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Our Christmas Cards + An Artifact Uprising Giveaway!

November 23, 2016

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A few weeks ago, we drove 40 minutes up the road to Ashton, Idaho with our friends, the Pugmires, and we took our family photo for our Christmas Card. It’s something we do every year, and it’s such a fun tradition that keeps the whole family photo thing more casual and whole lot less stressful when friends are on the other side of the camera. I always take their photo (with Chris making funny faces to get the kids laughing) and then they take ours.

We stopped at two locations, just down the road from each other, and while I loved the white bark on either side of this trail…

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The moss and woods and girls cracking up in the one below stole my heart and made it to the card. We’ve gotten a few questions about how to coordinate outfits for cards. I just try to balance patterns and solids. This was our first year (ever) going a little more dressy for pictures–even Charly got some bells around her neck (these).

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Last year, we used Artifact Uprising for our cards and loved the quality so much, we ordered from them again this year. This foil-stamped “Merry” card spelled out exactly what I felt the girls were portraying and what we sincerely wish for all our friends and family.

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The foil comes in silver, copper or gold (we went with the copper) and it’s so pretty in real life. Can’t wait to get these in the mail! Our friends at Artifact Uprising are all about spreading the cheer and have offered up a $50 credit to one of our readers! Just leave a comment below to enter and we’ll choose a winner Friday so you can start planning your own cards.

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What do you think?

  1. Kelly L says:

    Where are your dress and boots from? Love, love, love!

  2. Kali DeBoer says:

    Artifact Uprising is amazing. I’ve printed so many of their square photos for my girls’ room and swoon everything on their site.

  3. Michelle says:

    On your recommendation, I used Artifact Uprising for my Christmas cards this year. Their designs were really cute, but when the cards I chose arrived, I was disappointed in the quality of the card. In particular, the photo on the card looks blurry, which is odd since I used a high resolution image. I’ve had better luck with other online card shops.

  4. I love your card! This has inspired me to go dressy for family photos this year.

  5. Cara says:

    Both photos are beautiful!! Love the idea of doing photos with a friend.

  6. lisa says:

    Great photo! Love Christmas cards every year

  7. Kylee says:

    beautiful

  8. Betsy says:

    Love the simplicity of the cards.

  9. Kimyee says:

    Beautiful family.

  10. Cassie says:

    Beautiful Christmas cards!

  11. Laura M says:

    Gorgeous photos!! That scenery is perfection, and I love that you included your pup!

  12. Kristin says:

    Love this giveaway! Pick me!

  13. ErinY says:

    I’m a sucker for dogs getting in on the Christmas card! We have our two English Bulldogs in ours every year <3

  14. Leda says:

    The cards are beautiful! We are hoping to make our first ever family holiday cards this year. :)

  15. Jen says:

    Love artifact uprising and Ashton! My folks live near there.

  16. Page says:

    Love these, perfect mix of sophisticated and fun!

  17. Linzy says:

    Beautiful card!

  18. Jennifer Santiago says:

    This year will be our first year sending out family Christmas cards as our family is completely with our girls ???

  19. Amanda G says:

    Love how the detail of the gold foil pops. Great work!

  20. Ashley R says:

    Your card turned out so beautiful. And I love Artifact Uprising. Every year I make a book of all our favorite pictures and order it through them. My kids love looking through them and talking about the memories we made and I love the classic, simple design and amazing quality.

  21. Angelie E says:

    So classy!

  22. Nicole says:

    This has inspired me to take our own family photos this year for our Christmas cards. It’s seems like waay less pressure and would be awesome to include the dogs!

  23. KB says:

    Such a beautiful family!

  24. Jenny Free says:

    After a new home, a new baby, unexpected hospital bills- it would be great to have a little something for Christmas cards! They’d be our first EVER!

  25. Stacy says:

    Love your card- so pretty! Can’t wait to get started on ours. Thanks for the inspiration!

  26. Nayla M says:

    Love the top picture and awesome background.

  27. Corinna says:

    Happy Thanksgiving!

  28. Rachel Priselac says:

    lovely! and love artifact uprising

  29. Rachel Kratz says:

    Love the look of foil ? yours turned out so well

  30. Bethany Miller says:

    I was going to order our cards tonight, but now I’m definitely waiting for tomorrow! Love, love, love yours!

  31. abby says:

    ahhh perfect timing…i was JUST browsing on artifact uprising’s website a few minutes ago. we just got back from seeing some national parks out west and i am dying to get some of our photos printed on a large scale! your christmas cards are beautiful–great photo of you guys!

  32. Kelly says:

    love both of these, would be hard for me to decide!

