Dec from Juliana and Phillip

This is exactly the kind of card I would choose for myself. Juliana and I must be kindred spirits - at least we are when it comes to mail.

I keep forgetting to ask Juliana if she has taken calligraphy classes, gone to workshops or conferences - or takes online classes. If she is self-taught, I'm impressed.

Below is the card from Phillip - and I love it so much. Phillip goes waaaay back with the exchange and it is well established that on the sense-of-humor scale - we click.

I didn't post the envelope since it was not an exchange envelope - but, he did sign up for the January exchange so I am looking forward to seeing what he sent. Anyone with a lot of time to kill could do a search for [Phillip] or [Finnbadger] and find all kinds of good stuff.

 

Dec from Nicky - memory bears

Nicky is a printmaker and enclosed some nice little prints and added a bear to the front. That jogged my memory that I have something to say about memory bears

 

If you look online for memory bears, especially on Etsy, you will find both patterns to make them as well as people who will make them for you. There are 2 main kinds. One kind uses outgrown baby clothes to make the bears. Many people have a hard time parting with baby clothes. So, they think cutting up the clothes and making a bear is a better option. It frees up space in closets. Personally, I think we should create something like the Tooth Fairy - that comes to your house and takes things that are precious-yet-useless to avoid having to deal with too much stuff at a later date.

The other kind of memory bear is when a grown up loved one passes and leaves behind clothing. Some people make pillows out of the clothing and some make teddy bears. A friend of mine was tasked with making 5 bears for a woman who lives in NYC. She had purchased all the materials and a very nice set of plexiglas templates for the parts but then she couldn't find anyone to do the sewing.

My friend did not call me up and ask me to help her - but she was one of the people who put in many hours on my Day of the Dead project - so when she just mentioned that she was having an epic battle with some teddy bears, I offered to help.

It's a long story --- and I won't bother with details - I'll just warn anyone who knows how to sew that if anyone approaches you to make memory bears - they are way more complicated than one would imagine. Obviously, if you want to take time to make 4 or 5 practice bears - you'll get the hang of it. But that first bear is going to be a real mutant *bear.*

It does not help when the person who wants the bear provides fabric that clashes. But, I'm sure she's perfectly happy with the outcome - as she chose which fabrics went where - and the fabrics were meaningful to her.

I get a little PTSD just looking at the photo of the bears. If they look lumpy - it's because the lady sent knit shirts - and the pattern was for woven fabric. I told my friend to use iron-on stabilizer for the knits and she did not heed my advice. Later, she agreed that she should have taken my advice.

EXTRA INFO for exchangers - Scroll down for today's regular post

There are two new posts today. This one is just for exchangers. The new envelope for today is below.

These topics have been covered in recent posts, but, they bear repeating, because I have no way of knowing who reads the blog.

1. MISSING MAIL

PLEASE take a photo of your envelopes before you mail them because there has been an increase in missing mail.

For the past 10+ years, most of the mail has been delivered without problems.

I can only recall one person who signed up and never sent anything. 

There were only a few new people each year.

Quite a few new people only signed up once and I never knew why they didn’t sign up again, but, it didn’t matter, because I had such a steady group. We’d lose a veteran from time to time - but we had new people filling the slots and we always ended up with 20 to 25 people each month.

Then in 2025 there was a confluence of more new people and more missing mail.

Were those two things related? 

When I did not get envelopes from all four new people in December, it was not looking good for the newcomers. Eventually, I found out that even MY envelopes had gone missing. So, with that - we know it’s the USPS. All four new people had sent their mail.

2. CHEWED UP MAIL

There has been more mail arriving that has been chewed up by the USPS processing machines. I know that they are installing new machines and I suspect that the the new machines are more aggressive than the tired, old machines that have been chugging along for decades.

The exchange *rules* have always stated that people could send an *empty* envelope. The new rule is that you must put *something* in the envelope to give it enough heft to withstand its trip through the machines. The *something* that you use for filler may be blank paper or recycled paper.

