saturday morning vintage

mail call.

    
Lots of good mail going out and coming in lately.  The common theme among them all - a really, really good mix of stamps!

I always keep a collection of new and vintage stamps nearby to mix and match.  Mixing the stamps works especially well when I'm sending a letter with some pictures or other goodies that requires a little extra postage beyond a single stamp.  Plus it's one of the easiest ways to fancy up your mail.

I stocked up on stamps earlier this week, including  a book of the newly released Songbird stamps.  These are some of my favorite stamps to be released lately and perfect for spring time mail.

Not only have I been sending out pretty stamps, I've been lucky enough to find plenty in my own mailbox.  Thanks so much, Kimberly and Anne!  Sending some mail back your way soon! 

letter writing favorites for February.

February is often associated with hearts and chocolates and love.  However, it's also a month celebrating mail and the handwritten letter.  First, I know I am not the only one anxiously looking forward to the Ex Postal Facto mail art event in San Francisco starting Friday, February 14th and going through the weekend.  Plus, it's a Month of Letters - a challenge that encourages you to send one letter each day during the month of February.  Add in that it's also International Correspondence Writing Month and it's easy to be inspired to set aside a little time to send some letters of your own over the next few weeks.

 

[Vintage Pen Pal Kit]

If you're like me, you might have an overflowing stash of stationery, but there also seems to be space for just one more card or a couple extra stamps, right?  I figured there couldn't be a better time than the start of a Month of Letters to share some of my favorite mail supplies right now.

Favorite card goes to this sweet donut card from Paper Source.  Fun and colorful, it's the perfect design to simply say hello to a friend.  

 

Patton Prints wins for favorite personalized card with their long distance love design.  Simply let them know where you and your love reside and the red hearts will be put in the right spots.  Pretty enough for the recipient to keep as an art print after reading your message.

 

I haven't loved some of the newest USPS stamp releases, but am looking forward to getting my hands on these brand new fern stamps - my choice for favorite postage stamps.  These stamps are nice on their own, but I think they'll be even prettier mixed in with some vintage stamps. 

 

These bird stamps might have won favorite postage stamps, but they haven't been released yet so I'll give them favorite future postage stamps.  These will surely adorn some upcoming spring mail of mine.

 

These designs (Vintage Email, Better Than An Email) from Wit & Whistle share the award for favorite rubber stamp to decorate outgoing mail.  Like all of Amanda's work, the designs are clean and simple with a good dose of cleverness.

 

Favorite tool has to go to this super creative Cat Template from Margaret of Paper Pastries.  Simply trace, cut and fold to create a notecard that can be also be sealed with some washi tape and used as an envelope.  Have more to say?  It is designed to hold a 4 bar card perfectly inside.  So smart, right?

Have any letter writing favorites of your own?  I'd love to hear about them and check them out!  Share what you're currently loving in the comments.

UN Postage Stamps.

 

 

I recently found these vintage postage stamps, but noticed each was printed with "United Nations".  I wasn't sure if these were regular postage stamps so I did a little digging. 

Turns out the United Nations issues their own postage stamps.  Did you guys know this?!  The United Nations Postal Administration is the only organization in the world that isn't a country / territory that can issue postage stamps.  The very first UN stamps in dollar denominations were issued in 1951.

There is one catch though, and it's a pretty big one.  United Nations issued postage stamps cannot be used outside of UN offices.  That means if you want to use these postage stamps to send mail, the mail must be sent from UN offices in either New York City, Geneva, or Vienna.  Because of this constraint, UN postage stamps are more of a collector's item.

 

    

 

You might be lucky and find some vintage UN postage stamps at a local flea market or antique store, and you can buy current UN postage stamps either in person at a UN headquarters or online.  It's even fun to just browse the catalog - so many different designs.  

 

 

If you're able to visit the UN headquarters in New York you're in for a treat.  You can have your photo taken and printed on personalized postage stamps.  These are valid postage, but again have to be mailed directly from a UN headquarters.  You can read about one visitor's experience here.

