Top 11 Sources of Holiday and All-Occasion E-Cards

I'm a big fan of sending E-cards. Some people think it's low class and cling to the paper tradition. But in this age of dwindling trees, unreliable mail service, limited time to fill out envelopes, the expense of postage, and the frequency with which people move, e-cards may just be the best bet for sending greetings or just keeping in touch. Since the winter holidays are right around the corner, I've brought together information about my favorite sources for e-cards, both free and premium services!

The sites below have proven to be free of spyware, viruses and other nuisances that you can easily catch on some "free" e-card sites.

1. First is my favorite, BlueMountain.com - home of those beautiful watercolor cards with original free verse poetry that you often see in bookstores. They offer free and premium accounts (I have a premium account through them) and also have a reminder service so you won't forget those important days!

2. No list of greeting card vendors would be complete without including the old standby, Hallmark. They have e-cards as well, of course, at Hallmark.com. They carry my very favorite greeting card characters, hoops & yoyo - they're absolutely hilarious. They also license Maxine and Happy Feet, among other characters. Don't miss it!

3. Yahoo Greetings - Probably one of the biggest and most diverse collections of e-cards around! They also offer free and premium services, and if you have a Yahoo mail account, you can use your Yahoo address book to send cards.

4. American Greetings.com - the second most famous greeting card company goes electronic. They offer a service where you can upload your annual family portrait and use it for your e-cards, print cards or other gifts!

5. Dayspring.com - Christian e-cards for every occasion. Very pretty, and includes a humor section.

6. Care 2 (http://www.care2.com/send/catpagan1.html) - E-cards for Pagan Holy Days! Very pretty art.

7. Say It With E-cards (http://www.sayitwithecards.com/) - A GREAT selection of Jewish themed e-cards for every occasion!

8. Amazon.com - I have come to believe that there is nothing you can't find on Amazon.com, and apparently they've come one step closer to proving me right. They now offer both paper and e-cards. They have a truly awesome selection, all free, or you can attach a gift certificate! Perfect idea for the holidays.

9. Einstein E-cards from Physlink.com (http://www.physlink.com/Fun/EinsteinCards/Index.cfm): I love these. Einstein is one of my favorite quotable people... and he was so cute! Always something profound and thought provoking to say, now you can share his wisdom with your online friends.

10. Regards.com - although they do contain ads, they're pretty innocuous, and the sheer variety of choices definitely makes up for it! Something for everyone, and all free!

11. MoMA.org/ecards - The Museum of Modern Art offers some truly beautiful e-cards

Be very careful which sites you choose to send e-cards from, especially if they are offered free. Some sites have been loaded with spyware and/or viruses that can either invade your computer or infect the person to whom you send the card. I usually stick with name brands from the list above - they should offer more than enough to meet your needs! Or they might simply be chock full of annoying pop-ups and ads.