April to JeanR and Maggie - Postcrossing stamp

 

Once again, these two clash and I do not want to see them too close together so I will be writing a big long blurb to fill in the space between them. JeanR's is one of the series where Jean gets an envelope with each of the round envelopes. I already mentioned how happy we are with the tall skinny Barbie stamps that are coming up. We are also wildly ecstatic about some triangular stamps that are coming. Maybe I won't fill up this space with extra jabbering...and I'll just add the triangular stamps that are coming below.

***

Postcrossing got its own stamp. I was pretty surprised that the USPS honored them. They are deserving - but who, exactly, are *they.*  I do not have time to do the research. All I know is that they have been around for a really long time, in *internet* years. People exchange postcards for the sake of exchanging. Maybe that's why the USPS honored them - because it promotes the buying of stamps. 

The colors are fabulous. I might have to buy some Astrobright envelopes. Or maybe get some neon colored markers. I had some neon highlighters a long time ago and they were fun.

April to Patty, Kate and Renee

 

I'm getting a queasy feeling that I over-did these big scripty names and that people will be disappointed in the postings and the blog is not providing something fun with maybe even a touch of inspiration. Sometimes I'm writing these blog posts to specific people. Other times I have my teacher hat on and am re-spouting the things I say all the time. 

Speaking of re-spouting, someone made a list of the things I spout and assembled them into a little work of art. I am so looking forward to sharing it with all y'all. Maybe I can work this into a cliff hanger. 

Renee is a newer exchanger - so I haven't done that name many times. Kate and I had an actual discussion about the two options on envelopes. A - is when the name itself becomes the focal point. B - is when there is a focal point and the name and address are filled into a face where any name and address would fit.

We pondered if people have a preference. Do people love the ones where their name is the focal point more than where there is some art - and the name is basically a functional portion? If anyone has a feeling or strong preference - it would be fun to hear from you.

April to Juliana and Hadley

There has been a lengthy break in my post writing between yesterday's post and today's. I'm writing this on May2nd which means I am only 6 days ahead which is like having my car stall on the railroad crossing and I can hear a train coming. It's 9 am. I've had coffee. How is this going to go?

First I'll discuss these envelopes. They're part of that series where I did edge-to-edge and used up those pretty stamps. As I recall, Hadley's was done first and Juliana's was towards the end. I have a fondness for the looser one. I can see ways to improve Hadley's lettering but I like the balance of colors. 

***

The USPS saved the day in terms of me having something to write about - they just announced that there will be 10 Barbie stamps issued this summer. The tall skinny shape is going to be so much fun. And I think there is another new stamp to talk about tomorrow.

 

April to Sharen, Nanski and Jacqueline

This stamp has a very fun color combo. On my chart, it looked like these three people had not received a coast-to-coast script. I hope I don't de-volve into an endless stream of casual script since they are so much fun to do.

Amy sent photos of the envelope I sent to her and while I thought I had adequate stuffing - the machines chewed on it and wrinkled it.

Here are a couple envelopes by Mary that I found in my download folder. 

For me, virtual folders are much more difficult to organize. I think it's because I have trouble naming the folders - plus there are so many different ways to categorize things.

This one is similar to one Mary did a while back and I spent a fair amount of time trying my version. 

I'm tempted to try again.

Here's another one that is tempting to try. I'd make the shape of the border for the name and address a little wider although it would not be as cute if it was a rectangle. Maybe I can find a name that would fit into a square. I'd love it if Amy Fox moved to a shorter named street or better yet, a PO Box would be ideal.

Yup.

I had to research the cost of a PO Box - there are many different options.

This is just a rough idea.

If you’re paying month-to-month, expect to spend around $5–$10 per month for a small box in a low-demand area. Medium boxes in the same location usually fall between $10–$15. In major cities like New York or San Francisco, small boxes often start at $20–$30 per month, while medium or large ones can reach $70 or more, depending on demand.

 

April to Mary, Jessica and Kerry

Here are three that are OK. I liked the ideas - but they were one-timers. I wonder how long the USPS is going to use the love bird cancel? I wonder if they ever post cancels. I like a good cancel but not enough to do a deep dive in how often the come up with new ones - who designs them - etc. Or maybe I am curious. This post is popping up on the 7th and I get home from Chicago on the 5th - so maybe I don't need to be pushing myself to fill up posts.  