Pretty awesome, right?  Did you know about UN postage already?  Has anyone been to the stamp shop at the UN in New York?  It will definitely be on my itinerary the next time I visit New York.

new stamps.

I'm one of those people who gets excited when the post office releases new stamps.  They've been a few good ones lately.

 
[Lady Bird Johnson]

I've loved these vintage stamp designs from the 1960's for awhile now so was thrilled to see them rereleased along with a commemorative Lady Bird Johnson stamp.

 

[Beautification Bundle]

This bundle includes the Lady Bird Johnson stamps, along with a sheet of Japanese cherry blossom stamps and bonsai stamps released earlier.  Very impressive, post office.  All of these coordinate perfectly together and would look awesome clustered in the corner of an envelope.

 

[Made in America]

Black and white stamps are a favorite of mine because you can mix and match them with so many other stamps, both new and old.  This set of black and white vintage images will be a part of my next USPS purchase.

 

[Inverted Jenny]

Another vintage stamp design reissued by the post office.  These stamps feature the infamous upside down misprint from a 1918 stamp.  Each stamp is worth $2 in postage so perfect for a small package.

 

[Arlington Green Bridge]

First pumpkin spice lattes, and now a postage stamp with red / orange / yellow leaves.  Feels like autumn to me!  If you have any heavier packages or those that need to be mailed via Priority Mail, be sure to grab this one.

 

And a few other stamps that aren't new, but remain favorites of mine.

[Sealed with Love]

 

[Johnny Cash]

 

[Vintage Seed Packets]

state stationery.

 

I've being seeing a lot of state inspired stationery popping up lately, and I love it.  If you've got state pride, check out these notebooks, stamps, and notecards. 

 

[blackbirdletterpress]

 

 

[blackbirdletterpress]

 

[PattonPrints]

[PaperPasteries]

 

 

[SincerelyYoursPaper]

 

 

[KisforCalligraphy]

 

[michellesmith]

 

 

[MegCorrell]

 

Pick up your home state, or maybe even the state you plan on visiting soon.  The notebooks would make good travel journals, or you could use the notecards to write a thank you to friends or family who hosted you while you were in their state.

washi tape of the month club.

 

 

My husband is terribly difficult to buy for.  A few years ago I came up with what I thought was the perfect Christmas gift - a beer of the month club!  Unfortunately I got less and less excited about the idea the more I researched it.  Beer is heavy and glass bottles are fragile so it's understandably expensive to ship.  Plus my husband prefers local beer and I couldn't find a local club.  That's when I decided to "DIY" a beer of the month club!  I wrapped up a bottle of local San Diego craft beer and attached a tag that said there would be a new bottle waiting for him in the fridge on the first of each month.  It was a hit!  He loved that the gift lasted all year long and he was able to sample new beers he might not have picked out for himself.

Last year when my husband asked me to put together a Christmas list I remembered how much he enjoyed his beer of the month club so I asked for my own "something" of the month club!  I wasn't sure what I wanted to get each month, just that I wanted to get a little surprise to start off each month.  I was thrilled when I unwrapped a few rolls of washi tape with a note telling me I was now an official member of the washi tape of the month club!

 

 

 

On the first day of each month I find a couple rolls of washi tape waiting for me on my nightstand.  It's the best.

If you find yourself stuck trying to figure out the perfect birthday or Christmas gift, consider putting together your own monthly gift club.  The options are nearly endless - chocolate, nail polish, wine, notebooks, stamps, flowers, socks...

Scared you might forget to buy the recipient their monthly gift, or think you just don't have the time to buy the gift each month?  As long as the gift isn't edible, simply stock up all at once.  I'm not supposed to know, but my husband doesn't spend a lot of time in scrapbook stores so he bought all of the washi tape at once from Etsy and keeps the stash in his office closet!  All he has to do is dig in there once a month to pull out a few rolls.