16 June 2015

Beer Doesn't Make You Fat


Letter sent by PostMuse (the USA). It is an envelope made out of an old calendar. The beer is beautifully painted on. It seems a real one! I am just happy that this arrived before Ramadan starts... (Probably the post office workers are neither eating nor drinking during the daytime in Ramadan. So I would not want to disturb their fasting with beers).

Among other nice stamps, she included this one, issued on 1971 and wrote it is one of her least favourites. However, I like it. Not just the fact of receiving old stamps, which is great. But I also love the vintage design and the colour.


Besides this, it matches perfectly with the beer-themed envelope, does not it? Remember that you must consume beer envelopes (mail art in general) in moderation.

14 June 2015

Beatles Fans + Missent

This is my contribution for today's Sunday Stamps II. The theme chosen is Making Music.


This stamp by Royal Mail on January 9, 2007. It belongs to a miniature set of 4 x 1st gummed stamps showing Beatles memorabilia (like this toy guitar), from the collection of Pete Nash. I find fascinating that these stamps are not dedicated to the musicians or the music, but to the merchandising around them.

The stamp arrived on the back of this postcard sent by John (the UK): 


A bit wretched arrived, didn't it? Well, not strange if we consider that it was written on March 22, 2014; postmarked two days later... And arrived on May 19... 2015. Nothing serious:the Dragon decided to go for a stroll before landing in my mail box. Just to... Jamaica.


13 June 2015

A Piece of Virtual Intimacy

«What a joy to write a letter that is everywhere and nowhere at the same time –a piece of virtual intimacy.»

Colum McCann, The Letters Page 1

12 June 2015

Annie M. G. Schmidt & Fiep Westendorp


I am always happy to receive illustrations by Fiep Westendorp (tulips are a bonus!). But this time I was double happy to get also a postcard of Annie M. G. Schmidt, the author of Jip and Janneke stories (among many other that I have not read - yet). And with a matched stamp. I like having two different pictures of her.



The letter was sent by (had you guessed?)  Heleen (the Netherlands).

11 June 2015

From Me to You


I guess that serious stamp collectors do not like this For Me to You Forever stamp, issued by USPS on April 1, 2015. But I think it carries a powerful message.

Do you like it?

10 June 2015

My Life in Morocco


Letter sent to Laura (the UK).

Probably, the longest letter I have written in the last (10? 15? More?) years.

09 June 2015

Give Me a Body


I received this envelope some weeks ago from Jon Foster (the USA). It contained a strange call for help: some Tucker's heads (and a mayonnaise jar - !?) claiming for a body!


I am a bit behind with mail art, but do not worry: I am looking for adequate bodies for you (Maybe something like FinnBadger's?)

08 June 2015

And We Persist

«And we persist in thinking, against accusations of nostalgia or worse, that there can be something uniquely considered about the letter form; that the slow pace of delivery creates a tone of thought and response which is different form the immediacy of digital correspondence.»

Jon McGregor, The Letters Page 2

07 June 2015

Mail Tag

I have been tagged by Hannah of Rose Tinted Crafting to answer the following questions about my written correspondence. So:

Do you exchange letters? 

Yes, I do. How did you know?

If so, how long have you been doing it, if not, have you exchanged letters before? 
I have started to exchange letters when I was 11 years old (28 years ago? Really??).

Do you remember who was your first correspondent? 
Yes, I do. I remember her perfectly, because she is still my regular correspondent.

Why did you start exchanging letters? 
I think I just thought it would be fun... Why, I was 11 years old!

Have you thought about stopping exchanging letters? 
Why would I do something like that? I write less letters when I am busier, of course. Or I write just postcards when life is hectic. But... stopping? It seems impossible: writing letters is not a hobby. It is a way of life; a way of taking a walk on the slow side.

What is the maximum of correspondents you had?
There are people who writes often, there are people who writes once in a while, even once a year... I am not able to count them.

Do you prefer handwritten or typed letters?

Most of my sent letters are handwritten, and also most of the letters I receive. But that is up to the sender. Everyone needs to feel comfortable when writing. I have only a rule in letterwriting: I answer every letter I receive.

How do you define the sensation of receiving a letter? 
Like this?

Do you prefer to write or receive letters?
This is a very difficult question... Anyway: I must send a letter in order to get a letter, mustn't I?

Write a handwritten message to your pen pals/correspondents.
I did. I sent it through snail mail. Sorry: messages are private!

Tag 3 people to answer this tag
I am not very into mail tags (this is my very first). I am not sure who would like to answer these questions. So, please: feel free to join. Let me know if you do!

06 June 2015

Address Labels


Mail idea: use your pictures of postal offices, postal vehicles, etc. for your address labels!

05 June 2015

Dear Data Inspiration

When I wrote about the Dear Data snail mail project, I did not expect to receive any letter inspired by it...!


Yes: written (?) on the back (the front, actually) of this envelope sent by Phillip (the USA) is not Alien code. These strange signs are a way to represent some data gathered by the sender during a crazy long week. The data are related to his mail art activities: the time (dark grey circles), the activity (coloured lines) and the person/people (coloured points). By the way: I am the turquoise point.


Also published in his blog.

04 June 2015

Snail Mail Algorithm

I drew this for an exercise about flowing charts. What do you think about?  


I would heard your ideas about changes or additions it in order to improve the idea of the snail mail algorithm.

03 June 2015

The Country Letter Carrier


Lovely postcard sent by John (the UK).

We can read on the back of the postcard:
"The Country Letter Carrier", artist unknown, water-colour. His splendid gold banded hat would not have been official issue.
So maybe wasn't he a letter carrier at all? It is rather mysterious! I need to go to The British Postal Museum & Archive in order to find out more...

02 June 2015

Cancellation?


Letter send by Alan (the UK).

So you have a friend who writes a beautiful letter for you with perfect calligraphy, adds some little artistic items that you just love, creates an original envelope of biscuits packaging, chooses carefully some the stamps and sticks them like a rainbow...

And then the letter arrives in the post office and encounters this post office worker who makes this odd, let's say... cancellation.

01 June 2015

Sheep (More or Less)


Postcard sent by Christophe (France). It seems that if you wash a cow in a washing machine, and then hang it outdoors in the clothesline... It become a sort of sheep and then you can knit its wool. Not sure about temperature, though, because it indicates 30, 60 and 95 ºC. 



Arrived the same day (funny, isn't it?): postcard sent by Heleen (the Netherlands). It shows the typical breed of sheep in Drenthe, in the east of the Netherlands. It arrived with these two wool-related stamps: De Schapenscheerseter (naar Millet) (1889) and Weefgetouw met wever (1884), both by Van Gogh.