OK - I was curious enough to go look - and it's a whole *thing* so I guess you'll have to put up with me talking about it. In answer to the question, who designs the cancels - there are some that are just functional or mechanical - the wavy lines. Then - there are these:

• Art Directors and Stamp Designers: For specialized cancellations like First-Day-of-Issue, the design is often handled by the same professional art directors and artists who created the corresponding stamp.

 

April to Irene and Liz

These were fun to do. I penciled the spaces because I am old and (somewhat) wise and have messed up my spacing on these coast-to-coast names many, many times. I think Irene's was prettier in person and didn't photograph very well. Mostly - it's hurting my eyeballs to see these two together because the colors clash. But - neither of them are strong enough to get their own post. 

I suppose I could fill up this space between the two of them so that they never fit on the screen together. I like that idea a lot except for the part where I am just filling up space by talking about doing that. It's like when the people in a movie *break the 4th wall* - OK - you know I'm going to be curious about when the term *breaking the 4th wall* was invented.  <pause>

The concept goes back to the Greek theater even though they didn't use the term. Shakespeare used the concept. There were some early silent movies where characters turned and faced the camera and then.... drum roll... we should all be delighted to know that Bugs Bunny gets credit for being the first (or one of the first) to  turn and talk directly to the camera. I guess the animators get the credit - or the people who wrote the scripts.

I was not liking the idea that I would fill up the space between the two envelopes with drivel and while this is not important info - it's a fun bit of trivia. 

 

April to Nicky and Janet

 

Here are two more variations of Christi's versals. I used a big chunky paint pen on Nicky's and resisted the temptation to outline the whole thing. I'm not wild about it - but I think it looked better in person.

I think Janet's was better. I outlined with a gel pen and then filled in with patterns using paint pens. I liked how the style went with the quilt stamps. I love-love-love the quilt stamps - but I think the JANET should have been larger. I had to make the strokes slowly or the gel pen would skip - so that limited the size. 

***

I'm not sure what this person has in mind.

At the top of her IG account she has this:

Artist and illustrator, sharing daily art and experiments in art #calicobrush
Do not copy!

Then she has pages and pages and pages of fun watercolor illustrations that include step-by-step instructions. Not all of them - but a lot of them. If she doesn't want people to *copy* why is she providing instructions. 

Maybe she doesn't want the images copied?

I'll just type out the name and if you are interested in simple watercolor illustration - you can check it out.

instagram(dot)com(forward slash)calico(dot)brush(forward slash)

Four wild ones (inspired by Christi)

 

These are all inspired by Christi's versals. I could work harder to make my versals more like Christi's but her style is so personal that it would feel more like forgery to try to write exactly like her. So, I did what I always do - I went looser. I also used more color. Amy's was the first and it's tighter - which might be a good thing or maybe the looser ones are better? I think it might be a sheep/goat situation.

***

A couple days ago when I was writing about the minimalist lifestyle that Juliana should not be thinking about - I wondered - when did the word lifestyle become *a thing.*

I also want to know when did saying *a thing* become a thing? But, I don't feel like researching that. I did ask TheSoCalledKeeperOfInformation to tell us when lifestyle became a word and it was first used in a journal titled Mind in 1915. Then in 1929 Alfred Adler used it:

Alfred Adler coined "lifestyle" (originally from the German Lebensstil) to describe a person's unique way of striving toward goals and coping with their environment. In this context, a lifestyle was considered "fixed" by age six and included a person's self-concept and world view.

But - that's not how we currently use it -- in the 50s and 60s it turned into a term used in marketing - which was the slippery slope that we've been dealing with our whole lives - if we are a boomer. 

More lost and found

These are all fun - and were having a good time hiding from the other stack that is organized.

Mike Moore shoots beautiful photos - makes then into cards and then sends them in envelopes with dreamy Spencerian penmanship. The vintage stamp was on the envelope which was inserted in the clear envelope. 

Finnbadger sent this for New Years.

This is from Irene - and should have been posted with her envelope - but it's being rerouted to my stash of illuminated letters.

Troy's been saving these special vintage stamps just for me - I get verklempt when I see them because once upon a time I had all of them. 

And this one from Grace cracked me up. I think she might have signed up in December and then didn't get her envelopes done until Feb - which is fine -- and there was a note inside referencing bananas and the circus stamp --- as in going bananas and the way we sometimes call chaos - a circus. 

