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Titles List

  • Let them know they deserve to love ALL their selfs.(P.S. We hope and imagine everyone who receives this card will feel more seen and more valued than ever.)This message of truth and kindness is from our collection of cards and… Read More

  • It’s a real gift to reassure your people, especially when they might need some help remembering the light is always making its way toward them.This message of care and empowerment is from our collection of cards and journals by Elizabeth… Read More

  • We all need a little encouragement these days and it can be really comforting to know someone believes in us. This card lets them know you’re there, cheering them on during the hardest of hard times. This message of support… Read More

  • You really don’t have to know what’s next.This golden, cosmic high-five comes from the debut collection of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of City of Girls and Eat Pray Love.Elizabeth Gilbert brings her genius to Em &… Read More

  • This message of loving comfort is from our debut collection of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of City of Girls and Eat Pray Love.Share it with anyone who needs a little reminder that it’s going to be… Read More

  • A loving assignment for a brave and tender heart.This message of profound support is from the debut collection of cards and journals Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of City of Girls and Eat Pray Love.Elizabeth Gilbert brings her genius to Em… Read More

  • Every child deserves permission to change and grow. So does every 97-year-old. So do all of us.This message of cosmic encouragement comes from the debut line of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of City of Girls and… Read More

  • This empowering message is from the debut line of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of City of Girls and Eat Pray Love. Share it with the glorious phoenixes in your world—friends, sisters, nieces, mothers, and especially yourself.… Read More

  • Pay tribute to that friend—the kindred soul who maintains a sweet little pied-à-terre in her heart just for you, with clean sheets and a nightlight that always stays on.This message of affection and gratitude is from the debut collection of… Read More

  • Celebrate a relationship whose remarkable story is rivaled only by its shining future. This toast to love and longevity is from the debut collection of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of City of Girls and Eat Pray… Read More

  • We can’t speed up the process for a loved one who is grieving. But even a small gesture of support can help.This message of emphatic empathy is from the debut collection of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author… Read More

  • All of us stand on the shoulders of strong, graceful women who worked shit out. And we are those women, too.This powerful message of sisterhood comes from the debut collection of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of… Read More

  • This message of profound comfort and hope is from the debut collection of cards and journals by Elizabeth Gilbert, bestselling author of City of Girls and Eat Pray Love.Let a beloved friend know you’re with her as she reinvents her… Read More

  • Most of us spend our days just wanting to hear these very words from someone we adore. Here’s a little miracle: You can be that person for someone else.This message of ardent affection is from our debut collection of cards… Read More

Em & Friends

About the Author

Founded by writer and illustrator Emily McDowell, Em & Friends makes products that speak to the human condition with honesty, humor, and heart. As Em & Friends (previously Emily McDowell & Friends), they partner with different authors and artists to create gifts and cards for the relationships we really have. Their mission is to help people connect when they’re not sure what to say.

Em & Friends is perhaps best-known for their Empathy Cards, designed for people going through life’s hardest times: major illness, loss, and grief; and inspired by Emily’s experience with cancer in her 20s. In our culture, most of us don’t learn how to talk about illness and death. Emily was struck by how lonely and isolated she felt when people disappeared because they didn’t know what to say when she was sick—and traditional “get well” card messages weren’t terribly helpful. With Empathy Cards, they created unique sympathy cards to help people going through a hard time, and to help friends and family find supportive alternate sympathy messages to write in a card to offer encouragement when they don’t know what to say.

In 2018, they joined forces with the kindred spirits at Knock Knock—another female-founded company—uniting as two sister brands under one kickass umbrella. In 2019, they added “Friends” to their product collections—outside creative collaborators, including amazing artists and writers like Elizabeth Gilbert, Lisa Congdon, and Nora McInerny. And in 2022, along with Knock Knock, Em & Friends joined the Union Square & Co. family. No matter how they evolve, their goal will always be the same: to help people feel more connected and less alone.

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