Friday, November 18, 2011

Christmas Gift Ideas for Catholic Priests

Hello everyone. Christmas is fast approaching and if you are looking for gift ideas for your Roman Catholic parish priest who celebrates the Latin Mass, I would like to offer you some suggestions to choose from among the designs that we have created and sell at Myriad Creative Concepts.

Every priest who celebrates the Latin Mass, needs several prayer cards to reference before, during, and after Mass. Click the following links to read about each popular item that we have designed and sell:

1. High Mass Altar Cards. High Mass Altar Cards are comprehensive altar cards that contain three extra incensing prayers not found on Low Mass Altar Cards. If a priest has only one set of altar cards, it should be a set of High Mass because they can be used for Low Masses too. Our most popular set is called, "Vintage Diamond High Mass."

We sell nearly all of our cards as prints to be framed, laminated, or beautifully framed.

2. Low Mass Altar Cards. Low Masses are celebrated much more frequently than High Masses. Since Low Mass Altar Cards do not contain the incensing prayers found on High Mass Cards, there is more room for us to insert more artwork. They are generally a bit more ornate. Our most popular set of Low Mass Altar Cards is called, "Vintage Diamond Low Mass."

3. Requiem Mass Altar Cards. Requiem Masses are used for funerals. Our most popular set is called "Silver Black Requiem."

4. Latin Mass Companion Prayers. Latin Mass Companion Prayer Cards are the extra cards needed besides the altar cards. Some are used before Mass, some are used during Mass, and others are used after Mass. The essential cards are called "Vesting Prayers," "Prayers At The Foot Of The Altar," "Benediction," and "Prayers After Low Mass." We sell them both individually and as a group in kit form. Priests usually buy the laminated versions.

5. Altar Card Stands. Altar Card Stands or Holders can be very simple or quite elaborate. Years ago, there were many sources for priests to buy these stands. Today, there are very few. We were asked to begin offering some for sale and have found some inexpensive ones that work very well and are inexpensive. Technically, they are plate or book holders but our priest customers love them for altar cards too.

6. Sacristy Cards. These are extra cards that we have designed by request. We have several Sacristy Cards to choose from. These cards are used before Mass. "Act Of Oblation Before Mass" is our most popular Sacristy Card.

7. Special Latin Mass Cards. The following two special cards are the result of phone calls from priests who requested that we design them. They are very inexpensive but worth their weight in gold. The first, "High Mass Incensing Prayers," is quite useful because they contain the texts of the three prayers said during High Mass. The card is laminated and is laid flat on the altar for reference. With one of these cards, a priest who currently has only a set of Low Mass Altar Cards can celebrate High Masses without buying a set of High Mass Altar Cards. The second special card is called, "Supplices and Prayers Before Communion Card." This card has specific prayers that are found on altar cards. But, when a priest is bowing, his position makes it very hard to read the altar cards. So, with this card lying flat on the altar, he can read the prayers easily. It is the perfect inexpensive gift.

8. Travel Size Altar Cards. Travel Size Altar Cards are laminated, smaller versions of some of our full sized altar cards. These are designed for priests on the road. One set that we sold is currently in use in the back country of Thailand. They have thick lamination to protect them from the elements and fit nicely into briefcases. Although smaller, we worked hard to make sure that the print was as large as possible. Some priests order altar card stands to use with them. Choose between "Vintage Diamond Low Mass" and "Silver Black Requiem Mass."

9. Missal Size Companion Prayers. We were asked by a priest to create a set of Companion Prayers that would fit nicely into to cover flap of a missal. He said that his set that he got in the "old days" was worn out and needed to be replaced. So, we whipped these up for him and other priests.

10. Latin Mass Kits. We offer a complete set of the essential cards used for the Latin Mass as well as a kit that contains just the companion prayers. Bought as a kit, the cost per card is much cheaper than if bought separately. Quite frankly, we are surprised that more priests do not buy their cards in this form because it is such a good option.

