Orange honeybee mandala card digitally printed using pigment inks (the best quality) on silky, bright white, acid-free paper. Folded card is 5.25" by 5.25" and comes with a beautifully made, bright white envelope. The paper is super smooth, not slick, and takes gel, ballpoint, and other inks well. Perfect for an everyday note, as a thinking of you card, or as a special little gift for a beekeeper, gardener, nature lover, or entomologist. The photograph I used to create the mandala is printed on the back of the card with the photo location and some bee info. Interior of the card is blank or choose a message (see below for choices).

The card and envelope are packaged together in a plastic sleeve and mailed in a stiffened mailer. Note: one or two cards are shipped USPS First Class without tracking. Three or more cards are shipped via the most economical means, which usually includes tracking.

Interior Message Choices: Blank, Teamwork Message, Happy Birthday, Thinking of You, Get Well Soon, Thank You, Love You

Framing. This card is created using high-quality materials, such as might be used in a museum. The print is sharp, bright, and frameable. To protect the vibrancy of the artwork, I frame using UV glass or acrylic, and I recommend it. If you use plain glass or acrylic, make sure you hang this sweet, little piece and all your beautiful art away from direct sunlight.

About the art. The mandala art on this card, titled Busy Bees Honey Factory, began as a photograph of a honeybee on bright red-orange sneezeweed. I took the photo in the impressive pollinator garden at the Pittsburgh Botanic Gardens, a relatively new public space to visit just west of downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Once the darlings of U.S. pollinator gardeners, European honeybees (Apis mellifera) have lately fallen a little out of favor as focus swings toward hairy native bees, metallic hover flies, and boldly striped wasps. Although not as important as native pollinators in the success of many food crops, honeybees do contribute to the pollination of fruit and nut trees, squash, cucumbers, and melons. They also produce honey, an important agricultural crop. Although not at all scientifically accurate, Busy Bees Honey Factory is intended as an unapologetic tribute to the sticky goodness produced by the honeybee.