  33. Annette says:

    The cards/pictures came out great. Such cute pics.

  34. Erin says:

    That location is beautiful. There’s something about the woods (snow or not) that just screams Christmas card. Love the balance!

  35. Lauren Rieber says:

    So cute! Love artifact!

  36. Mavis says:

    SO nice!!

  37. Jessica says:

    Love all the knits you ladies are wearing! So cozy.

  38. Anna says:

    Love the picture you chose! Candid pictures are my favorites :) I also LOVE artifact uprising (I have gotten their square prints a couple of times) and am actually working on a family album right now…it’s my dream to start making one album every year! Thanks for the giveaway!!

  39. Erin Prohaska says:

    Beautiful card, beautiful family! Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family! Thanks for the opportunity! :)

  40. Annie says:

    Love it! The foil is especially nice! Would love to win!

  41. Linzie says:

    These cards are beautiful! Such a great idea to get friends to help with photos.

    Artifact is awesome :)

  42. Gillian says:

    Beautiful card, lovely family and the raw nature makes for a merry feeling indeed :)

  43. Andrea says:

    Love that you went outdoors and included Charly!!!
    And you’re absolutely right, your copper Merry is nice addition to the beautiful family photo!

  44. Crystal Diaz says:

    They look so great! You have such a beautiful family, happy
    Holidays!

  45. Jenna says:

    Beautiful family, beautiful card! <3

  46. Britni says:

    I absolutely love your Christmas cards every year. They always have a more casual vibe and are not too stuffy and posed like most others!

  47. Mary Blanks says:

    So gorgeous!

  48. Andrea J. says:

    I love your pictures! I have not heard of or used artifact uprising-I’m going to go check them out now. Thank you for the giveaway!

  49. Katie j says:

    Love your card!

  50. Alex says:

    Love the cards! That copper accent is beautiful, and everyone looks great. I would love to use artifact uprising for my cards this year too!

  51. Hilary says:

    I’ve been eyeing up Artifact Uprising cards for a couple of years now !

  52. Lindsay says:

    Beautiful! I love the minimalist design of the cards you chose! We do the same “picture ritual” with our friends as well!

  53. Emily says:

    Your cards are beautiful! We haven’t done a card the last couple years but I’d love to this year!

  54. Mrs. Bennett says:

    Very pretty card. Fun to have the dog in it.

  55. This will be our third year in a row sending out Christmas cards and it’s a tradition I would like to keep going! There’s something so special about printing out pictures and I’ve been dying to use Artifact for some good prints!

  56. Kathryn L says:

    Love Artifact Uprising! We started using them about 5 years ago before they were real big – so glad they have grown in popularity because their products and trustworthiness is truly wonderful!!

  57. Andrea Ahedo says:

    Pretty pretty! I dream in gold foil!

  58. Liz says:

    Love your dress, Julia!

  59. Teres says:

    I would love to win…would give me the motivation I need to send out cards for the first time in years!

  60. Maya says:

    I love Artifact Uprising!

  61. Valerie says:

    This is the first time I have heard of Artifact. Will check them out. Lovely family and I love that you included the family dog!

  62. Christina Marie Interiors says:

    Beautiful family, beautiful cards! Would love this for our cards this year. Thanks for the inspo as always!!

  63. Alix says:

    Beautiful cards!! Merry Christmas!

  64. Kate says:

    I keep meaning to try artifact uprising….need to!

  65. Melissa says:

    Your family is so beautiful. Greta’s pig tails are adorable and Charly looks so cute all dressed up for the season!

  66. Megan says:

    This will hopefully be the first year I actually finish our Christmas cards!

  67. Sabrina says:

    The cards look great! Thanks for the giveaway opportunity.

  68. Tanja says:

    Need to get on it for my Christmas cards. I am notoriously late sending them. A few years I have gone with Happy New year cards instead.

    Winning the $50 gift certificate would help me on my way.

  69. Jayme Nagel says:

    Gorgeous family and gorgeous pics! Love the tradition you guys have with the Pugmires!

  70. Christine Sylvestre says:

    So lovely! Wishing you and your family a MERRY holiday season!

  71. Gloria Kressin says:

    Artifact is new to me. I’d love to give them a try for our Christmas card this year. Yours turned out lovely!

  72. Sonia says:

    Beautiful family, pic! I love Artifact Uprising and would love to do our first family holiday photo cards with them. Thanks!!

  73. Ryan says:

    Your photos and card turned out great! I was thinking of actually doing cards this year, so this credit would come in mighty handy!

  74. Jess Covell says:

    Love artifact uprising! Happy thanksgiving!

