This Holiday Card Is Absolutely Purrfect

HOUSTON, TX -- A 26-year-old Houston woman won over Reddit Monday night after her holiday card filled with lasers, outer space, and her beloved pets went viral. Despite not being a graphics expert, Alison's whimsical card rocketed to the top of Reddit's front page, where it collected more than 94,000 votes and 1,300 comments.

"Every year I get holiday cards from friends and family that show their babies and I figured I should show off my babies. They’re a big part of my life and I couldn’t be happier with my little family," Alison, an engineer in the city, told Patch.

The card, which features her cat Hugo and dog Charlie, took an hour to make while drinking whiskey with her friend. They set up a little studio in her living room and went through many dog and cat treats to get the animals to pose, she said.

"I don’t have any fancy software, I simply got to work using Microsoft PowerPoint to overlay the effects. I never expected it to be so well received on Reddit," Alison added. "I think people just enjoy seeing animals. They’re so innocent and happy and unintentionally funny. It’s wholesome to me when I see animal pictures."

The aesthetic used in Alison's card is drawn from American school yearbook photos during the 1980s. The laser and space-like background was popularized by the photography company Lifetouch, KnowYourMeme reported. The aesthetic got new life breathed into it in 2008 thanks to the "We Have Lasers!We Have Lasers!" Tumblr blog and in 2014 when "high school student Draven Rodriguez posted an Instagram of his senior yearbook portrait in which he is posing with his cat in front of a laser background and a digitally composited image of his face overlaid in the background," KnowYourMeme added.

Alison mailed out her holiday cards weeks ago. She's only received rave reviews.

"My parents and sisters are big animal people. We’ve had all sorts of pets. My parents think of them as grandchildren. My friends and family absolutely loved them. A majority of my friends don’t have kids yet, but have pets so they’re very supportive of this," Alison said.

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Photo via Alison/Reddit