Lastly, I would like to recommend the scholarly work of two friends of mine, Louis Tofari and Derek Bonnel. Their painstaking contributions toward the promotion of the Latin Mass are immeasurable.  Take a good, close look at what they offer on their websites and you are sure to find a unique but very useful gift for your parish priest who celebrates the Latin Mass.

Christmas presents are so important. May you find just the right gift for your family and loved ones and parish priest. Whether a tie or a book or a set of altar cards, given with love is all that matters, isn't it?

Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas, everyone. Thanks for stopping by today.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

New Release: "Jasmine" Latin High Mass Altar Cards

Hello everyone. We are proud to release a brand new design of Roman Catholic Tridentine High Mass Altar Cards called "Jasmine." We wanted something that had a bit of an oriental look to it and we believe this creation does the trick. It will be sent to our printing company soon and we welcome advance orders on our regular business website, Myriad Creative Concepts.

Jasmine is a unique design that features the jasmine artwork of the 19th Century firm, William Morris Company. William Morris wallpaper was very popular in British homes. The beautiful picture on the center card was painted by Hans Holbein the Younger in the 16th Century. The painting is titled, "Christ On The Cross."

Besides being very pretty, this set of High Mass Latin Altar Cards is also very practical. The center card type is 12 points while the two side cards have 16 point type making this set very easy to read. Also, this set of altar cards has many prayers not commonly found on today's Latin altar cards. This set includes the Aufer, Oramus te, Supplices, and Corpus tuum prayers. Our consulting priests have advised us to include these prayers on our designs whenever possible. Since this set is a High Mass version, the center card has the three additional prayers for saying High Mass. Lastly, the layout of the center card was carefully plotted so that no prayers would be blocked by the chalice when needed to be read.

If you would like more information about this new "Jasmine" set of Latin High Mass Altar Cards, feel free to visit us online at our regular business website, Myriad Creative Concepts. We also have a wide selection of other altar cards and companion cards for the Latin and English Masses.

Thanks for visiting.

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Latin Large Print Altar Cards Updated

Hello everyone. I hope that you are enjoying this year's Fourth of July weekend so far. I know that I certainly am. I've been kicking back and enjoying some great blues music while tinkering with some designs to improve them. My neighbor is having a cookout and was nice enough to bring me some extra food freshly grilled! Now, you just can't beat that ...

Today, I improved my large print Latin Low Mass altar card designs to make them better than ever. Our designs include Blue, Gold, Red, and a Stained Glass graphic design. On the center card, I added the first half of the Supplices prayer. The rest can be easily read from the altar missal. On the Lavabo card, I added the Corpus tuum prayer at the bottom. I've been told by several priests that they much prefer using altar cards with these prayers on them but are difficult to come by.

The overall type size on the center cards is 15 points while the type on the side cards is 18 points. This is very large and should be enough for most priests. If you need even larger type, just let me know and I will custom-design a set for you.

Please note that as of this writing we have remaining stock (1-10 of each as prints and laminated) of our large print Low Mass altar cards to sell before we release for sale this new improved version in Blue, Gold, Red, and Stained Glass. While supplies last, this existing stock of prints and laminated altar cards is being sold at half price as reflected in our payment option buttons. These are perfectly good altar cards, they just don't have the Supplices and Corpus tuum prayers on them. Once each is depleted, we will print up the new version and begin to sell them once again at our standard retail price.

That's it for now. Enjoy the rest of your holiday weekend!

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Altar Server Prayers Before And After Mass Sacristy Card

Hello everyone. Today, we are releasing a brand new Sacristy Card called "Altar Server Prayers Before And After Mass, 12 x 18 inches."

This new card contains the prayers of its cousin Sacristy Card that is letter size but this one is much larger and has an entirely different set of graphics.

We received a special request for the original card to be redesigned to a whopping 24 x 36 inches so that it could be read from across the room. Since the original graphics simply wouldn't do, we pulled some of our graphics from our popular "Vintage Diamond Low Mass Altar Cards" and found a very nice picture of a priest saying Mass with his altar boys. This custom-designed piece turned out so nice when it was framed that we simply had to create a smaller, more affordable version for other priests. Voila! This scaled down 12 x 18 version does the trick. The type is nice and large at 22 points so that it can be read from a distance. And, it is available as a print, laminated, or in a choice of two beautiful ornate gold frames.

