Are you looking for a penpal?

Well, hopefully this list of websites will help you on the journey to friendship through snail mail:

Shelley
http://shelley.nl/

InterPals
http://www.interpals.net/
You can create a profile, searchable by other members. There's also a forum and chat room.

Penpal Heaven
http://penpalheaven.weebly.com/

Penpals Now!
http://penpalsnow.com/

I'd be happy to add other sites to the list - especially those run by you - so let me know!

Where to Get Supplies

Ok, I get asked all the time about stationary and the like, so here's a small list of some places I'm fond of ordering or buying from (keep in mind I'm in Canada):

My number one:

http://www.janetstore.url.tw/

She's a sweetie and will respond to you within like seconds of emailing her a question. And her prices just plain rock.

http://www.lettersets.com/

Very cute stuff, cheap shipping as well.

http://www.orientaltrading.com/

Great for rolls of stickers and some stationery - also a great place for cheap tuck-ins. Frequent sales.

http://www.tfaw.com/

If you're a geek - then this is the place to get stationary. I've bought Alice in Wonderland, Lenore, Vampire and loads of other stationary (paper and envelope sets) from them. At about $5 a pop, it's not too bad if you're an addict like me. hehe

http://www.moo.com/

Good for cards - fairly good prices. Comparative to vistaprint.

http://www.mg-usa.com/index.asp

Morning Glory (known especially for Blue Bear). This is the stuff you would pick up if you go stationary shopping in Chinatown (anywhere in north america).

http://rainbowcatz.com

I haven't ordered from them before, but I've been told only good things about them. Let me know about your experiences with them if you've ordered from them before.

http://www.artbox.co.uk

Should also be mentioned - but I haven't ordered from them, either.

Search around Etsy.com for stationery, you'll usually find some really nice stuff. (I have my own etsy stationery store)

Physical Stores:
(I'm in Ontario Canada, so a lot of these may be province or country specific)

Dollarama
Buck or Two
Everything For a Dollar Store (EFADS)
Party Packagers
stores in chinatown
Sandylion Sticker factory (if you're in Ontario)

Check stores that are going out of business for good deals on random things. You would be surprised at what you can use as a tuck-in.

Tigers and African Violets

For those of you with questions about the templates for making envelopes, here's a picture of two of my smaller ones. I have literally disected envelopes to get the shapes and styles I wanted, as you can see here:


And here:


I used the first template to make the following envelope from a Wildlife Arts Magazine, circa 1990. I bought a stack of them at a garage sale last year and I'm finally putting them to good (and beautiful!) use. I'm thinking of putting some of them up on etsy - they came out much better than I expected.


I went to the post office today to drop off a letter to a new penpal (Sarah). I didn't get to go to my favourite post office and see Mary (the best and funniest 70 year old postal clerk you will ever meet) as I was in a bit of a hurry today. The envelope is made from a piece of scrapbooking paper with a pirates treasure-map theme.

My label (featuring the music-skull) is from vistaprint.ca Vistaprint has changed a lot over the years, sadly. You used to be able to get gaggles of free stuff from them, including address labels, but nowadays it doesn't seem like the deals are quite as good. But worth a try, I'd still say. I've ordered postcards, labels, Air Mail stamps, letterhead, cards and envelopes, notepads and magnets and I've been really happy with the outcome of all of them.



While at the post office, I grabbed a couple more stamps. The Mac's nearby is so completely out of it when it comes to stamp collecting, but I managed to get a couple goodies. First up is The Year of the Tiger row of stamps...

http://www.canadapost.ca/cpo/mc/personal/collecting/stamps/2010/2010_Year_of_the_Tiger.jsf

Lovely colours and embossed - great for any collector or just a snail mailer who likes things from other countries. I'm thinking about putting these up as a prize in some sort of contest. Does anyone have any ideas for a contest?



And then this lovely beauty is called a "souvenir sheet" and it features African violets. Also up as a prize for a possible contest.


And this lovely envelope (not up to win, unfortunately) is called a First Day Cover and features the African Violet yet again. I really like the colours in this one (I love pink).

If anyone wants to swap stamps or first day covers or souvenir sheets, shoot me an e-mail and i will ask Mary the Postal Clerk to put aside extra's for me in the future.

Stationary For the Masses II

I meant to post these last night for you guys, but I was exhausted - forgive me? Each .jpg is 8.5 x 11 and ready to be printed off. You can also open them up in photoshop or a similar program and then, using a text tool, type in your letters that way. And then you can send them off to those of you who also have e-pals. Have fun!

Envelopes: A How To

I've been making my own envelopes for a couple of years now and find that it makes mail both more fun to send and receive.


I've seen many a how-to on making ones own envelopes (you can find several on Instrucatbles.com), but none that seemed quite as easy and neat as what I do.

What you need:
A glue stick
Scrap paper (ie. calendar, scrapbook paper, magazine pages, etc.)
Scissors
White paper or labels
Cardstock of some sort
An envelope of a shape you like.

1. Using a letter opener or knife, carefully open all sides of the envelope you would like to use. Lay it out flat and glue the edges with the glue stick. Turn it over and place it firmly onto the cardstock. Using your scissors, cut neatly around the edges of the envelope, which will leave you with an envelope, open, on cardstock. This is your envelope template. Make as many different sizes and shapes as your mind can conceive of.

2. Using your template, trace around it on the backside of whichever paper you will be using. Then fold it on the same folds that the original envelope used. Glue the bottom arch with your glue stick and fasten the bottom fold to it. Then fold over the top half, scoring it. As a finishing touch, add a large white label to the front for writing your recipients address. And you're done!

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I was feeling a little crafty today, so I cut up some old 2009 calendars and made some Mr. Men and Butterfly envelopes:

Stationary For the Masses

For my first post, I'm going to upload some stationery I made in photoshop using some brushes I found on the net. I haven't tested them out yet, so let me know if they work or not. Also, if you would like me to try and make you some additionally, send me an e-mail and I would be happy to do so, as long as time and request allows.













They are each 8.5 x 11 inches. Just a test really. If they make even just one person happy, then I've done my job right.

Happy Thoughts!