I heard somewhere that to get a letter, you have to send a letter. That's so true! I've been decorating envelopes to get warmed up for some serious letter writing sessions. Do you write letters?
I started writing letters in elementary school to a friend that I made in summer camp. We are still friends to this day! When I was in junior high school, we moved overseas. Letter writing was the perfect way to keep up with all my friends. It was fun! Social media didn't exist way-back-when, ha ha ha! And international phone calls were way too expensive.
Today, I have 15+ pen pals. Honestly, I struggle to keep up. I used to create my own stationery & envelopes - - - one-at-a-time. I would make stationery for 1 person, then write their letter. However, this time I made ALL the stationery FIRST. It really saved time! I only had to take out my craft supplies once, and clean everything up once. And believe me, I make a mess!
The envelopes above are easy to make. Each message on the envelope is actually a Project Life 3" x 4" card that I cut up. Here are the basic steps I took to make all 3 envelopes:
- Tape doily onto 6" x 9" envelope
- Take Project Life journal card, cut out message & tape on top of doily
- Rubberstamp image onto envelope
- Add postage in right corner
- Add other decorative elements such as washi tape if desired (as in photo 2)
You can do it, too! What takes time is taping down each decorative element, so that it doesn't get damaged/ripped in transit. I used a combination of tape and a glue stick (that dries clear). A post man explained to me that each letter gets handled multiple times before it reaches its destination. So it's important to glue everything down!
When I take these envelopes to the post office, I will request hand-canceling.* When you request hand-cancelling, the mail won't be run through a machine (where embellishments could rip off). It costs extra for this service, but it's not that much. I'm sorry, I can't recall the fee at the moment...
I'll be back tomorrow to share more mail art! C'mon back!
Thank you for stopping by.
God Bless!
Love,
Tiffany
P.S.
*CANCELING MAIL -vs- HAND-CANCELLING MAIL: stamps are "cancelled" so that postage stamps cannot be re-used. Basically, mail is run through a machine that makes a mark on the stamp(s) indicating that it has been used. When mail is hand-cancelled, the postal worker marks the stamps by hand. Delicate or decorative mail will be protected. It's a great option if you have fancy wedding invitations with wax seals, or other mail that you want to arrive at its destination intact.
Products/Photo 1: Pen - The Day Designer & Blue Sky, Doily - Michaels/Recollections Brand, Project Life Cards (2015/96 pieces), Ink - StazOn / Gothic Purple, Rubberstamp -Stampers Anonymous / Tim Holtz / Papillon, Postage - Vintage Seed Packets (2013/USPS)
Products/Photo 2: Pen - The Day Designer & Blue Sky, Doily - Michaels/Recollections Brand, Washi Tape - Michaels, Project Life Cards (2015/96 pieces), Ink - StazOn / Cactus, Rubberstamp - Hampton Art/ Danelle Johnson / Art Warehouse, Postage - Vintage Seed Packets (2013/USPS)
Products/Photo 3: Pen - The Day Designer & Blue Sky, Doily - Michaels/Recollections Brand, Project Life Cards (2015/96 pieces), Ink - StazOn / Midnight Blue, Rubberstamp - Hampton Art / Danelle Johnson / Art Warehouse, Postage - Love Skywriting (2017/USPS)
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