Momma Told Me: canvas photo

*** I received a complimentary product in exchange for my honest thoughts. All photos contained below are property of Momma Told Me Blog 2013. Blog POP!, Momma Told Me, or any of it's members is not responsible for prize distribution.

Momma Told Me: Give gifts with meaning.

In today's digital world, sometimes the best gift to give the person who 'has everything' is a personal gift with a custom touch. Thanks to modern technology everyone seems to take thousands of pictures a year without ever thinking twice. They store them on memory cards, desktop folders, and even the cloud- but how often do those cherished photos get fished out of the masses and put to use where guests, friends, and family can admire them? Yes, it's easier than ever to take and view a picture, but an alarmingly large percent of the population is doing little more than hoarding those priceless memories. Just think, it's now more affordable then ever to give a high quality photo gift that well exceeds the traditional 4 x 6" format and lasts a lifetime as a tangible piece of personal art.

I've ordered from a lot of canvas print companies, and they can seem hard to differentiate after a while. When Canvas N' Decor offered me a chance to sample their service with a standard 20 x 24" custom photo print I was hesitant. If you've ordered from one online canvas company before, you might be partial to sticking with what you know. And, granted, if you are working on a theme or set of pieces, you will likely want to get them all printed from the same source, for the sake of integrity. However, I know all too well that not all canvas printing services are equal. Some are very expensive but fast to process, others have an overwhelmingly complicated processing system that causes anxiety simply uploading a picture. And they all have a 'hook.' For Canvas N' Decor it's their everyday low (they really are quite competitive) canvas print prices, and a 200 year no-fade guarantee.

Using the Canvas N' Decor online ordering system I could easily upload my image and view it on the canvas. That is that I could switch between sizes and alter the cropping of my photo with a few simple swipes. I did seem to have trouble figuring out how to turn the canvas so I could see it's natural finish (my vertical picture was horizontal while processing). What I liked most, however, was that I wasn't bombarded will 'extra' options. There were tabs for personalization and photo effects, but they were not in the forefront unless I desired them, keeping the photo processing process simple and efficient for basic canvas prints. After submitting our order we received a shipping update and had our mirror-wrapped canvas in hand in a little less than a week. The piece was protectively packaged with foam corners and a plastic shrink wrap, nestled within bubble wrap in a sturdy box.

Our Canvas N' Decor print was ready to mount right our of the packaging, with a mounting wire already installed; taking the guesswork out of home decor projects and photo gifts. I love that I can send a custom canvas directly to my grandparents, across the country, and they can place it on their wall with as little as a tap on a nail! We were exceedingly happy with the semi-gloss finish and the precise clarity of the uploaded image, as well as the vibrant color printing. Canvas N' Decor would like to offer all Momma Told Me readers an exclusive 30% off discount on any order, and free shipping with orders over $150, simply enter code: BABY30 at checkout! This special discount will easily stack with the free shipping promotion, as well as free image enhancement and text customization.

What Daughter Says: If you're stumped trying to find a personal gift that will truly last, consider a custom canvas print.

*** I received a press discount in exchange for sharing my thoughts on Canvas POP. All photos below are copyright Momma Told Me Blog 2013.

Momma Told Me: The best gifts are personal.

Believe it or not, it's that time of year, yet again. Whether you want to think about it or not, the time has come to start squirreling away gifts for the holidays. This time, last year, I had 90% of my holiday shopping done, and the presents wrapped to boot! So, while I know I have a few months to go, I'm already feeling the squeeze of my Santa-like duties. There's just something about seeing those first pop-up displays of holiday greeting cards and ornaments on retail shelves (and it does get earlier and earlier each year, right?) The Type A inside me suddenly starts envisioning all of my neighbors with closets full of neatly wrapped gifts, myself the shame of the PTA, the only parent without the latest Monster High doll. I pull out that holiday checklist, muddled with coffee stains and melted candy cane shards and take a deep breath, it has begun.

Whether it's fair or not, I am a notorious bundler. That means, if your birthday falls even remotely around a Winter holiday, I will bundle your gifts together. I do this so I can rationalize spending a little more money on something nicer, than less money on trinkets and baubles one doesn't really need. This year one of the first people to be checked off my list was Sabrina's mother, alley neighbor and family member. Her birthday happens to fall smack daub in the middle of December; a jackpot opportunity to bundle. Months back I'd already promised her this gift, so it wasn't much of a head scratcher. When we had attended the Pirates! live dinner show in July she'd fallen in love with a shot I'd captured at the front gate. I vowed then and there to turn it into a piece of viable art for her living room. Photos on canvas are one of the simplest way to solve a necessary gift for a picky recipient. Even that person who 'has everything' can appreciate a pop art panel of their kitty, or a sentimental print of their newborn daughter.

Every year I buy near a half dozen canvas prints- the majority of which around this time. I buy small 8" x8" panels, giant 3 piece Triptychs and simple statement pieces for my own decor. As a blogger I take countless photos every day, let alone every year, and often have a wide variety of my own files to choose from. Ordering photo gifts online, however, doesn't require a professional photographer. Canvas Pop has an intuitive step-by-step photo on canvas designer that helps you pick the right finish, canvas depth, and even photo effects for your image. And, one of the things I appreciate most, there are clearly marked prices for any extra upcharges (extra depth, professional photo editing, etc). Canvas Pop is not the cheapest custom canvas vendor online; but they do have a lot going for them to argue the costs. While the base pricing is not outrageous, Canvas Pop does pride themselves on providing the top quality prints, made with love, and featuring a lifetime quality guarantee against issues such as fading.

Canvas Pop also ensures you have the perfect framing and color with visual digital proofs (free) and optional live support from a personal designer that will help you adjust styling and color to make your photo/art really pop. They'll even take a look (at your request) and adjust shadows/hue/red eye prior to printing, for free. One of the things I especially enjoyed about my Canvas Pop experience was the fact that our print came ready to mount, featuring high quality piano wire, rubber wall bumpers, and even a nail. There was also a little signature on the back, letting us know who had handmade our canvas print with so much love. Since this was one of the largest prints I've ever bought before, I'd been nervous about shelling out the extra dough for the additional inches- You simply never know how a clear photo will transition to canvas.

I think Canvas Pop did an amazing job! The colors are beautiful and vivid, the whites are extra bright, and the photo looks almost as gorgeous as it does on my screen at top resolution. As far as canvas printing experiences go, this was one of the easiest design processes, with absolutely no hidden costs, right up to checkout. The speed of processing was a mere days from digital too door, and there was no additional work on my part to mount or prepare the print. I was also very pleased with the transition of the vibrant image, through the printing process, and to such a large canvas.

A 30 x 40" print may not be the right budget for standard gifting, but Canvas Pop has a wide variety of pop art styling, image filters, and canvas sizes so you can create the perfect custom gift from virtually any image. Worried about photo quality? The upload system will automatically clear your image for sizing quality, and flag it if you should go with a smaller size print. In addition, different photo filters are suggested for lower resolution images, which really takes a lot of the guesswork out of ordering canvas online. I had a great experience with Canvas Pop, and will gladly order from them again. Their processing is fast, but always keep in mind that canvas printing companies experience higher traffic through the holiday season, and order your canvas gifts early!

What Daughter Says: Shop custom canvas prints for a personal gift that will last a lifetime.