gain popularity until the late 1700's.  The Valentine and Christmas Card were the most popular cards, with Valentine's offering us the most "mechanical", "pop-up" and filigree cards, followed by Christmas,  St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Halloween and Thanksgiving.  Cards gained their highest popularity in the late 1800's and early 1900's offering us cards with some of the most unusual art.  The Victorian age give us the most prolific cards.

Greeting Cards
If you need to say something but aren't quite sure how to word it, there's a greeting card. If you want to convey a feeling or invoke an emotion but don't know how to do it, there's a greeting card to help. Even if you do know what well-wishes you want to send, there's a greeting card to do it for you. For practically any occasion, or even for no reason at all (except to say "hi"), there is a greeting card.

Whether sent online in the form of an ecard, created at home from a printable card program, or bought at your local store, a greeting card will always tell someone that you are thinking about them and that you care. And who doesn't love getting a greeting card?

Why not send a email card now? Click here KingCards.com

Greeting Card Tid Bits

The custom of sending greeting cards can be traced back to the ancient Chinese, who exchanged messages of good will to celebrate the New Year, and to the early Egyptians, who conveyed their greetings on
papyrus scrolls.

By the 1950s, the studio card – a long card with a short punch line – appeared on the scene to firmly establish the popularity of humor in American greeting cards.

During the 1980s, alternative cards began to appear – cards not made for a particular holiday or event, but as a more casual reminder of our connections to one another. The popularity of “non-occasion" cards continues to swell.

Explosive growth in electronic technology, and burgeoning consumer use of the Internet, gave birth to the electronic greeting card or E-card in the late 1990s. The development of this entirely new medium for card-sending served to further expand the industry, producing new E-card publishers as well as E-greeting product offerings by traditional publishers.

Try Out These Cards
You can try out my KingCards email greeting cards, hand drawn, and unique because no two artist are alike..