Some Stuff I Have Been Working On

So I decided to snap a pic of my mail because of course...I thought today was Friday...silly me. So instead of sharing that (cause its Thursday...) I have decided to show you a pic of a couple things I have been working on.



The peace symbol is constructed of all US postage and it is only made of those stamps containing images of the US Flag. I thought it was a neat idea. Using a glue stick and some white glue (to wash over the top of the stamps) and then I glued the symbol down onto another piece of cardstock so that the whole thing was sturdy.

The cards around that are all postcards made out of photographs I have taken. There will be a lot of those being mailed out soon...these are the first 4. =)

Anyway, I hope everyone had a wonderful day!

Another Long Journey

The letter above finally arrived at its destination after a long 66 year journey. How crazy is that? It was travelling from Hyde Park, NY to Gloucester, MA. The article says that if an actual snail was making that journey, it would have made it in 6.5 years. That is a big difference from 66!

They don't know where it was for the last few decades, but there was a bit of speculation that perhaps it was in an estate sale of some kind, as the letter was mailed from Seattle this past month. If you are a stamp enthusiast you will notice that the envelope is a first day cover. So there was also speculation that it was part of a stamp collection and perhaps someone wanted the letter to go to the original intended recipient.

Unfortunately the recipient has since passed away. Which makes me wonder if she ever missed the letter. Did the sender send another letter? Or maybe this letter carried an important message...perhaps a friendship ended over this letter not making its destination. The possibilities are completely endless!!

Did You Send Me This??

I apologize for the crummy (and mirrored) picture of this postcard. In an effort to get more organized I went through my mail that I have received looking for addresses and I came across this postcard that I had stuck a post-it to with a question mark. That is usually what I do when I get something in the mail that I dont know who sent it or why I have gotten it.

The card was signed by a Sarah with a smiley face underneath. And I believe the postmark says...Phoenix. Though I could be wrong..its not a very good postmark. Anyway, I thought I would post a picture here to see if anyone who is reading this sent it. If you did...let me know. I would love to send you a card in return, but you gave me no return address. If you didn't send me the card..well..please disregard this post. =)

A Request Followed by a Bit of Fun

Happy Sunday! Today has been a decent day. I am getting closer to having a working mail database. (again I promise to share once it is finished complete with screenshots!) Which I think will make it easier to keep track of everything. I have not however, started to really respond to any of my mail that I got in last week...I will be doing that once I am finished here.

I have a request to ask of all of you (or the ones that it applies to). In trying to get my mail database complete I am trying to put together a complete (or as complete as I can get it) contacts list. So...what I would like all of you to do (if you have a second) is to email me with your name, address, and blog address (if you have one). You only need to do this if you would like to either start sending mail or if you have sent me something in the past. Chances are I have all of your addresses in the database already (if we have corresponded before) but I am doing this to be double sure.

The reason I am asking you to send me the link to your blog (and anyone can send me this whether we correspond via real mail) is so that I can then add them to this page as blogs I follow. Cause I have yet to really do that. Haha. It is just such a daunting task..but I would like to showcase the blogs that I read because you all have such wonderful posts!

Now the bit of fun. I am not sure how many of you have seen this blog, but it is quite neat to follow. Gary Grayson writes/produces art for the A Creative Path blog. He posts prints that he has made using his computer on the blog round about once a week. Now here comes the real neat part! If like a print that he posts (a new one that is) and are the first one to comment on the post and then email him...you get a free copy of that print!!! How cool is that? I commented on one a few weeks back and was very happy to get mine in the mail. In fact I am going to frame it and hang it up.

Gary also has a website called Artefacts where you can purchase copies of his prints. They all come printed on museum quality paper which means they are perfect for framing and hanging them up!!

I definitely think you should pop over to this blog and check out some of the prints he has made. They are just wonderful! Anyway, I do hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! I am off to send some mail.

Mail Call Friday

It's friday again!! You know what that means....it's MAIL CALL time again! Woohoo!!

But before I get into the mail I wanted to share some photos from the hike I took yesterday. This first one is of my nephew Carter.