We will still write *empty* on the back of envelopes to indicate that the contents of the envelope is just filler and it’s fine to leave the envelope unopened if you like that look.

3. COLLAGE/WASHI TAPE/STICKERS

Anything other than a stamp is an opportunity for something to fall off and that can cause problems for the machines. My son who spent a couple years crawling inside those machines which were longer than his house - to maintain the moving parts and also vacuum out all the debris - confirmed that embellishments were not a good idea. Also, magnets can cause all sorts of problems - so don’t send magnets in your envelopes. Of course, the live birds that people mail can be a problem. There was that time a pheasant escaped from a box - but I digress. Yes, the USPS ships live animals.

We will keep chugging along - and hopefully - 2026 will be a fun year for all of us.

Thank you for reading this.

FEB exchange sign-up - Dec from Maggie

Here's the Dec mailing from Maggie - the third person in the Connecticut Consortium.

Maggie, Lynne and Irene are all masters of the pointed pen and they all live in CT - so I gave them a name. I should put the three of them on one list - and then add two more *pointy-pen-people.* Grace and JeanR are good candidates. Am I forgetting anyone? If I am - let me know - and ask to be on the pointy-pen list when you sign up. This is probably a slippery slope - to take requests for the lists. But, I'm a lot like PeeWee Herman - I'm a rebel. (That's a line from PeeWee's Big Adventure)

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

If you participated for the JANUARY 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 January 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

 

Dec from Lynne - Yves Klein blue

 

Blogger is giving me fits again. It wants to underline everything. I tricked it by moving down here. This is from Lynne - another pointed pen expert. Tomorrow is sign-up day. I think I have some more Dec exchange envelopes left to post. Maybe I will. post all of them and start the month with the envelopes I sent out in January. That would make me look half-way organized.

***

Here's an interesting video about a person who figured out the recipe for Yves Klein blue.

LINK to video about IKB

Dec from Irene - travel attire

Here is Irene's card and envelope from the Dec exchange. All of us, including me, are tired of hearing me say that I hope to get my nibs and ink out of storage. This is inspirational. I was tempted to save some of my Dec mail to post in Dec of 2026 - but - that doesn't fit with my new system of posting which seems to be working out.

 

***

I need to forward this to Troy because he has let me know that he likes my rants.

It has been suggested that the decline in manners both on planes and at the airport has declined and if customers would go back to dressing up when they travel that would generate better manners.

What about the fact that passengers are being squeezed in like sardines? I would never wear my nicer clothes on a plane. I've often considered wearing something that I could just throw away after I reached my destination. If I traveled overseas,  I would absolutely wear something that I could throw away which. would free up space to buy one or two new items.

I'm not saying that the airlines are to blame for the decline in manners. But, telling your customers that they are rude and poorly dressed isn't going to help matters.

I'm a pleasant person when I travel and I've seen a few people who were not on their best behavior. But, a blanket statement telling people to dress differently clearly rubs me the wrong way. I actually enjoy some of the kooky get ups. I was disappointed one time - when I couldn't stop and take a picture of an older, long haired, bearded gentleman who was also a size that would have inched into my space if we would have been seated in the same row. He was wearing bib overall cut-offs and a big cowboy hat and cowboy boots. 

OCT from Jacqueline - inspiration from trash

 

Here are the five envelopes Jacqueline sent in October. It's fun to see the different witches. I forgot to ask her if she works in watercolor or gouache - or maybe something else. As I've mentioned before, she uses very nice paper - something that I might do - s.o.m.e.d.a.y.

***

It's a little embarrassing to *out* myself as someone who will respond to click-bait that looks like this.

The guy looks wacky and the graphics are haphazard. I am not embarrassed about my *thing* for making things out of trash. So that part is fine. What tipped me into clicking was the grid pattern in the background and the notion that it was about storage for art supplies. I seriously doubted that it would have anything worthwhile, but, I had just finished a challenging teddy bear project and felt like I had earned 15 minutes of surfing.

