My sister-in-law is the very best card-sender and holiday rememberer.  Even though she works full time and is a busy mom and wife and volunteer, she sends her nieces and nephews cards for everything – birthdays, Easter, Valentine’s, Halloween, kindergarten graduations…. she is the best!

Meanwhile, I am the worst aunt/sister/daughter-in-law/friend when it comes to sending cards to out-of-town family and friends.  My intentions are sooo good.  I remember dates like a boss – I can recite the birthdays of all relatives, co-workers and friends (including college roommates from 20 years ago) and I know every one of my siblings’ and in-laws’ wedding anniversaries. So the remembering of dates isn’t where I fail.    It’s the prep work that gets me – the actual remembering to buy a card when I’m at Target or Hallmark or wherever.  And then, if I do actually get the card in hand, and sign it, and address it….  the purchasing of a stamp (who goes to the post office any more??) seems to be the deal-killer.  So there it sits, the sad, signed, unsent card, two weeks later, in a stack of paper on my desk.

Enter the life-saving app FELT.  Felt is a greeting card app that lets you send handwritten cards by mail.  You select a card (birthday, thank you, sympathy, etc.), and then you can sign the card in your own handwriting (using your iPhone or iPad touchscreen).  Enter the address for the envelope (again, can be handwritten or typed) and – yippee – the card is printed, sealed, stamped and mailed by Felt.  Most cards are sent within 24 hours and arrive in typical post-office speed of 3-5 days. Or – even better – you can plan ahead by writing out your card and selecting the “send later” option.  You pick the date you want your card to arrive by and Felt does all the remembering, stamping and mailing for you.  And the cards are cute!  So it’s fun to browse.  (The prices start at $3).

My husband actually discovered Felt first – I got a very neatly typed envelope from him (postmarked Dallas).  Inside was a card with a message written in I would have sworn was his original handwriting.  So it really works well!

If you want to be super organized, plan birthday cards ahead to arrive on time, and finally compete with your perfect sister-in-law (oops, maybe that’s just me), then Felt is my best tip for you this week!