Review: Cyperus Greetings
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Whilst there are those of us that are crafty to the hilt, I appreciate that some of you aren't, and some have (gasp) never made a greeting card! For those people there are lots of options available, from brick & mortar stores, ebay & etsy to online greetings companies. I got a sample pack from one online greeting company called Cyperus Greetings and thought I'd do a little review.
About...
Cyperus are based in New York, and have over 20 years experience in the design and printing industry. Most of their products are available plain for you to print your own details, or you can add personalization for a fee. They seem to cover every occasion imaginable too!
Cyperus are based in New York, and have over 20 years experience in the design and printing industry. Most of their products are available plain for you to print your own details, or you can add personalization for a fee. They seem to cover every occasion imaginable too!
Quality...
All crafty people love high quality papers and cardstock and the products from Cyperus are top notch! Ranging from an almost watercolor effect paper effect to high quality photo prints with glossy sheens. My favorite was the 100lb cardstock with the protective coating. Almost like posterboard, with a real high quality print.
All crafty people love high quality papers and cardstock and the products from Cyperus are top notch! Ranging from an almost watercolor effect paper effect to high quality photo prints with glossy sheens. My favorite was the 100lb cardstock with the protective coating. Almost like posterboard, with a real high quality print.
Samples...
I received a wide variety of samples from Cyperus, different themes, finishes, sizes, and papers. Honestly the samples I received fell into 2 piles. One I think I could definitely acheive at home, and one that I could do at home but wouldn't be comparable quality wise, it wouldn't have the protective coating. All this obviously would depend on the amount of design/digital knowledge you had, but if you've dabbled in digital scrapbooking, well card design isn't such a huge leap!
I received a wide variety of samples from Cyperus, different themes, finishes, sizes, and papers. Honestly the samples I received fell into 2 piles. One I think I could definitely acheive at home, and one that I could do at home but wouldn't be comparable quality wise, it wouldn't have the protective coating. All this obviously would depend on the amount of design/digital knowledge you had, but if you've dabbled in digital scrapbooking, well card design isn't such a huge leap!
Service...
Basically Cyperus' target group is those people that don't know how to use digital software, but still want beautifully designed invitations and announcements. I think they'd be great for weddings, big parties where you need a LOT of invites. With Cyperus you are paying for the convenience of uploading say a photo, typing in details and having them design the item for you. However if you do have a bit of digital know how, many of their services would seem expensive. Unfortunately Cyperus (unlike most photo processing places) doesn't seem to offer the option to just upload your own design to print without their design services/personalization That would definitely be something for them to think about. The cardstock quality, print and cover, in conjunction with the digital kits available on the web would make great announcements and invites! Now THAT I could get on board with!
Basically Cyperus' target group is those people that don't know how to use digital software, but still want beautifully designed invitations and announcements. I think they'd be great for weddings, big parties where you need a LOT of invites. With Cyperus you are paying for the convenience of uploading say a photo, typing in details and having them design the item for you. However if you do have a bit of digital know how, many of their services would seem expensive. Unfortunately Cyperus (unlike most photo processing places) doesn't seem to offer the option to just upload your own design to print without their design services/personalization That would definitely be something for them to think about. The cardstock quality, print and cover, in conjunction with the digital kits available on the web would make great announcements and invites! Now THAT I could get on board with!
I have to say that there is probably no chance of me using their services. Why? Well I don't forsee needing that many invitations or announcements anytime soon. But mostly because my background is design and printing, almost all the designs they had on Cyperus seemed something I could design myself in photoshop. That's when I'd have liked the option to upload my own design for printing!
Price...
Well this one is always going to be a little subjective. In my personal opinion they are on the pricey side. Like I said obviously if you are having photo editing done (which is basically a lot of what they are providing) then all well and good, you get what you pay for. However, the products they offer without personalization (like the samples I received, just plain one sided announcement style sheets) I personally think they are on the expensive side, for plain cards, but again that probably isn't their target demographic. For example: 10 invites for $15., that's $1.50 per invite! Seems pretty steep to me? It also seems the incentive to buy in bulk is in the personalized items only. Maybe I'm not the best person to comment on price as I just see it as something I could do myself, and either upload to a printing service or print myself at home. Or maybe I'm just a cheapskate? lol.
Well this one is always going to be a little subjective. In my personal opinion they are on the pricey side. Like I said obviously if you are having photo editing done (which is basically a lot of what they are providing) then all well and good, you get what you pay for. However, the products they offer without personalization (like the samples I received, just plain one sided announcement style sheets) I personally think they are on the expensive side, for plain cards, but again that probably isn't their target demographic. For example: 10 invites for $15., that's $1.50 per invite! Seems pretty steep to me? It also seems the incentive to buy in bulk is in the personalized items only. Maybe I'm not the best person to comment on price as I just see it as something I could do myself, and either upload to a printing service or print myself at home. Or maybe I'm just a cheapskate? lol.
Conclusion...
In all, like I said their services and products are aimed at those of you that can't design this kind of thing yourself. If you're looking for birth announcements or wedding invitations etc they really offer some great designs. Cyperus if you're reading: The quality of the products was great, but you'd open your service up a whole lot more to the scrapbooking industry by offering a pure printing service!
That about wraps things up for today.
Di
That about wraps things up for today.
Di
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