The guy is not wacky at all. I ended up watching a few more videos and have several very useful ideas for gardening. I'll put links to the first two videos I enjoyed. His very loose style really appeals to me. It could so easily look like a pile of junk, but he pulls it all together and has a very clear aesthetic.

LINK to storage unit made out of trash

The next video I watched really spoke to me - because at one point he said, "I deeply regret...." Now that is a kindred spirit.... I am allowing myself one additional video each day. 

Once again, his goal is to use only what he has on hand. It is almost 19 minutes long and there is a very interesting part (from 7:48 to 13:27) where he keeps layering and layering until he is happy with the outcome. It did not look promising for quite a while - so I really enjoyed what he used to pull it together. And even better - all the projects relate to each other. The things he builds relate to how the garden is coming together.

From that project he goes into the one where he utters our beloved phrase - deeply regret. It happens at 14:30. I agree with him that it is a regrettable move. Once again - he layers - and resolves the situation.

LINK to potting shed made out of trash

I can see the borders and botanicals on an envelope.....

Sept from Jacqueline - Smithsonian Postal Museum

 

I had an email exchange with Jacqueline - tracking down missing mail from the Dec exchange and I asked her if she does one design for each moth or something different for each person. She kindly sent me the photo she took of these September envelopes. I already posted Charlotte's Web and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. 

The whole group is very fun.

***

Chuck sent me the link to the Smithsonian Postal Museum. I had been to their site a few years ago and then forgot about it. It's been fun to revisit it and find a ton of new information. 

The first fun item - was when I clicked on the Dead Letter Album. While scrolling through interesting mail that ended up in the museum, I found this one which was addressed to someone in Perry, Iowa which is one of my favorite small towns that is not too far from DSM. 

For 6-cents the USPS would transport a letter from Hawaii to Perry, Iowa and that's all they needed - a name/city/state.

Here's the caption:

Private John R. Rion inadvertently left a mark on postal history by mailing an envelope from Honolulu, Hawaii, postmarked on December 7, 1941, the day the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. 

On December 6, 1941, Rion dropped an oversize envelope at the Honolulu post office, destined for a friend back home in Perry, Iowa with whom Rion owned a barber shop. The next morning, the Honolulu post office cancelled Rion’s envelope at 8 a.m., the exact time that Japanese torpedo planes struck nearby Pearl Harbor and the unprepared U.S. Navy battleship force. 

Here is a LINK to the Smithsonian Postal Museum website Its to the Dead Letter Album - not the home page - which is probably where you need to go if you feel like surfing.

Dec from Nanski and Christy - USPS deciphering

 

Here is some nice clear addressing from Nanski and Christy. It was probably a good idea to put the white mailing label on the red envelope. A couple dark envelopes that arrived in Dec took a couple weeks to arrive while most of the mail was arriving in a week to ten days. Right before Christmas I asked my son how the volume of mail was this season. He had been at a station that day, asking the station manager the same question. She said, "Yesterday we had 15,000 packages and today we have 4,000."

That highlights another issue with the USPS. They have no way of predicting the volume. On a day with 15,000, they have to just forge ahead and get everything delivered. They can't hold it over for the next day - because there might be another 15,000 on the way. Shout out to Patty - that story came from Ash Creek. Is that your station? Or is yours Valley Junction?

I'm not sure if I have already posted this. It rang a bell when I watched it - so I'm sure I've seen it. It's from 3 years ago. 

I found it very interesting because I am on this campaign to get people to do scanner friendly addresses. Rest assured - it is a gentle campaign. If you love your script and you don't care how long it takes for your mail to arrive - go ahead and use your script. I imagine the people who work at deciphering addresses like their job.

I'd love to return to the days when our mail was lovingly handled by caring people - but that's not realistic. We live in an automated world. To go back to less complicated times would involve things that most of us would probably not enjoy. Dirt roads, outhouses, pot bellied stoves. 

This concludes my January first set of posts. I will be launching the January envelopes and file a progress report in a few days. Well - technically - it will pop up tomorrow - but it will be a new thread.