And this second one is the deer backbone he found in the field..(we then had to bring it home haha).



So as you can see...he totally had a blast... Now on to some mail!!



As you can see it was a pretty good mail week. Though I had two days with NOTHING in the box! That needs to be corrected...which means I need to get better about responding to my mail when it comes in instead of doing it and sending it all at once. haha

Oh and I am in the midst of creating a really neat way to keep track of my mail...I will share it when it is finished and all the bugs are worked out. For now I will tell you that it is a lil technical and it is (of course) on the computer but it is not in Excel. Got your mind going?? Guess you will just have to wait until it is unveiled!

Interesting Thought on Mail

Thank you to everyone who wished me a better day today! I am happy to report that my day is going quite well (except for my lack of stamps...but I am hoping to fix that tomorrow). Oh and I also found some goodies in my mailbox today!! So yes, today is going well.

So today I did a bit more hiking but this time I took my nephew. We found some really neat animal tracks including deer, raccoon, and I suspect...coyote! We found an owl pellet (which he thought was really neat...he's only 5) but the BIGGEST find was a deer backbone! He was being such a great archaeologist, though he was wrong about what he thought it was. He suspected it was dinosaur..haha.

After the hike I decided to read through my RSS feeds and found an interesting mail themed article. You can find the full text here. It is basically a reprint from Old McFinniganagal's Gazette published in 1849. Its from the opinion section and it is written by someone who wishes people would stop sending him mail.

It is really fun to read because how he feels about "real" mail is sometimes how I feel about tweeting and email! Haha. Its amazing to think that someone wouldnt want to see mail in their box! Anyway, I really enjoyed reading it and I hope you do as well.

I also hope that everyone out there is having a great day! I am off to write some letters and send some mail! =)

Toy Voyagers

Anyone out there ever host a Toy Voyager? I hadn't until just a few days ago. I found one in my mailbox. =)

His name is Robbie and he is a mouse/bear..thingy. He is kinda cute but you can tell he has travelled quite a lot.


(Robbie is the small bear hiding behind the hiking stick of my hiking bear)

If you arent sure what Toy Voyagers, they are stuffed toys that travel from one person to the next and back home once their travels are done. You can take and upload pictures of your adventures with the animal on the site. Also, you could have fun and send little things on with him to the next person.

My first experience with the site is positive...and I think the library should start an account and have a travelling bookworm!

**On a side note I apologize for the short length, but I had a rough day at work. Not to mention an empty mailbox waiting at home.

Hope everyone had a wonderful day!!

Mail Register?

Ok...I have come to the conclusion that I need some way of keeping track of if and when I have sent things out. My box system works pretty well...but there is no way to tell if I actually sent something.

For instance...I work up some cards..I write out responses. Well...unless I am extremely diligent (which I am not always) about moving the responded pieces into their filing boxes...I have no way of really knowing whether I had sent a response or not. Its like my mail all seems to blend.

So to keep myself from going completely insane...I need a better system. I am reaching out to you lot to see if any of your have a system of keeping track of such information. If you do...I would LOVE to hear about it. Heck, I would love to hear if you think you have an idea that can help!

I promise an artsy post soon. I really need to start making more art. =)

Hope everyone had a great monday!

Nice Weather Means HIKING!

SO...the weather this weekend was beautiful!! We didn't get the rain here that we were supposed to get so..I went out hiking. And of course because you are all so nice to follow and read along...I thought I would share a few photos with you. =)

This first waterfall is called Brandywine Falls:







Of course I had to take a picture of this sign as I thought it was truly hilarious!



Then there was this tree on the one trail...it has grown around some rocks. This one will make a nice hole for some animal to take shelter from the spring rains.



Along the same path we had this nice little spot where we could walk right down to the waters edge. It was super beautiful.



Then walking down there I found this fossil, which I ended up carrying the rest of the way back to the car to bring home. (I have a think for fossils)



Then we moved to another path and found Blue Hen Falls:



The wall of the falls are all made up of shale...



And finally how about that SUPER moon last night??



Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this. I hope everyone had a great weekend and gets lots of awesome mail this week!!