  75. Cathy says:

    Love how your photos turned out! We’re planning to use one from our daughter’s one-year-old photo session, where we all coordinated with white tops + jeans/jeggings for her ;)

    Would love to know where your green sweater dress is from – i need more green clothes to add to my wardrobe!

  76. Pam M says:

    I love your Christmas card. Looks perfect!

  77. Kristin Glad says:

    cards are on my to-do list this weekend, this would be great!

  78. Megan says:

    What a great giveaway! Love seeing pics of your cute family– especially Charly!

  79. Amy says:

    What a great giveaway! I’ve been wanting to try Artifact Uprising for a while now…their work is so beautiful.

  80. Megan says:

    These cards are beautiful!

  81. Elisabeth Becker says:

    I love artifact uprising! ?

  82. Erin says:

    We have our family photo session scheduled for this weekend (a bit late to the game) – I’m trying to plan outfits for 5 and don’t know whether it will be raining, or snowing, or none of the above! But most of all, trying not to stress so we can have fun with it. Love the joy in your family pictures – I hope we can capture a bit of that ourselves!

  83. Jenn Taylor says:

    Great photo – Artifact Uprising is THE BEST!

  84. Kimber says:

    I love your Christmas card! Such a beautiful family!

  85. Viktoria says:

    I love your cards! And Artifact Uprising in the best, they make the best stuff! Crossing my fingers!

  86. Teri says:

    Beautiful. I would love to give this company a try! Thanks for sharing.

  87. Rachael says:

    We’ve been trying to plan our cards, too! I love how yours turned out.

  88. Rocky Balkwell says:

    Beautiful Picture/Card! I love Artifact Uprising :)

  89. I’ve been on the hunt for some cute biker boots like those! Would you mind spilling? :)

    Also your podcast slays me, you guys are so funny!

  90. Laura Tarsi says:

    Beautiful photos and Christmas card!

  91. Kirsten says:

    Ooh, nice. I’ve been trying to figure out who to use for Christmas cards, so I will have to take a closer look at these!

  92. Vanessa Harper says:

    Love your cards and family pictures! I usually take mine over thanksgiving weekend!

  93. Sarah says:

    Such pretty photos! I haven’t picked ours our just yet, so that credit may come in handy.

  94. Krystal says:

    What a fabulous giveaway!! I got pictures from Artifact and loved their quality. This would be great to get my butt going on the whole sending Christmas cards this year :)

  95. Kait Bombardieri says:

    Your cards came out beautifully. Such a beautiful family. The expressions on your girls’ faces are priceless. Thanks for the reminder to do my christmas cards….last year I waited too long and they barely went out in time. :/

    • Leslie Hood says:

      Love, love, love! We have our friend take our photos around this time each year too! Such a great tradition! Would love to turn them into cards! Thanks for the inspiration…. Also I LOVE the podcast xo

  96. Jolene says:

    Love your cards, and the dressed up version of your yearly family pic! Thanks for the giveaway!

  97. Debbie C says:

    Your photo is beautiful! Also, I love Artifact Uprising, thank you!

  98. Rosemarie says:

    I love how laid back and “real” your photo came out (even if you are dressed up a bit)!

  99. Amanda says:

    Beautiful photo! I like the copper touch!

  100. Sandy C says:

    Christmas card goals!

  101. I’ve always wanted to send out Christmas cards but never plan ahead. Hopefully one of these years I’ll get to it in time!

  102. Love both of the photos you shared!!

  103. Shea says:

    I love the tradition of Christmas Cards, I wish more people still did them.

  104. Carolyn says:

    i’m so impressed by your creative capabilities and how they translate across your life! love the cards!

  105. Meghan says:

    Just had our first ever Christmas shoot using a pro photographer so the timing of your giveaway could not be better! Thank you! Merry Christmas to you and yours!

  106. Brooke Armbrester says:

    Oooo love! I’ve been looking at their Layflat books as well!

  107. Anna says:

    That’s a great idea for photos, having a “photo party” with friends! I should try that. Cute family & thanks for the chance at a gift card!

  108. Darnetha says:

    Love your Christmas cards! Great giveaway!

  109. Jennifer P says:

    Receiving Christmas cards is one of my favorite parts of the season! Your family photos are adorable :)

  110. Allison says:

    Love your Christmas card. Such a beautiful family!

  111. Crystal says:

    Love these and Artifact Uprising!

  112. Emily says:

    I love picture Christmas cards! We send one every year. Yours look amazing! I’d love to try Artifact Uprising and the credit would be such a blessing.

