Meet Anushka Cross, a 46-year-old woman so “attached” to her greeting cards that she’s kept nearly 1,000 of them, the oldest dating back to the 1980s.
Anushka has stashed away dozens of shoeboxes full to the brim with sentimental cards received by her family over the years for birthdays, Christmas, and other celebrations.
Describing her hoard of memories, Anushka says the cards have ‘taken over’ her London home, which she shares with her 45-year-old husband and two children aged 13 and 12.
The mum-of-two reveals that items such as birthday cards can sit proudly on the mantelpiece for months as a heartwarming reminder of lovely events that have passed. They’re only removed to display the next set of cards.
This card-keeping trend mirrors research conducted by Funky Pigeon, showing that 39 per cent of Britons treasure every card they receive as mementoes of their loved ones.
Among those keepsakes, birthday, Christmas, and wedding cards are the most commonly treasured, with one in four Brits holding onto a card for over two decades.
Anushka commented: “I love greeting cards they’ve always held a special place in my heart.”
She highlights the nostalgic value of the cards: “If you look back on them, from over the years, it tells a story – who your friends were, the jokes you made, or family that might not be here.”
In an inventive bid to consolidate space, Anushka has devoted hours to crafting photo albums, with one particularly special album assembled solely for cards from their 2007 wedding.
Her affection for greeting cards began in her teenage years: “I have cards dating back to when I was aged 16 probably even younger.”
“I stored them in my parents’ attic for a long time, until I had to do a clear out for them. I couldn’t bear to get rid of them, so I just brought them to my house.”
Now, she collects and stores every card that is sent to her or her family throughout the year. When they’re not on display, Anushka stashes her cards away into about seven shoe boxes that are kept in dedicated cupboards around the house and is crafting a piece of art to display them.
The research from Funky Pigeon also revealed that, like Anushka, 84 per cent believe a physical card holds more meaning than any digital alternative, and it seems the tradition of sending cards is still thriving, this is according to 86 per cent who regularly do so.
Christmas was seen as the most important occasion to send one for, followed by key birthdays and times requiring sympathy but 48 per cent admit they could make more effort to remember key dates during the year.
A spokesperson from Funky Pigeon, added: “It’s great to see how sending a card can mean so much to someone.”
“They can have a long-lasting impact on people’s lives and that’s as much down to the design as the heartfelt messages they can deliver to those when they need it.”