Mail Call Friday

Unlike last week, I actually remembered which day was Friday!! Woohoo! And with exception to two postcards I just found..all the mail from last week has been answered. Though I am thinking that the mail from this week will take a bit longer. I got almost 11 things the one day and all of it is sooo much fun!!



As you can see from the first picture..there was a lot of stuff to photograph. If I had done each item individually this post would be SUPER long!!



Look at this card that Aubrey sent me! How cute is this?? I showed it to my one friend and she was insanely jealous (she is really into Irish things). You all should definitely take some time to look at Aubrey's blog.



This week came with a nice mix of mail. Postcards, Letters, Cards and even a few small packages. It was wonderful!



I am not sure if you can tell from this picture, but Edward actually sent me this envelope from the United Nations building in NYC. And he was awesome enough to include a few stamps for me to use in my art. I have no clue what I will use them to make, but I am sure they will come in handy. =)



And last but not least, a beautiful fabric covered envelope from Nicole. I was astounded when I pulled this from the mailbox. I mean how beautiful is this?? Reminds me of a peacocks feathers.

So as you can see this week was filled with very good mail days. If you see something you sent, please know I will respond to it shortly. I am hoping to get a bit done tonight and throughout the weekend, though my plans for tomorrow include HIKING!!! So there may be pictures posted from that tomorrow evening.

**On a side note...if you have sent me mail and I haven't responded...if it has been a few weeks...PLEASE let me know. I try my best to stay on top of the incoming and outgoing, but sometimes I get confused and cannot remember. Also, if you happen to get two things from you...well..you know I messed up and forgot to move things to their proper box.

I hope everyone has a great weekend and as always, thank you for taking the time to read my rambles.

Do You Use Moleskine??

If you don't, then this post is probably gonna bore you to tears! IF, however, you are like me and enjoy writing in this line of notebooks then well...time to celebrate!!

Notebooks like Moleskines have been used for centuries. If fact famous people such as Pablo Picasso, Oscar Wilde, and Vincent Van Gogh all used them. The current Moleskine notebooks are similar to those used by the people listed above, very little has changed.


What makes them so great? Well...to me, I like the paper they use and the craftsmanship. You can tell that they are different than the mass produced off brand notebooks. Sure, they are a little bit more expensive but if you have the money and you enjoy they way they feel under your pen..I say splurg!

On to the new line. Moleskine is releasing a line of "Doodle" notebooks. Seems pretty awesome right?? But I haven't even gotten to the best part yet! These new lines will be readily available in Target stores!! Rejoice my fellow Moleskine enthusiasts! Finally they will be available in a closer store to me! (ok...so hopefully this line being available in Target will be exciting to someone else).

You can read more about this line, or any other products made by Moleskine on their website here.


**On a side note, I use the Moleskine mini notebooks (unlined). I believe they are 3x5 cahiers in black. (I dunno why i was going into such detail...) Anyway, I was wondering if anyone would be willing to decorate the cover of one for me? I have decided that they are pretty boring in just plain colors and while I could decorate my own, I thought it would be cool to send them to someone else to decorate and send back. SO...I have two of them at the moment that could stand to be decorated. I would pay to ship them to you..with the promise that you will ship them back when you are done. (Who knows..there may be other goodies for you too.) If anyone is interested in making my lil pocket notebooks more interesting please let me know in the comments. (in the event that more than two people say they are game..well...I suppose this time around I will take the first two names...though trust me I use these lil guys like its going outta style.)

How About A Free Stamp?

So, I thought this was fitting to post today as I finally filed my taxes! YAY. One less thing to worry about. The other reason I wanted to post it today was because I just found out about it myself.

WebRoot (a personal security company) is offering a free US postage stamp to the first 6000 people who sign up for one. You can sign up here and pick which stamp design you would like. You can only get one (unless you have a spouse or friend then you can use their info/email address/address and get another one. =)

There are three designs:



Though you must act fast as the supplies are limited. And note..it could take 4-6 weeks to get to you.

Cheers!

Hmm...