  113. Michelle Kandah says:

    Love love love Artifact Uprising!!

  114. MelissaB says:

    Love these, now that e have a baby I’ve been toying with the idea of Christmas cards

  115. Jessica says:

    You have such a lovely family!

  116. Sarah says:

    Love foil pressed cards!

  117. Corey says:

    What a festive idea with friends! Gorgeous results! Happy Thanksgiving!

  118. Staci says:

    I love outdoor shots for Christmas cards. It’s my go to photo style every year. And I love how you coordinated everyone’s look to seem casual but it all blended so well, especially with the woodsy tones. Love all of it!

  119. Cindy Morris says:

    Beautiful cards for such a fun-loving family! Captures the spirit of Merry perfectly

  120. Emily H says:

    Gorgeous cards and beautiful family. Love the foil stamped Merry!

  121. Jenn says:

    So fun!!! This is one thing f my favorite traditions too!!!

  122. Jennie says:

    Your family photos are so beautiful!

  123. Erin H says:

    Love the cards!

  124. Rachel says:

    Your cards look great! I tend to order cards from a different company each year. I would love to give Artifact Uprising a try.

  125. Michelia says:

    You guys are the CUTEST family! & I love your dress.

  126. Lindsey says:

    These pictures turned out so great! I love how “Merry” the girls look in the one you chose for the card :)

  127. Nicole says:

    Where did you get your green dress? It’s lovely!

  128. Trilby says:

    I love Christmas cards! I’m glad that’s one tradition that doesn’t seem to go away in this digital age.

  129. Katie says:

    I love your dress!! We got married this year, so I’ve been looking at Artifact Uprising a lot for photo books and cards :)

  130. Nate Babcock says:

    I really like the minimal/modern design that Artifacts Uprising offers.

  131. Emily H. says:

    We’ve never done a Christmas card but I want to do one every year!

  132. aww, love that you included your pup!
    b

  133. Salina says:

    Unbelievably cute – love that dress on you but I think Charly’s bells are stealing the show here :)

  134. Megan says:

    Absolutely beautiful Christmas card! We are still working on making a family, I’m pinning this for the future :)

  135. Maggie Call says:

    I love Artifact Uprising and their minimalistic and simple style. Your cards look absolutely amazing! Thank you for sharing!

  136. Marie says:

    The cards came out really nice!

  137. Tara C says:

    What a wonderful photo! Would love to use Artifact Uprising!

  138. Sarah F says:

    I was on the fence about sending Christmas cards this year. But, your family was also on the fence and actually got the cards made- they look great. I would love to win the Artifact Uprising gift card to send Christmas cards this year. Merry Christmas!?

  139. Diana says:

    Beautiful, thanks for sharing the giveaway. So nice to have tallented friends to help with photos.

  140. Haley says:

    You guys have the best family pictures! I love the card you picked… it goes great with the picture

  141. Darcy says:

    Both photos are great– I can’t believe what a big girl Faye has become — it feels like yesterday she was born — I know you feel the same!! :-) Thanks for the chance to win a gift card!
    Happy Thanksgiving!

  142. Mary S. says:

    Your family pictures turned out great! The cards completely match your style!

  143. Rebecca says:

    Love the outfits. Thanks for sharing a giveaway!

  144. Raquel says:

    Beautiful Christmas cards! Love the girls laughing! Would love to have the chance to use a $50 gift card. I love there website! Although, I have not yet use there products.

    You’re blog is my favorite! Love how you love you’re family :)

    Happy Thanksgiving!

  145. Liz says:

    Love the bells around Charly’s neck! And what sweet photos, too.

  146. Molly W. says:

    Adorable! Thanks for hosting the give away!

  147. Nancy Sherman says:

    I would love to send out picture cards this year. We lost all 4 of our pets by July 3rd this year & just now added to our family with 3 rescue cats – boom, one each week, they just kept falling into our laps, how could we say NO :)
    I would love a card showing off my grownup son & all of our new family members!

    -PS, your pictures are always so lovely!

  148. Brooks says:

    New reader here! I just discovered the wonder that is blogland after we bought our first house last month!I love your style and it just correlates so well with what I like as well. Thank you for doing this, I’m sure it’s a lot of work!

  149. Cindy says:

    I absolutely adore this picture!

  150. Courtney says:

    These turned out amazing! I would love to print our cards through Artifact Uprising – for our first Christmas cards as a married couple!

  151. Brooke says:

    Beautiful card!! Love the casual but sophisticated style. Happy Holidays to you and yours!

  152. Maggie says:

    Just took some photos but haven’t put the cards together yet! Would love the chance to try out Artifact. Your card looks wonderful!

