Thank you note etiquette?

branz7

I saw this article.  Was curious what everyone else did nowadays regarding thank you notes.

 http://money.msn.com/family-money/article.aspx?post=71144ae2-5529-42fb-a074-a40e8f4f8302

I seem to recall we all did them after our weddings of course...but what about annual gift stuff like Christmas, and birthdays?  Does your action change when the gift was out of the blue or from someone unexpected??

MY TAKE:
I send thank yous for any gift given to me from people from faraway, i.e. out of state relatives who were not present when I opened the gift so I could say "thank you" in person, or for an unexpected gift.  I admit I don't send them for "every" gift rec'd in person. :-/

I personally like giving thank you cards, as well as bday cards and Christmas cards to my closest friends and fam. I also love getting mail still; REAL mail, not junk.  It's fun when someone takes the time to write out a note too, not just rely on the pre-printed saying inside the cards.

But maybe I'm old timey.  What say you? 

lexiarein

The only times I've ever sent "thank you" cards were for my bridal shower, and for wedding gifts/cards. My parents never made us do this as kids, so I guess I've just never really thought about doing it for any occasion.

I grew up without any family (besides parents and two brothers) in the state, so if we got gifts, or cards with money, we would call whoever they were from. Anymore I'll send them an email. But I never write thank you cards.

stormchasersbride

I always send thank you notes! I love stationary so it's a good excuse to buy more! Just bought thank you cards from Lawson yesterday. 

e_jakiela

I usually call the people who give me b-day gifts to thank them. But, I love sending cute thank you cards to the clients who do business with me. I usually send them a Starbucks card with the thank you and they love it