Change Is Hard

…but change is certain.

Christmas in July

by 39 Comments

Remember when you were a kid and stores did the big Christmas in July sales? I don’t know if that happens anymore, but this 4th of July holiday weekend I was doing a lot of Christmas-y painting.

For our September silent auction at Truck Safety Coalition fundraiser.

The Truck Safety Coalition is getting ready to put on their 3rd annual fundraising dinner and silent auction. Both years we’ve done this I’ve donated 3 sets of cards, 5 in a set, to be auctioned off. This year I feel like I don’t have much new to give, though I suppose if I dig through my notes I have painted new stuff since last September.

Did these months ago and shipped them off to seniors at nursing homes.

Anyway I decide to paint at least one set of holiday cards, and I’ll be including stamps for all of the cards I donate. I don’t know that people are really sending cards and personal mail anymore, but I hope these find good homes.

Painted these this spring and sent off to seniors.

Now I’m debating. Should the next set of cards be whimsical cats and/or dogs? Or should I do flowers and birds like I usually do? Or, should I do a set of birthday cards? What do you think will get the best bids?

What’s your vote?

Author: dawnkinster

I'm a long time banker having worked in banks since the age of 17. I took a break when I turned 50 and went back to school. I graduated right when the economy took a turn for the worst and after a year of library work found myself unemployed. I was lucky that my previous bank employer wanted me back. So here I am again, a long time banker. Change is hard.

39 thoughts on “Christmas in July”

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  1. Retirement Reflections
    July 7, 2025 at 8:57 pm

    Whimsical blank cards would get my vote. That way they can be used for any occasion! ❤

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  2. trentpmcd
    July 7, 2025 at 8:57 pm

    Christmas in July always confused me – it should be Christmas in June, that is the half way point between Christmas past and Christmas future…

    The cards are great. Although I do like the cats and dogs, I like the birds and flowers better. I am not sure which would do better in an auction…

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  3. lois
    July 7, 2025 at 9:03 pm

    I think your artwork is fantastic, Dawn. At an estate sale recently, I bought some notecards by artist Wayne Thiebaud. They are called CAKE. That’s what they are–three different designs of cake–and I love them! Wouldn’t food cards be fun–like a bowl of berries or lemons…or cake? As the first commenter wrote: whimsical blank cards that can be used for any occasion will always get my vote.

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  4. Denise
    July 7, 2025 at 10:09 pm

    Hi Dawn!

    I vote for birds & flowers left blank inside. However, you should create whatever makes your heart sing. Anyone would be lucky to win the bid on your beautiful cards. 😊

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  5. Linda Schaub
    July 7, 2025 at 10:38 pm

    I didn’t know you painted Dawn – you are a person of many talents! I like your paintings and I would go for the whimsical cats and/or dogs. I started taking an online course with feedback in sketching and watercolor painting of botanicals in late April. I enjoyed that course so much that I took another course in botanicals, then butterflies and now birds, all self-directed courses. I am going to do a post later this month about my paintings, which, some are more whimsical looking than natural looking. Many years ago we had a neighbor who had an annual party celebrating Christmas in July. It was in his backyard and he decorated his house outside with the same outdoor ornaments as he used at Christmas and he had a Christmas tree in the window.

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    • dawnkinster
      July 8, 2025 at 10:02 am

      That’s very cool that you took a course. I have done tutorials on youtube, but no real coursework. I would love to see some of your work!

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      • Linda Schaub
        July 8, 2025 at 9:08 pm

        Dawn, I am going to do a post on July 27th and include all of my favorite paintings of flowers, butterflies and birds, but I’d be happy to send you them in the meantime – just let me know. The artist’s name is Julia Bausenhardt and she is German. I found her on Skillshare several years as I was looking to find classes for sketching and watercolor painting similar to the Dutch artist Marjolein Bastin. I started following Julia’s blog and she also has a lot of tutorials on YouTube. I like her step-by-step tutorials and the bird sketching classes I’ve just started will help me eventually sketch on my own without the tutorials (hopefully). Julia is planning another feedback course this Fall in landscape sketching/watercolor painting. She is working on the segments now, so I am going to take that as well.

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  6. Ann Hay
    July 8, 2025 at 1:10 am

    I love the rabbit. I adore the rabbit!

    Liked by 1 person

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  7. DailyMusings
    July 8, 2025 at 6:14 am

    Birds, and whimsical cats and dogs I would think would be a hit. You are so talented Dawn, these are all fabulous. I think blank is better than Birthday. A little serious, a little fun is good!

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  8. moosie637
    July 8, 2025 at 7:46 am

    You are so talented, anything you create would work!

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  9. Laurie Graves
    July 8, 2025 at 8:11 am

    I still send cards of photos from my gardens. I figure most people enjoy getting a pretty card.

    Your cards are utterly charming. In pretty Penny’s honor, my suggestion is whimsical dogs, with perhaps a few cats thrown in.

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  10. claywatkins
    July 8, 2025 at 8:53 am

    You are very talented with the brush, the lends, and the pen. How awesome. Nice cards, and for the mail, too! I don’t send as much as I should, though do handwrite my thank you notes for my kiddos. Occasionally a kid will tell me he got the note at home and thank me for it! Thank you for a thank you! What a novelty. Keep at it!

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    • dawnkinster
      July 8, 2025 at 10:06 am

      Pretty amazing you get a response to your hand written notes. It’s graduation season and this year I think I have 3 family members’ kids graduating. I don’t expect to get a thank you for the cards and money we send. I haven’t received a thank you in decades. I think it’s a lost art.

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  11. Suzanne@PictureRetirement
    July 8, 2025 at 9:52 am

    Dawn, you are very talented. After being in the stationery business for 22 years, I have an appreciation for original cards and handwritten notes. The Christmas cards are nice, and it’s a good time to get started on those, but I love the birds and flowers and the whimsical cats and dogs. Any of these would work well as Thank You, Thinking of You, or Get Well types of cards. A group of Birthday Greetings would be a nice addition. Thanks for sharing these – smiles all around.

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  12. Carol
    July 8, 2025 at 2:43 pm

    I love your cards, of all sorts. I’ve been thinking about cards again lately, wondering if people really do send them. Especially with another postage hike coming up mid-July – from 73 cents to 78 cents each – what? I did not realize that postage had gone up so very much. Not sure where my head has been.

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  13. Karma
    July 9, 2025 at 8:24 am

    I love your painting. These are adorable. I think knowing your audience would allow you to make the best choice for getting the best bids. I’m of the mind of many others here in the comments that the birds and flowers would get my vote – probably no surprise to you there. I stopped sending Christmas cards years ago because it just started feeling like a huge chore rather than a joy, and as Carol mentioned, postage prices – yikes! Makes it that much more special when I do receive a piece of personal mail.

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  14. sara
    July 13, 2025 at 5:32 am

    DAWN! These are amazing!

    I really like the dog ones, but, well, you know me. 😊

    My mom and her sisters still send cards, but the card sending idea seems to be dying out with my generation. It’s too bad, because it’s such a treat to get something in the mailbox besides junk mail and an amazon package.

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  15. Far Side
    July 13, 2025 at 3:42 pm

    Love the Christmas Cards! I think flowers and birds 🙂

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