LINK to USPS deciphering squad a video by a journalist who got to go behind the scenes....which makes me want to become a journalist..... do you think my minor in Journalism from 1972 would open any doors. LOL

Dec from Kate - drawing, continued

 

Here is Kate's lovely card and envelope design for 2025. It makes me want to start my 2026 holiday mailing. I get too caught up in designing around the Forever stamps. Having a stockpile of vintage stamps is so freeing.....as long as you like to do the math.

When we talked about the Camera Lucida and The Lucy - the devices for transferring a drawing to paper or a canvas, I mentioned that a person could also transfer a photograph - and raised the question of when is it cheating to use photography for the under-drawing of your painting.

A few people are born with the ability to render what they see without any aids. It's like perfect pitch. Most of us have seen articles about people who have significant impairment along one of those *spectrums* which causes them to have some challenges with typical day-to-day stuff - but they can easily make very accurate drawn images. 

LINK to a savant artist

Once again, I have no idea where I am going with this. Maybe it's just another reminder to make stuff and if you think you have to come up with something 100% original that has never been done - you need to amend that thought. 

Dec from Jacqueline - Phish tickets

This envelope from Jacqueline goes nicely with my current topic in the add-ons. I wonder if Jackie has taken lessons in drawing or if she is self taught - or maybe she just started drawing and it was a natural talent. Her nice block printing in the address is interesting. All caps on Street and then u&lc on the city - except the Es are caps. Does she think about that? Did it evolve from some earlier phase in her life? So many questions.

***

 Yesterday I mentioned learning to draw. Some of the readers/exchangers mention drawing as something they can't do. They sometimes indicate that they wish they could draw. When I hear that, my teacher-persona wakes up and wonders if I could present things on the blog that would inspire people to learn how to draw. There are a gazillion tutorials online. Some of them are cool - others are cringy to me. 

I hesitate to get much deeper into the topic because it is so subjective. What I find cringy might look wonderful to someone else. And some of the stuff I like will most likely look idiotic to others.

Right before Xmas, my son asked me to draw some *tickets* to a Phish festival - to be presented as a gift. Nobody uses actual tickets anymore. Wow! I thought I could just pull up some images and make some cute (or clever) tickets. All of the images were so weird that I couldn't find a single thing that was fun to draw. Just very weird stuff. He was fine with what I provided. I would have liked to do something better - but - that Phish/Grateful Dead style is beyond me. 

I'm not sure what my point is. Maybe it's that you need to find the things that you like to draw before you learn to draw. Of course - if you are in classes and forced to draw everything, whether you like it or not, you'll at least learn what you like to draw. 

Tomorrow we'll talk about working from photos.

P.S. It also occurred to me that if someone said they would pay me $500 to draw some cool faux Phish tickets, I would definitely be able to do it - and probably enjoy the experience - or maybe it would take $1,000. 

Dec from Amy - Being irritated

 

My first glance at each envelope is always looking for ideas to appropriate. This one from Amy seems pretty Christmasy - but I think it could go in a lot of directions. Is this the year I do that thing where I take each envelope and use it for the inspiration for that sender's envelope in the following month? Can I dovetail that with the Style/Tool Project? This is sounding like we need an editor or a coach.....someone to rein me in.

***

Does anyone remember that I posted a spacial reasoning test (on Dec 9th)? I invited readers to take the test and let me know how they did. Eventually, I heard from one person who scored 100% on the test and had an additional comment that I found very interesting. Here's the comment:

I took that spatial test you posted the link to.  I had a perfect score, but at the same time it made me feel irritated taking the test.  Wonder what that says about me?

I, too, wonder. Maybe it means that a person can have a skill and they can put it to use - but that doesn't mean that the skill provides any positive feeling. It reminded me that, as a kid, all I ever wanted to do was write and draw.... but mostly write. Later I learned to draw - but not just anything. We'll talk about that tomorrow.

The comment that *it made me feel irritated* was so interesting. We can force ourselves to do things that are irritating. I don't think I feel irritated by spacial reasoning tests. I think they just feel like puzzles. I also  remember when I was going through a whole day long series of tests to pin point exactly where my brain damage was located - that during some tests I would become irritated. I think I mentioned that to the person giving the test. 

