LOUISVILLE, KY– August 17, 2026 – The Greeting Card Association (GCA) celebrated excellence in greeting cards this evening at its 37th Annual Louie Awards Ceremony. The event took place Monday evening at the Seelbach in Louisville, Kentucky. This year’s competition brought together over 1,000 submissions from 185 stationery brands.
Judging took place at eight hubs across the country, where 78 industry experts ranging from retail buyers to veteran publishers evaluated each card for quality and craftsmanship. From that extensive pool, 168 finalists were selected across 56 categories, showcasing the remarkable talent of 39 standout companies.
The Louie Awards celebrate the pure creativity and hard work driving our stationery community forward, honoring the exact designs that publishers and artists admire most. This year’s winners really raised the bar. Their cards stand out for their exceptional design and innovative spirit, proving that the craft behind greeting card design is stronger and more thoughtful than ever.
The ultimate highlights of the evening came with the presentation of the prestigious Card of the Year honors, celebrating the absolute best designs in the competition:
- Card of the Year Below $5.50 – New Baby: Honeyberry Studios
- Card of the Year Above $5.50 – Sympathy: Seedlings
- Sponsored by Leader Paper
Card of the Year Below $5.50 – New Baby: Honeyberry Studios
Card of the Year Above $5.50 – Sympathy: Seedlings
“Congratulations to all of this year’s Louie Award winners and finalists!” said Michele Byrne, founder of paper&stuff and the Louie Committee Chair. “With over 1,000 entries from 185 companies, this year’s awards reflect the incredible creativity and talent within our industry. Each entry is a reminder of the role greeting cards play in helping people celebrate, connect, offer comfort, and feel understood. I’m so grateful to our committee, judges, sponsors, associates, and everyone who helped bring the 37th Louie Awards to life, and I hope every winner feels deeply proud of this achievement.”
Beyond the individual card categories, the evening also celebrated the incredible people and publishers driving our industry forward with several major honors. The Rising Star Award, which spotlights outstanding emerging publishers in business for three years or less, went to Barone & Co. When it came to individual creative talents, E. Frances Paper took home the Writer of the Year award for exceptional copywriting and storytelling. To round out the major honors, the coveted Artist of the Year award was presented to Sister Paper Co. in recognition of their remarkable artistic talent and design vision.
We are so excited to share this year’s Maker of Note Awards recipients! These awards are all about spotlighting and lifting up the incredibly diverse creators and publishers who bring fresh energy and perspective to the greeting card industry. These annual awards highlight incredible publishers and designers from underrepresented communities within our industry. Each maker submitted five of their very best designs, and this year’s recipients were selected based on the highest average scores from our panel of judges.
2026 Maker of Note Winners:
- Asian American/Pacific Islander Maker of Note: Yuko Miki, Honeyberry Studios
- Black Maker of Note: Kristal Bell, KANDS.CO
- Latinx Maker of Note: Mackenzie + Esteban Raposo, Golden Peach Greetings
- LGBTQIA+ Maker of Note: Lindsey Warriner, Warren Tales
The full list of the 37th Annual Louie Award winning cards can be found below and an image gallery of the finalists and winning cards is on the GCA website here.
37th Annual Louie Award Winners:
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Artist of the Year |
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Birthday – General – $5.50 and Below |
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Birthday – General – Above $5.50 |
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Birthday – Humorous – $5.50 and Below |
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Birthday – Humorous – Above $5.50 |
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Birthday – Small Company |
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Blank Card – $5.50 and Below |
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Blank Card – Above $5.50 |
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Celebrating AAPI Culture |
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Celebrating Black Culture |
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Celebrating Latinx Culture |
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Celebrating LGBTQIA+ |
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Celebrating Women |
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Children’s Card – $5.50 and Below |
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Children’s Card – Above $5.50 |
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Christmas/Seasonal – Boxed Set |
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Christmas/Seasonal – General – $5.50 and Below |
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Christmas/Seasonal – General – Above $5.50 |
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Christmas/Seasonal – Humorous |
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Christmas/Seasonal – Small Company |
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Congratulations/Special Occasion – $5.50 and Below |
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Congratulations/Special Occasion – Above $5.50 |
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Everyday Boxed Set – All Submissions |
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Father’s Day – $5.50 and Below |
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Father’s Day – Above $5.50 |
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Friendship/Just Because – General – $5.50 and Below |
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Friendship/Just Because – General – Above $5.50 |
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Friendship/Just Because – Humorous – $5.50 and Below |
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Friendship/Just Because – Humorous – Above $5.50 |
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Get Well / Encouragement – $5.50 and Below |
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Get Well / Encouragement – Above $5.50 |
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Global Greetings |
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Halloween – $5.50 and Below |
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Halloween – Above $5.50 |
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Invitations & Announcements |
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Letterpress |
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Mother’s Day – $5.50 and Below |
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Mother’s Day – Above $5.50 |
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New Baby – $5.50 and Below |
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New Baby – Above $5.50 |
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Non-Religious Celebrations – $5.50 and Below |
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Non-Religious Celebrations – Above $5.50 |
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Print, Production, & Paper Engineering |
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Religious Celebrations – $5.50 and Below |
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Religious Celebrations – Above $5.50 |
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Rising Star |
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Romantic Occasions – $5.50 and Below |
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Romantic Occasions – Above $5.50 |
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Superbly Stated |
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Sympathy/Grief – $5.50 and Below |
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Sympathy/Grief – Above $5.50 |
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Thank You – $5.50 and Below |
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Thank You – Above $5.50 |
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Wedding/Engagement – $5.50 and Below |
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Wedding/Engagement – Above $5.50 |
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Writer of the Year |
For additional information about the Greeting Card Association and the Louie Awards, please visit https://www.greetingcard.org/louie-awards/.