 

March from Juliana - minimalism

I enjoy Juliana's notes. They are usually topics that I can relate to. The design reminds me of one that I remember seeing where the name was on the left of the vertical line and the address was on the right. It was so simple and I don't know if I ever used the design. This one is inviting me to steal it.

***

Juliana is way too young to be seeking a minimalist lifestyle - so this is not for you Juliana. It might not be for anyone...but it caught my eye and I have to fill my posts. So here it is - a link to all kinds of articles that are offering tips on a minimizing.

https://nosidebar.com/popular-posts/

I am not promoting this website - they have some course you can sign up for - and they also are asking people to submit articles for free which is absurd. They think that by promoting your work that's a fair trade. While that seems absurd to me, perhaps I am just exposing myself as a fossil.

No surprise that this is one of their images....

 

May 1 --- March from Judi

A couple weeks ago I posted an envelope from Judi with a suggestion on the rays she had drawn that were inspired by the Keith Herring stamp. I had asked her if it was OK to post suggestions and she was fine with it. She also left a thank you comment. So, I'll assume she's OK with a suggestion on this card. I love the sentiment and if there was any way to get more of those stamps - I'd be using it. Maybe I can figure out a way to pair the sentiment with other stamps.

In the list of principles that we can use when designing things, one of them is contrast. I think the design would benefit from more contrast in point size between the block lettering and the script. I like the amount of space that the lettering takes up - leaving lots of space - so I wouldn't change that. I'd just make the block letters smaller to fit their spaces better. I'd secretly widen the script *good* as well as the *co* to give those two spaces.

Judi gets an A+ on the word spacing. I'm so glad there is no space between *good* and *coffee*

***

Time to sign up for the May exchange.

Today through May 4th is the window to sign-up. Lists are sent on the 5th.

If you participated in the APRIL exchange - just shoot me an email that says: SIGN ME UP - you do not need to retype your address and info.

Send your sign-up to:    PTEnvelopes-at-aol-dot-com

Let me know if it is your [Birthday] month or if you are willing to be on [2 Lists].

If you were not on a April list - or if you only sign up occasionally - or are a new exchanger - please send your information in the following format:

Jane Doe

123 Oak Street

Ames, IA 50010

janedoe@aol.com

[Birthday]  [2 Lists]  -- if those items apply

If you are new to the exchange - there are helpful details at this link:

https://pushingtheenvelopes.blogspot.com/p/rules-of-exchangement.html

 

March from Kerry. - hedgehogs

 I loaded these photos more than a week ago and started talking about hedgehogs and now I can't figure out what the connection was. Maybe there was a hedgehog in the envelope? I just found this partially written blog post and am finishing it - starting here.

I included Kerry's business card in case anyone wants to look at her work or hire her to design something. I have not had a chance to interview Kerry. If she sticks with the exchange maybe she'll offer some additional information. There are several new exchangers who seem much younger than a lot of us old timers - so if you are young and trying to grow your online presence, I'm happy to put your names out there for those 10,000 people who view the blog each day. That's just crazy. I don't understand how that is happening. Maybe Google is just messing with me..... 

***

Hedgehogs in the news.

This caught my eye:

Mayors in Germany are calling for a nighttime ban on robotic lawnmowers in order to protect small nocturnal animals, especially hedgehogs, which tend to curl up and stay put when scared. But when we use that reasoning to try to stay in on a Saturday, suddenly all our friends want to mow us down.

Hedgehogs are so darn cute. I already have two hedgehog stories on the blog. One of them is recent, the other is from 2019. It's weird (for me) to go back and read old blog posts. It's like reading someone's journal and the writing needs to be edited and polished. 

LINK to two old posts talking about hedgehogs

March from Liz - Office of Collecting

I keep looking at this one from Liz and trying to figure out if I can do a version. I think she made the shapes and then outlined them. Since I am heading out to Chicago for a couple weeks, I won't have time to try this before I leave so I was thinking of a way to remember to try it. I see that I have already made a tag or label that is supposed to bring me back to things I want to try. Maybe I'll remember to do that.