Sometimes, when I gave feed back, the tester would stop - and pull out a different test - and we'd test something else. 

All I learned was that it's complicated - and that if you like to make art you should definitely do that. 

DEC from Morgan - The Lucy

 

Here is another new exchanger from St. Louis. When I saw this envelope on my Informed Delivery email from the USPS I was instantly loving the idea and now I'm pretty sure I need to try it out on my January exchange envelopes. It's possible that the reason I like it is because it has that nice J to start things off. Luckily, we have a lot of J people on the list - plus - we just got a new one - Judi. Jessica/JeanR/Janet/Julianna/Jeannette/Jacqueline/JeanMarie - that's 8.

***

Some of the old-timers who read the blog might remember the Lucy. It was a device that would project an image so that you could trace it onto your paper or canvas or wall. The first ones were invented over 400 years ago and were called a Camera Lucida. When I first learned about them (70s-80s) they were big and clunky. There are a couple new ones on the market that are very compact. I won't be needing one - but if you are young and you like to draw but you don't want to go through the process of doing it *by eye* - you might be interested.

Non-artists think that artists who draw representational subject matter just *draw.* Some people can do that - but ever since lenses were invented, people have been working on devices where you could project your image onto a surface to get the basic outline. If you study art, you learn how to draw using just your eyes - but - it's one of those things that can feel tedious - especially after you find out that there is a *helper.* To me - it was more about liking the feel of paint and brushes. I needed to get the drawing on the canvas - and that wasn't the fun part. I'd already made a drawing on my own - but I just needed it larger on the canvas - so it wasn't cheating.

Some people think it is cheating to take a photo - and project the image from the photo onto your paper or canvas - and then paint it. Whether or not this is cheating is a much longer topic - which we may or may not revisit.

The camera obscura was an earlier device that did not have a lens. It had just a pinhole - but it still projected an image.

https://neolucida.com

https://drawlucy.com

Dec from Janet - letter writing tips

Janet chose the Hanukkah stamps for her December mailing. The Hanukkah stamps are always so pretty and this envelope has inspired me to buy some. They have many colors and that will be helpful with the Style/Tool Project. I'm writing this on Jan 1st, so I am full of enthusiasm for the coming year and the project. I wonder how many penmanship exemplars Janet has. I have a whole binder full of them. I could spend an entire year on just penmanship - but, I doubt that would be a crowd pleaser and I'm all about pleasing the crowd.

***

Part of my Swedish Death Cleaning project is sifting through the photos. This photo was taken in March of 2024. It's from one of Janet's books. She knew I would enjoy this page on how to write a good letter. I can't remember the title of the book. As I recall, it was one of those early 1900 books with comprehensive instructions on how to live a proper life. 

If it is too hard to read the photo - here are the words:

Rate Your Letter

Appearance

Is each page of the letter framed nicely by margins on all sides? 

Does the letter look easy to read? 

Are there at least two paragraphs per page? 

Is the typing free of obvious erasers and crossings out? 

Are there any ink blocks or crossing out? 

Is the letter clean to look at? 

Does the handwriting look neat and orderly? 

Is the letter folded neatly and squarely? 

Are your illustrations neat, effective, clear?

Are your name and address printed clearly somewhere? 

Is the form of the letter correct? 

Subject matter 

Have you written about appropriate and appealing subjects? 

Can any of your subjects offend your penpal? 

Have you thought of your penpals emotional needs are the things you want to say definite, concrete, exact? 

Will your penpal get all the shades of meaning you intend? 

Would you say in a conversation with your penpal the things you wrote in your letter? 

Does the letter sound as if you know what you are talking about? 

Did you provide all the information necessary? 

Have you stimulated your penpal to think further about some question? 

Are your questions clear and pertinent are your statements, clear, complete, convincing, logical, fair? 

Is there anything you want to send with your letter? 

Tone 

Is the letter free of sarcasm, ridicule, anger, complaints, despair, pessimism, unpleasant criticism? 