You ever have one of those days where you find the most perfect thing to write about on your blog...only to get side-tracked and not write it down...and then later you cannot recall what it was? Haha. Well...if so...welcome to my Monday!

And wouldnt you know that as I am writing about how I forgot...I REMEMBERED! Ok...enough caps.

Anyone who is a fan of books of letters or even the Post Secret project may enjoy this new book I had the pleasure of reading. The book is called The George Carlin Letters: The Permanent Courtship of Sally Wade.



Now for anyone who was a fan of George's comedy material, his play on words and puns, you would be shocked to know that he was a hopeless romantic. Trust me, I read this book..which is basically filled to the binding with notes, stories and postcards that he wrote for his wife Sally Wade. She tells the story of how they met and the book blossoms from there. It was an absolutely enjoyable read (and also a quick one).

Here is a picture of what one of the pages looked like:



So, have you read any good books lately?

Oops...Today is Friday

See what having two days off before the weekend does to me?? I was attempting to speed up the week. I do apologize for that. As it were, it worked out nicely that I posted that yesterday as today I just simply do not seem in the mood to write a happy post.

I have been spending a majority of this day watching the news and checking Youtube for first hand accounts of the earthquake/tsunami aftermath in Japan. (Thus the less than happy mood). I highly recommend the videos on youtube, they show just how frightening the whole situation was.

So for today, I do hope that you take time to reflect on those things that are most important to you.

Mail Call Friday

Ok..so we will see exactly how long this lasts but I am toying with the idea of having a "Mail Call Friday". That way each week I can share with you some of the wonderful pieces that have come in that week. I am constantly amazed by all the wonderful things that I get in my mailbox each week and I want to get better at sharing them with you.

So here is a picture of some of the mail that I have gotten this week.



As you can see there was lots of fun stuff waiting in my mailbox this week! I got a few letters, some postcards and a few things I wanted to show you a bit more of.



The envelope on the left was sent by Elle. How awesome is that envelope? I must say I am a total Dr. Seuss nut!! AND we just celebrated his birthday at work. So this envelope had me hooked before I even opened it. Then inside there was a nice note and some idle postage. The envelope on the right side was sent to me by Jill. She sent me some good luck with that wonderful handmade clover. How appropriate as I am Irish. =)

The final piece I wanted to show you a little more of was sent to me by Dave .



Look at all that awesome stuff!! I cannot wait to make some interesting art out of it. I already know that at least one of the stamps is destined to become jewelry. (yup thats right..not only do I sent stamps on letters..i wear them as jewelry too). And on that note, I do believe it is time that I go make some art on this rainy Ohio day. I hope you all have a wonderful evening!

How Long Does it Take To Get There?

I wasn't quite sure of what to post about today until I read this article. Basically the article talks about a letter that was sent in 1943 that just finally made it to its destination. The letter was sent from Camp Roberts by Lt. Mervin Teig to his family back home in Iowa in 1943. The letter just finally made it to his brother last month.

What is even stranger about this story is that letter that was mailed in 1944 just finally made it to...yup..you guessed it Camp Roberts! Now, the letter that was mailed to the Camp was sent to a lady who was working for the Red Cross at the time. But still..how weird?

Now the postal service says that things like this rarely happen. Usually it happens when a letter gets lost behind a shelf (or other furniture) and it is finally found years later when they move them. But either way I still think cases like this are sooo cool. I am still hoping that one day I will get some lost mail from Japan (I never got what was sent to me from a friend).

Anyway, I thought the article was pretty neat so I wanted to share it. I am hoping that maybe tomorrow I can post some pictures of my incoming mail. I am thinking once a week posting my mail might be a good choice. Anyway, I hope everyone had a wonderful day! Cheers!

Latin Music Legends

It's that time again! The USPS will be releasing a new series of stamps next week commemorating the Latin Music Legends. The stamps were designed by artist Rafael Lopez. You can find his website if you click his name. This is actually the third time the USPS has called upon Rafael's artistic vision to make postage stamps.

