A
greeting card is an illustrated, folded card featuring an
expression of friendship or other sentiment. Although greeting cards are
usually given on special occasions such as
birthdays,
Christmas or other
holidays, they are also sent to convey thanks or express other feeling. Greeting cards, usually packaged with an
envelope,
come in a variety of styles. There are both mass-produced as well as
handmade versions that are distributed by hundreds of companies large
and small. While typically inexpensive, more elaborate cards with
die-cuts or glued-on decorations may be more expensive.
Hallmark Cards and
American Greetings are the largest producers of greeting cards in the world. In the
United Kingdom,
it is estimated that one billion pounds are spent on greeting cards
every year, with the
