About


Hot Tips to Recent Requests:

  • A 15% discount early order discount (through October 31) is offered when you order on-line only.  This does not apply to faxed or mailed orders.  This discount has been increased from 10% to 15% for 2009.
  • You can order on-line even if you are paying by check.
  • You can check freight rates on-line.  Go to Prices & Freight.  There is a quick freight rate check.

Good Card Works Inc.® (formerly known as Card Art) publishes holiday greeting cards for architects and other designers in the building industry.  The company was founded in 1994 (initially as Card Art) to meet the needs of architects because selecting a holiday greeting card to send to clients is often a difficult process in architectural firms.  The owner of Good Card Works Inc.® worked in the marketing department of a large architectural firm and knows first hand the difficulties with selecting and approving the holiday greeting card.

Architects are, and should be, very concerned about the design of their holiday card.  Unless you design your own card, it is difficult to find an artistic card with architectural elements.  In addition, it must be politically correct....no Santa's, etc. 

We are always looking for new designs and will review any submissions. Artists receive royalties on the cards sold and retain the copyright. We license the right to use the image on our cards. We believe that if a card sells well, the artist should benefit.

Your feedback and testimonials are always welcome.

About Our Cards

We are using recycled paper stock for our cards and envelopes as we produce our new cards and replenish our current inventory.  Our inks are soy based.  All cards are  5" x 7" and include envelopes. A few extra envelopes are included for your addressing mistakes. Most cards are printed on white, 12 pt. coated stock and come with white, square flap envelopes. Some of our cards are printed on a cream color, textured paper and come with eye catching envelopes with a deckle edge.

The standard ink color for the inside of the cards and the return address on envelopes is red or black ink.  There is no extra charge for red ink or black ink.  Requesting both colors is "two color printing".   Any custom color or two color printing is an extra charge. 

Ordering and Payment

  • We prefer if you order through our website. You may also download the PDF order form below if you prefer to fax or mail your order. 
    icon GCW_Order_Form_2009.pdf (496 KB)
  • Take a 15% discount on card prices if ordered on-line on or before October 31, 2009.
  • If ordering by mail, please enclose your check or credit card information.
  • If ordering on the website or by fax, please provide your credit card information or follow-up with your check.  Yes, you can order on-line and pay by check. 
  • You may charge your order using Visa, Master Card or American Express.
  • Your order may not ship until the check is received.

Imprinting and Logos

There is no extra charge for imprinting your cards and envelopes with our standard fonts and ink colors.  This is included in the basic card price.
 

Fonts

  • You may select Times, Arial, Georgia, Comic Sans MS or Verdana for your fonts when you order on-line or when using the order form for faxed and mailed orders.
  • There is a charge of $50 for non-standard fonts. 
    1. If you have a specific font that you would like us to use, please indicate this on your order. We will get back to you to let you know if we have the font.
    2. You can also email us your electronic font.
    3. If you would like to design your own message to imprint, email a PDF file exactly like you would like it to appear on your cards and on your envelope. The card text must fit within a 4" x 6" area.  Include the return address for the envelope also.

Logos

  • There is an extra charge of $50 to use a logo.  If we used your logo the previous year, the charge is $25.
  • Simple, camera ready, line art logos (no half-tones) may be sent and used for imprinting. The original must be sent to us by mail, Fed Ex, UPS, etc. Faxes are not acceptable when using logos.
  • Adding signatures is like including a logo.  We need an electronic file or a clean camera ready copy mailed to us.
  • We prefer you send an electronic file for your logo.  We need to receive EPS, PDF or TIF files. 

Ink Colors

  • Our standard ink color is red or black.
  • If both red and black ink are specified, this is considered a two color order.  There is an extra charge for two colors.  Extra charges for two color are $150 set up and $0.20 per card.
  • Custom ink colors are available.  These may delay your order and there is an extra charge.  Extra charges for one custom color are $100 set up and $0.15 per card.  Extra charges for two custom colors are $150 set up and $0.20 per card.

 

Approval and Misc.

  • You must approve your copy before we print.  You can do this on-line for standard text copy.  If you have a logo or custom font, you will receive a proof by email (PDF file) or fax before we print the inside of your card and envelope. We must receive your approval before we print.
  • We may charge extra if there are problems with any custom files.  We will notify you if there are problems.  This extra charge isn't normal but it could happen.

Proofs

  • You can approve your greeting and return address when you order your cards on-line and the imprinting is standard.  "Standard" means no logos, signatures or special characters.
  • If you have a custom font, logo or inks, we will email or fax a proof to you.
  • Repeated or major changes to the imprinting during the proof process may require us to charge extra. We will notify you if this is necessary.  This extra charge isn't normal but it could happen.

Shipping

  • Order will be sent by FedEx ground from Chicago after order is processed and payment is received. Shipping may take 2 to 7 days or so depending on where your office is located. The shipping cost, including handling, is shown when you place your order on-line. 
  • You can check shipping costs for your zip code by visiting the Prices & Freight section.
  • Standard card orders take approximately 3 weeks to print.  We try, however, to get all October and November orders out before Thanksgiving. We also try to ship December orders in a week.  Remember to add shipping time to this.
  • If you have any custom work on your cards (inks, logos, fonts), the artwork for the inside of your cards must be prepared prior to printing and shipping. This step takes two to four days. You must then approve the artwork. The sooner you get back to us the better to avoid delays. Once approved the order can be scheduled for printing.
  • Remember, once an order is shipped, it will take several days to get to you.  If your time frame is tight, you may want 2 day or overnight Fed Ex if you are located far from Chicago. 

Order Status

You can check the status of your order through our website at the Order Status page.  You will be able to see the estimated date for printing, date of shipment and the tracking number.

Samples

Email us for samples.  Tell us which cards you would like and don't forget to give us your mailing address.

Samples of new card designs may not be available until our first print run, possibly October.  We can, however, send you color proofs of the new image and send you samples of our other cards so you can see the quality and card stock.