Christmas Card Etiquette, Mailing + More

Order and Mail Cards Early

While it isn’t necessary, it sure does help to order and mail your Christmas cards early to beat the rush and chaos that can come with the postal service are the holidays. Ordering your cards early can also allow for plenty of time to purchase postage and address all of your cards. Mail early, but no more than a week before Thanksgiving. Ideally, early to mid-December is a great time to mail.

Return Addresses are Important

Including your return address on the envelope ensures that your recipient has a current and accurate copy of your address. In my case this year, with a new home purchase, this is especially important. Additionally, as mentioned above, holiday mail can get chaotic and having a return address is important to ensure that if your card can’t make it to your recipient that it will make it back to you.

Apostrophes or Not

You should never include an apostrophe in your name when signing a Christmas card. When sending a card from your family, simply add an “s” to your last name. For example, The Georges instead of The George’s (an apostrophe here shows possession and when signing a Christmas card there should not be possession). If your last name ends in an “s” or “z”, add an “es” to the end of your name. For example, The Elkinses.

Additionally, we should note that you do NOT need to add an ‘s to the end of Happy New Year unless you are talking about New Year’s Eve. You are only wishing one Happy New Year. You SHOULD, however, add an ‘s to Season’s Greetings.

Envelope Placement

Placing your card in the envelope the correct way may be obvious to some and not-so-obvious to others. If you have included a hand-written message on the back of your card, you should now consider that the front and place it face up in the envelope with the top of the card being the first place the recipient would place their hand. If you don’t include a written note, determine the front of your card (if it is a single card) and place that face up.