Here are the stamps:

Tito Puente

Carmen Miranda

Selena

Carlos Gardel

Celia Cruz

Pretty neat huh? I personally love these stamps and look forward to buying some on the 16th. They will make my mail art look a bit more festive.

Ok...I Lied...

This afternoon I am filled with things to blog about aren't I?

Well it just so happens that I found one of my favorite bloggers, Numinosity, is holding a 200th post giveaway! AND..she is giving away extra chances if you blog about it! So..here goes:

This self proclaimed "Rustafarian" does a little bit of everything. From paintings (which are really cool), a bit of collaging (totally awesome) and probably the most interesting to me...she makes her own beads!! Beautiful ones at that. I wish I knew how to do it..sadly I tried once and well..lets just say I leave the bead making to the real artists.

I highly recommend that you visit her blog, not only for the chance to win some really neat stuff, but also because as I said before..she makes some really cool art!!

She has not one...but TWO Etsy stores!! In the first one she sells has some really neat paper ephemera listed. I drool every time I look at it. And the second one she showcases her beads! If you are like me you will be astounded by their beauty.

Oh and she has been a busy bee because aside from the blog, and the two Etsy stores...she has found the time to start her own website which you can find here. Cool huh?

So...you should jog on over to any or all of the sites I listed cause you are bound to see some pretty neat things!

Ok...One Final Thought for Today

Ok...I no more than finished my post about how I file my mail...and there was something waiting to be read in my RSS feeds. I follow all kinds of varied subjects..but this one actually got me to sit and think a bit. That and well...I think it is highly absurd!

The article I read (here) is about how some European countries are initiating a new system of posting your mail. You can simply buy your postage by sending a text message and then you get a message in return with a code. You plop the code on your mail and it is good to go. So basically it works much like the mail system does for US Soldiers. They simply write "free mail" in the upper corner of their envelopes and its good to go.

Denmark and Sweden are the two countries that are mentioned in this article..and all I can think of is..how unhappy the mail will look if they move to using codes. Sure it saves some paper..but how bizarre is this? Seems like it would take more time to be verifying the codes are correct than simply running the post and checking stamps.

Oh well. Sometimes technology can be saddening. Do you have any thoughts on this? If so..I would like to hear them.

How I Keep Track of My Mail

Such a fitting title, no? I bet you all can guess what I am going to talking about in this post. Corrine (check out her blog) commented on my previous post asking how I keep track of my mail. Well, rather than expound on that thought in comment..I decided to create an entire post dedicated to it.

I keep track of my mail in a very simple way. I have boxes that I sort everything into. So..I decided to take a few pictures to show you my filing system. =) Oh and all of these boxes were either given to me by my Aunt, or I found them in the dollar isles at Target a few weeks back.

I do not have an outgoing box...I simply pile up the letters/postcards/art in a neat pile by my door that way I see it on my way out. I do however, have an incoming box. This where I store everything that needs to be responded to. I open it up, read it and then place it in here until I have time to work on the response.



As you can tell from the photo, this box (which was really clean and empty yesterday) is now starting to accumulate again. Here's hoping to stay on top of it!

Once I have responded to my mail it gets sorted among a series of boxes.



This first box is where all penpal letters go once I have written back. As you can see (or maybe not) there are letters here from multiple countries and states. This box gets added to at least once every two or so weeks.



Another box that I add to with some sense of frequency is the one above. This is the box where all the mail I get from correctional facilities goes. Unfortunately, my address has been nipped off a penpal site and added to some sites that are geared towards inmates. While I think its terrible that my address has been added to a list such as that and even though I never respond to the letters, I cannot bring myself to simply toss them aside.



If you could read the little tag on this box, you would see that this is where all of my soldier letters go. The soldiers who write back (two of them at the current moment) send letters pretty infrequently. Matthew sends me emails on a regular basis which is nice of him, and Bonnie is recently engaged!



This sort of ugly yellow box is where all the lovely mail art that people send me go once I have responded to it. I really need to find a good way of displaying these pieces are they all so lovely!



This box here is probably the one that sees the most action of them all. This is where my postcards go. And note, while it seems as though there are a lot there...I have about 100 others that arent in that box (they are in a binder). Looks as though I will need another box soon, no?

