Handmade cards make for stylish greetings

The next time you feel the desire to mail a warm and fuzzy message to someone you care about, consider sending a greeting card from SmART Blondz. This unique collection of handmade cards is created with such fresh and exotic textures as velvets, vinyls and faux fur. The collection also utilizes feathers, flowers, raffle tickets, and even Astroturf - making each card a little piece of art.

SmART Blondz owner Andrea Burrows, a former television wardrobe stylist, launched the company after being encouraged by her celebrity clients, who were the first recipients of her paper gems. According to Burrows, "With family and many of my best friends on the East Coast, it has always brightened my day to get a card in the mail. I wanted to bring style and art to greeting cards."

All of the cards in the collection are blank inside because, says Burrows, "Handmade cards don't need words - they communicate with the heart. And heart is always a component in anything handmade."

The Beverly Hills-based Burrows has enlisted local grandmothers, people with disabilities and clients of Goodwill's Welfare to Work program to make her designs. SmART Blondz donates surplus papers and fabrics to an arts and crafts workshop for senior citizens, and cards with imperfections are donated to Goodwill.

The joy and beauty of these 5" x 7" works of art is their unique textures. Our first impulse after seeing the cards was to touch them. The variety of fabrics and materials are a tactile pleasure. There's no doubt that the recipient of Burrows' cards will treasure it forever.

The SmART Blondz collection consists of 48 different designs, each of which retail for five to six dollars. Cards can be purchased online at www.smartblondz.com or at boutiques in the Los Angeles area.