Sunday Stamps - favorites

Today's theme for Sunday Stamps is Easter or a favorite. I don't have anything Easter, so I chose favorite.

Eric sent me one of his envelopes that celebrate classic film. 

The stamps he used are gorgeous - they are printed using the intaglio technique, so have some raised lines, giving them a great tactile element that you can't appreciate in the scan.

The two stamps are from a set of 6 issued in 2014 celebrating photographic cameras. 

Here's a link to a series of design photos showcasing the stamps at Behance.

For links to more favorite stamps, and maybe some for Easter, head over to Sunday Stamps.

Mail Me Some Art

Mail Me Some Art (MMSA) is a group that swaps (mostly) postcard art. All submissions are sent to a central host along with postage and address labels, and she (or he) then swaps the cards and sends them out. This resolves the issues that sometimes occur in direct swaps when somebody doesn't hold up their end of the bargain for whatever reason.

The other great part about MMSA, is that all levels and kinds of art are welcomed and appreciated.

Each challenge set has a theme. Here are two I participated in recently. I send in 4 cards for the swap, and as a thank you to the host, a 5th bonus one for them.

1. Repetition and variation

Here are the cards I sent out - I was inspired by Naomi's triangles (which I learned about from Eva). I painted them using inktense pencils, I think hers turned out better than mine, although they did look a lot brighter in person compared to the scans.

And here are the ones I received from Esther, Lois & Iryna.

2. Paper strips

This is one of my favorite challenges to date. The top 4 (Face Off I-IV) went into the exchange, the 5th one (The Twins) was for the host, Honi.

And here are the interesting cards that arrived in my mailbox from Barb, Cheryl, Penny & Wanda.

If you've been paying attention to how MMSA works, you'll have noticed that I only received 3 back for the repetition & variation challenge. The fourth one had a misadventure, and will be featured under another letter of the alphabet.

Have you ever participated in a swap of any kind? How did it work out? Did you have fun?

Letters

While I love receiving mail art in all its forms, thanks to Eva and Eric I have been re-introduced to the enjoyment of old-fashioned letter writing.

One from Eva, where she used a green pen to match her great envelope for spring. If you'd like to read the story behind the chickens in the outstanding stained glass window stamp, head here.

And one from Eric, where he used writing paper that matches this envelope made from a paper bag. I also enjoyed the not quite correct English on this bag from a Korean restaurant.

When was the last time you received a personal letter?

When was the last time you sent one?
__________________

Update: if you're looking for pen pals, the Letter Writers Alliance might be a good place to start.

Kraft paper envelopes

There's something about envelopes made from Kraft paper. There's a certain feel to them, and the neutral beige tends to be a perfect background for pretty much anything. And even though they seem plain, they still stand out from the usual white-enveloped bills that come in the mail.

I recently bought some for a mini-project, so now I have extras. 

These two were sent to Rebecca (in the UK) and Ana (in Brazil), with some artistamps added for fun.

I returned an add and pass sheet that Ana had sent ages ago.

With my additions...

Here's a collage I sent to Rebecca.

I also forwarded a doodle add and pass to her that Diane originated, and Jason sent to me.

I forgot to take a 'before' picture, so can you guess what doodle I added to this one?

Jean-san

If you've been following along on the A to Z challenge so far, Jean has shown up twice before.

I found her envelope blog by googling 'homemade envelope'.

She runs a fun monthly envelope exchange.

She also introduced me to IUOMA (see yesterday's post).

She made me think about how a stamp can enhance or even be the focal point of an envelope.

She encouraged me to start this blog back in 2013.

And she considers me to be one of her envelope grasshoppers.

Thanks for all the ideas, support and encouragement you've given me in pursuing mail art as a hobby, Jean-san. And happy one-day-late birthday. 

I hope you liked your March exchange envelope - I was sure you'd like the Oscar de la Renta stamp. 

And here are the other exchange envelopes I sent out to Amy, Cathy and Tina.

Do you have someone who helped you pursue something you were interested in or passionate about?

Did they have to push you, or did they just need to nudge you a little every now and again?

What did you do to show them your appreciation?

IUOMA

The International Union of Mail Artists is the grand daddy of them all. The website can feel a bit intimidating at first, but if you're into mail art, it is a great place to find like-minded people. And everyone is extremely friendly and welcoming.

MomKat in Greece is one of the first IUOMA members I exchanged mail art with, and we are still sending back and forth between Columbus and Thessaloniki in Greece.

Here's her latest collaged piece.

Through my connection with MomKat, I started exchanging mail art with stripygoose on a regular basis, as they know each other very well, and hang out together whenever MomKat is in London (UK).

The latest from stripygoose, including an artistamp from Positively Postal, another IUOMA artist I connect with:

Another favorite from IUOMA is Mail Art Martha, also in the UK near London. Here's her latest:

Here's a piece of mail art from Keith (in California). We've been exchanging for a few years now.

And here's my first piece from Mim (on the east coast), sent unsolicited, and much prettier in person - the scanner didn't seem to want to pick up all the details.

Have you ever mailed someone you didn't know?

Did they respond?

Homemade envelopes

Making my own envelopes started over twenty years ago. I use a template that I made from a commercial envelope, and number them sequentially. Some of the early ones sent back then are in this blog post. I don't remember why I started making them in 1992, or why I stopped (in 1993), but I found some of them a few years ago, and, uninvited, sent the one numbered 100 to Jean. That's the origin of the title of the blog.

Originally I planned for the blog to be dedicated to these envelopes, however I got sucked in to all the aspects of mail art, so they often take a bit of a back seat.

Currently I'm up to number 890. This is what (part of) my box of homemade envelopes looks like right now, with envelopes waiting for the perfect stamp, or occasion:

And here are some recently sent ones.

Number 352 to Patricia (slightly shiny paper from a magazine)

Number 436 to Honi (matte paper from an arts flier)

Number 792 to Eva (thick paper from an old calendar)

And number 846 to Eric (from butcher's paper)

Have you ever made your own envelopes? 

What materials would you choose, and what do you think would make a good envelope?