  153. Michelle says:

    Cute cards. I can’t believe it’s time to start thinking about Christmas cards!

  154. Steph says:

    How fun! Love the pics that have kids cracking up!

  155. Nicole says:

    I love your dress, Julia! Also, are those knee socks fitting Faye? I am debating getting some for my daughter, who’s in between your girls. Thanks!

  156. Julie says:

    I love Artifact Uprising. I order prints and their quality is amazing. Love your tradition for taking the photos.

    Thanks for the great giveaway!
    Julie

  157. Great choice for the picture!

  158. Sarah says:

    we just took ours yesterday!!! Hope we win the giveaway! Yall have the cutest little girls. I like the more rich earthy tones you picked this year. Very beautiful. Happy Thanksgiving!

  159. Tiffany says:

    I love the copper foil so much!

  160. Beret says:

    Your family photos are always the best! Happy holidays.

  161. Allizon says:

    Such a precious family photo! Can you share where your dress is from? Also, I LOVE Artifact Uprising! Used them for wedding thank you’s and holiday cards last year.

  162. Matt says:

    YHL introduced me to our site via their podcast…. need to go into the archives for those kitchen projects!

    Love artifact uprising too!

  163. Maureen says:

    What a charming family photo. Relaxed and comfortable and enjoying each others company.

  164. Amber says:

    Beautiful family!! Thank you for the chance. I’d also love to know where your dress is from

  165. Sarah says:

    Love this picture, and your blog!

  166. Jaimee says:

    Love! Read your blog religiously ! I can’t believe Christmas is right around the corner, so fun (esp with kiddos!!)! ??⛄️?

  167. Kate says:

    Merry Everything! Love it!

  168. Corteiga L says:

    So cute! The girls smiles are precious!

  169. Erin Baer says:

    Such a great photo!

  170. Nicole Kinney says:

    Such a happy pretty family!

  171. Brooke says:

    These are darling and you look beautiful!

  172. Sara says:

    Both pictures are great!

  173. Elizabeth Rose says:

    Love the photos!

  174. Allison says:

    Is it awkward that I want to see the Pugmires’ pictures, too? :) I had a friend take some “big sister” photos of my 2 year old, and I think having a familiar photographer was key in getting natural pictures.

  175. Christine says:

    I used Artifact Uprising for our cards last year—great quality! Thanks for the giveaway.

  176. Chelsie says:

    Lovely. I always misjudge how many cards to order and never get enough

  177. Erin says:

    I love your christmas card! That green dress has me swooning! It’s so nice to see a different printed company besides the usuals!

  178. Monica says:

    I love both of these photos! The first is great because Faye is so adorable, but I loved the second when I saw you had updated your sidebar photo earlier this week!

    We do casual photos every year with a tripod and remote. Typically the 1st phtoo is the best even though I take tons (just in case)! I would love to give Artifact a try this year!!!

    Also, Julia – where did you get your dress? I love it!!

  179. Jennie says:

    Great picture and card!

  180. Jules says:

    Lovely family!

  181. lisa leyboldt says:

    Super cute. Love Artifact, so many awesome products!

  182. Jessica Beaumont says:

    Such a beautiful card!

  183. Adina says:

    I love so much that you guys include Miss Charly in your pictures :)

  184. Julie says:

    Such a beautiful christmas card! I am excited to order a photo book from them, for a surprise christmas gift, I have heard great things! Now I just have to get it finished ?!

  185. Beth says:

    You are a wonderful family and look like such genuine and warm people in your blog posts and on your adorable Christmas card. I use artifact uprising to make all of our son’s photo albums and I would love a gift card. Thank you!

  186. Greta says:

    These are such beautiful pictures and I love how you added the bells. Such a nice Christmas touch! Thanks for offering a gift card!

  187. Danielle says:

    Faye is so cute in that first pic that I can’t handle it! Also, please tell us about your dress…I am loving it!

  188. Oh both these photo a gorgeous !! I love that you’re doing this Christmas card every year, it’s something I want to start now that I’ve moved out and am starting my very own family life :)

  189. Annie says:

    Faye’s love for Charly melts my heart! Beautiful family!

  190. Whitney says:

    So so so good! Love this year’s card! You guys are killing it in 2016. So much good stuff this year. Thank you for the amazing content and inspiration!

  191. Amanda says:

    Your outfits are so darling and spiffy (you know, for the adults ;)). I love it! Thanks for the chance to win the gift card.

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We believe we should all love where we live.

We’re a couple of homebodies, working to uncover the home our home wants to be. And we’re so happy to have you here. 

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