The final box I would like to share with you is where my projects go that I am working on. These could be things that have a destination (such as a specific person who has written) OR it could be those things I work on with intent to send when the mood strikes. If you have gotten something from me..it probably spent a little time in this box at one point or another.



And that pretty much sums up how I file things. To finish answering Corrine's question, I do not really keep a register. Though, I have been thinking it might be a good idea. Just this past week I had a bit of an issue. Two different "Terri"s sent me postcards. One is a really cool lady I met at work, and the other is a nice lady who has been a postcard penpal for about 6 months. Luckily I could distinguish the handwriting well enough to tell them apart. This caused me to think that perhaps I should create a registry to help me keep track of what I have sent to whom. So...anyone with any suggestions on this matter PLEASE leave me a comment or email me and let me know how you do it!

One final picture. I have a passion for tattooing. I am owner to a few myself, though you would never know that unless I wanted you to (they are easy to cover up). And because I have this passion, along with the passion to decorate envelopes I decided that it would be awesome to "tattoo" some envelopes. The picture below is a few different envelopes I have tatted. =) Perhaps you'll even see one up close and personal.



Well, folks...I feel as though I have typed FAR too much today. I hope everyone is having a good day! And thanks as always for taking the time to read my rambles.

Oops...missed a post

Ok, so I am beginning to think that postin on the weekends just isnt going to happen. I missed Sunday..so I will post now..and then again later today to make up for it. =)

I caught up on my mail!! Everyone who has sent me something or is expecting it should have something in their mailbox in the next week or so. If only I could remember to take pictures of the outgoing stuff...hmm..oh well. It is in the mailbox, and as much as I like all of you...sadly...I do not like you enough to walk outside in the cold to get the mail to snap a pic. Lets hope I get better at this as time wears on.

Later today I will write (hopefully) an informative post. I also hope to show you some new envelopes I have been working on. So..I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Cheers!

What Would You Like to Know?

Ok, so in the midst of trying to finish up some mail to send out. On this dreary day I have decided to cheat when it comes to posting. I rarely talk about myself in this blog because I would like people to write to me to find out more. However..just this one time I will answer one question from each person who comments. Nothing is truly off limits..but keep in mind I write a family friendly blog. =)

So if there is something you wanna know...ask away, but remember you only get one question unless you send me real mail!

Envelope Book 2

Now for another envelope book. Gather your supplies:
Enough envelopes for however big you want your envelope book.
Cardstock
Gluestick or Bottled Glue or Double Stick Tape
A Bone Folder (helps making the creases neat
A Pen and Pencil
Tape
Scissors
Ruler

Step One: Gather your envelopes and lay one open side up and the other open side down. Lay their bottom edges together as shown in the picture below.



Step two: Take a piece of tape and tape the seams between the envelopes together. You can use decorative tape if you have it...or even decorate it later with ribbon. The possibilities are really endless.



As you can see (or not really...darn invisible tape!) these envelopes are now linked.

Step Three: Repeat step two until you have as many envelope pages are you wish. For my example I used four. I find four is a good number for this design, but you could easily add more.



Step Four: Once you have completed step three you need to cut a rectangular piece of cardstock (or some other material) to act as the cover for your book.



Step Five: You need to tape or glue the cardstock to your envelope pages. To do this flip your envelopes so that the open side is up. Then put the cardstock over the envelopes, but only far enough that they reach the botton of the envelope opening. You will glue it like the picture below.



Step Six: Fold back the cardstock like the picture below.



Step Seven: Now fold the cardstock over the envelopes and trim it so that it acts as a closure to the book. You should have enough of an overlap that you will be able tape or glue it down before you send it.



Your finished product should look something like the one above..and if it doesn't..well then I did not do a very good job showing you how to make it. Haha.

You can find TONS of tutorials online if you just Google "envelope book". I hope that this helps a little and enables you to be creative. Now I am off to find things to put into my books...and then addressing them. Maybe...sending them to...you.

Keep your eyes on the mailbox and may you all have a happy mail day soon!