Stacy Day Parade greeting cards say it with flowers

Now you can send a card and say it with flowers at the same time.

Local artist Stacy Day Parade hand-prints greeting cards on 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper, then embeds them with flower seeds. When the card's novelty has worn off, the recipient can simply plant it in a pot or in the ground outside and -- voilà! -- she'll have a crop of pretty wildflowers in about four weeks.

Not only are Stacy Day Parade cards easy on the environment, they give you more bang for your buck: Where else can you get a card and flowers for just $5?

Parade's designs are influenced by her original paintings -- her visions of "an alternate universe made up of nice things." And while a design might be politically driven, "It has to be cute," she says.

Her cards feature images of endearing yet edgy and sometimes slightly disconcerting creatures. Sweet scenes include a bird nesting on a bull's horn and a silhouetted deer reaching for a cherry-red apple. Conversely, an insect-like "buggo" stares plaintively on one card, while a skeleton cries on another (recommended for a bad day).

A nature lover, Parade hopes to create awareness by drawing attention to some struggling species. She put frogs on her Christmas cards after she read about the decline of the amphibians. Inside, the cards are blank so that you can pen your own terms of endearment.

Planting instructions are on the back of the card, which Parade recommends wadding a bit first before potting or placing in the ground. Cards come with a colored envelope made from recycled paper, tied with a bamboo string. A single card is $5 and a set of six is $28 at www.stacydayparade.com.

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