For more information about this new Altar Server Sacristy card, visit us online on our business website. Also, if you have an idea for a special project, write or call us any time.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

A New Customer's Testimonial That Made My Day

Today, I received an email from a new customer who ordered a set of framed Latin Mass altar cards and some extra companion Mass cards. They were shipped from Ohio to New Zealand, about 8,500 miles. This is part of the message he sent me today:


"Your magnificent framed Altar Cards are truly a sight to behold, the colour & pattern of the frame is perfect. The fabric covered backs are an impressive detail and shows the level of thought you have put in to your work. The plastic covered [altar card] stands are simply wonderful and so stable. The packing and wrapping served its job well and no damage occurred during the trip. To put it simply, you do wonderful work and give excellent service, thank you so much."

Wasn't that nice of him? I never know how well a customer likes their altar cards until I hear back from them. It sure feels good to get a compliment like this now and again. And, it's great to know that regardless of how far away that we ship our work, it gets there in one piece.

I just couldn't resist posting this.

Thanks for stopping by.





Monday, January 24, 2011

Latin Low Mass Altar Cards, "Cezanne Montagne Sainte Victoire," Just Released!

Hello everyone. We have just finished up our latest design of Latin Mass Altar Cards, "Cezanne Montagne Sainte Victoire." To see its details, please visit our regular business website, Myriad Creative Concepts.

Montagne Sainte Victoire is our tribute to one of our favorite artists, Paul Cezanne. Cezanne was a famous Post-Impressionist French painter of the late 19th Century. He was devoutly Roman Catholic and we thought that his work would look beautiful on a set of Low Mass Altar Cards. We really like how they turned out and hope that you like them too.

Let us know what you think of this new design. We always enjoy hearing from you out there "in the field."

Thanks for visiting!

Friday, January 21, 2011

Nine New Sacristy Prayer Cards

Hello everyone. Recently, I received a request from a priest for a variety of prayer cards to use in the Sacristy before and after Mass. He told me that he needs them because the Sacristy is such a bustling place for those getting ready to participate in Mass that some time to slow down a bit to pray would do everyone a lot of good.

So, I started looking around and found several prayers that would be good before and after Mass. The title of this post suggests that I found nine but really I found six. I already had three but I changed the artwork of those to match the new six. Does that make any sense? I hope so. lol

At any rate, we now offer several prayers for priests before and after Mass as well as one for Altar Servers before and after, and one for Lectors before Mass. If you have a favorite prayer that would be a good candidate, let us know and we will consider making it available too. We never know what you need out there until you let us know.

Each of these new Sacristy Cards measure 8.5 x 11 inches and are available as prints, laminated, or beautifully framed. We designed the cards in such a way that they can be easily trimmed to fit into a standard, off-the-shelf 8 x 10 inch frame.

If you would like to view these many English Sacristy Cards and the rest of our extensive altar card designs, visit us online at our regular business website, Myriad Creative Concepts.

Thanks for visiting!

Monday, January 17, 2011

Just Released: "French Provincial" Latin High Mass Altar Cards

Hello everyone. We have just put the finishing touches on our latest altar card design, a set for the Latin High Mass called, "French Provincial." This design features some beautiful images from a set of Dominican Rite altar cards hand-painted in 1948 by two cloistered Dominican nuns in California.

"French Provincial" is an easy-to-read set of altar cards. The center card type size is 12 points while the two side cards have 14 point type. The center card measures 12 x 18 inches and the side cards each measure 12 x 8 inches. Available as prints, laminated, or beautifully framed.

If you would like to see the complete details about our newest set of altar cards, "French Provincial," or browse our many designs of Latin and English altar cards, merely visit us online at our business website, Myriad Creative Concepts.

Thanks for visiting!