Does the letter sound true, natural, sincere? 

Does the letter contain hints of ulterior motives, rationalized, self interest, subtle hypocrisy? 

Is the letter consistent in tone, approach, attitudes, point of view? 

Will your penpal like you better because of the letter? 

Interest

Is the letter personal enough to make it human?

 

Bonus post - scroll down for the regular post

 Today's regular post is a repeat - but I have something fun and new as a bonus.

Mia sent it - and it's so good. I hope the link works. Blogger has been temperamental lately.

https://www.instagram.com/reels/DSp5qDkCWa5/

If the link doesn't work - try to copy and paste and see if that works.

Dec to Grace - adding Ann Miller to the blog list

Oops this is a repeat. But, I have an announcement below.

This one got lost in the shuffle. I'm pretty sure it has not been posted. In some ways, it seems to be exactly what I am looking for in my project to take a style and mess around with it. The term to *mess around* sounds sloppy or haphazard. Maybe riff is a better word. Maybe improvise. Both of those terms seem more musical - but maybe they are fine. Maybe I am over thinking it.

I like the way I went a little larger with the triangle/serifs. I think the rectangle on the G is very complementary to the triangles. I like that the holly leaf turned into its own element. It got to be larger and easy letter only gets one. Then - each letter has one piece of scrolls-spiral. The triangle on the C should have been al little larger - but I like the bottom of the C and am glad I didn't stick a triangle down there. The G's triangle should have been larger. 

I'm happy with this one and it looks like the Style/Tool Project might be a good idea for 2026. I already started my idea for Feb - and it is only Dec 26. Now I have to ponder whether I truly stick to one style for each month. That would mean I only do 12 styles for the whole year... and there are 24 styles on my list - not counting fonts. I guess it's a two year project.

***

If you look at a web view of the blog you will see a column of options on the right. One of them is My Blog List. This is a list of blogs that I have kept to 5 for quite some time. It could easily grow - but, I hesitate to provide even more distractions for people who might have other things they should be doing. 

I have added Ann B. Miller's blog because she teaches and is a cornucopia of information and ideas. Currently she is covering runes and styles that dovetail nicely with what I've started. So, if you are interested in lettering, check it out. The main part of her blog is free and she wrote that she is keeping it that way. She also has the option to pay the monthly fee for extras.

Nov from Juliana

 

If we had an end of year recognition ceremony for excellence, this one would be recognized. Because it is a serious rule breaker - that might surprise people that it earned the designation of *excellent.* Most people know that I'm a stickler for scanner friendly envelopes. I'm just happy that it made it through. As much as I love this one, I'm not finding specific words to express why I like it so much. I guess it just speaks to me on a variety of levels. Grids and neutrals - that sorta screams *jean*

I can't remember if I put architectural lettering on my list of styles in the style/tool *thing* we are doing this year. I don't even know where I put the list. Grrrrr - let's try Notes - and see if it's there. I don't even remember what we are calling the *thing* that I am referring to. Grrrr

***

OK - I found it. I called it a Style/Tool Project. There was one list in Notes and then a longer list in a Word doc. Here it is for anyone who is interested - I've added architectural lettering. 

Romans

Foundational

Architectural lettering

Runes

Uncial

Carolingian

Blackletter/Gothic/OldEnglish - Batarde, Gothisized Italic, Fractur

Italic

Neuland

French Roundhand

Copperplate

Spencerian

Penmanship/Cursive/Handwriting

Versals

Brush script - pointed brush

Brush script - flat brush

Ben Shahn

Peter Thornton’s Button Alphabet

Jacqueline Svaren’s Bone

Gwen Weaver’s WeaverWriting +

Loredana Zaga’s Flame

Carol DuBosch’s Jubilee

MishMash 

Arts&Crafts styles

Fonts - this category has an infinite number of styles - it will include all the styles where the letters are drawn and there are many alternatives to how to make particular letters. This would include all the styles where the letters are actually little pictures. 

And then we have Asemic writing - which is scribbling that seems like it might be writing but it isn’t.