***

Add on for the day - you're on your own if this looks interesting. So many things to see. 

https://www.officeofcollecting.com/about

Their IG might be a better place to get a feel for what they are doing - collecting itty-bitty things and then doing flatlay photographs of the items. 

https://www.instagram.com/p/DRDPO4pkqD7/?img_index=4

This is done by one of their fans - just to give you an idea. My favorites were often ones that were shown in videos - not still shots. I do not collect anything but I do have an assortment of unrelated itty-bitty things. Maybe I should take a photograph of all of them and then pass them along to someone who likes itty bitty things.

 

March from Maggie - Mailman book

 

Apologies for my redundant comments that I want to get out my paints and do some flowers. This particular color combination is calling to me. Instead, I am trying to fill up a dozen posts because someone has reset the Time Machine and making time go faster. Why did Google just capitalize the word -time- and the word -machine-. That is very suspicious. Or perhaps I am exposing myself as clueless and or ignorant. 

At least Clover provided us with a fantastic new book to read. Thank you, Clover. I like that border and it's giving me an idea for how to do a better stamp border than the way I usually do them.

Here's the blurb that goes with the book.

1966, Chicago. Backlogged with millions of undelivered letters, the post office announces a temporary closure. But eighty-one-year-old Henry Walton can’t stand idly by when there’s mail waiting to be delivered. He believes letters are what keep people connected, and he’s not about to let them get lost in the chaos. 

Plus, connection keeps the mind sharp—according to a note someone’s pinned up in his kitchen.

While the post office scrambles to get things under control, Henry races against time and forgetfulness. Taking it upon himself to deliver the mail, he discovers hatred and tragedy, triumph and joy in the letters he carries and the people he meets along the way.

Inspired by true events, this delightful story will linger with readers long after they turn the last page—and might just inspire someone to write a letter, the old-fashioned way.

March from Mary

Mary enclosed a note mentioning how welcome spring is and how she wishes she had more coffee stamps. Me, too. I need to visit the stamp guy and see if he has any. This is a steal worthy idea....the stack of stuff up the middle. Is this the month where I use each envelope as inspiration for the following month's envelope?

 ***

Remember Dorothy Parker's line: What fresh new hell is this? 

I think she said it when the phone rang. 

My fresh new hell was getting a paper cut on the finger that I use on the little button that allows me to bypass all the times I need a password to do whatever I need to do on my computer.

I've overstated the situation.

It was just a fresh new annoyance. 

I fact checked myself to make sure the quote actually came from Dorothy Parker. Not that we can know anything for sure any more. However, I learned so much about Dorothy Parker.

March from Patty - nonsensical

 

I love-love-love Patty's horse. I also love that the Fire Horse suggests I should just go ahead with my wildest dream - and just do that. It says - Let's do that. Maybe I can only do the wild dream if I am with the horse. There might be more to the story. I'll wait to hear from you Patty. We have another project for the museum in my back yard. It's a good one. 100% creative - no tedious flower folding. Let me know when you want to get started. You, too, Janet. ***update - the project has turned into something that will be *unveiled* in July - so I don't know if we need to keep it top secret. I've probably already alerted Patty and Janet to the need for brainstorming.

***

I'm working hard on not talking about health and medical issues - but this line was just too much fun to ignore.

This dictation was electronically transcribed via Dragon

Medical. We endeavor to check on the accuracy of the transcription but at times nonsensical statements inadvertently make it through the proofreading process.

I'm guessing everyone has learned how to use patient portals and adapted to the electron-ification of all our doctor appointment. I figured out how to do this and actually read through everything and found the line that *there might be nonsensical statements* that slip through the proofreading. 

I had to make up that word - electron-ification. Maybe there is a better word for all this new fangled stuff. I still think that there are aliens from other planets that are behind all this so-called progress. And I know they are keeping an eye on me because of that theory...  but they're going to leave me alone for a while because they want to see how good I am at figuring everything out. 

P.S. It is unsettling to see those notes following the appointment - and will make any further appointments rather strange because I'll be thinking more about how what I say will be recorded.

March from Renee - Nina's signature

This is from Renee and there is a sweet little item inside with suggestions for May - but April is so close - especially now that the weather is bonkers. It says *By Julia Dreams* in the middle. Maybe we should Google that.... 

***

This is from the folder of random stuff.

Nina Garcia is the editor-in-chief of Marie Claire magazine and if you've ever watched Project Runway, she was frequently a judge. This is one fine signature. That dot on the i in Garcia is spectacular. It would be fun to see how it evolved since I doubt that was how she was signing her name when she first learned cursive.