Art and Handwritten Notes
Two things I love…
I love drawing and painting, as you may know. As you can imagine, I love writing as well, otherwise why would I have a blog? Something I also love is stationery.
Last time I did a quick Google search, postcards were in the top three items that people collect. In the digital age that we live in, I was a bit surprised, even though I also collect postcards. Sometimes I wonder, why do people collect them? Do they like the art? Do they actually like receiving them in the mail?
What I love most about postcards is that they are tiny pieces of art. I love the front designs that are a drawing or painting, though I also enjoy photographic ones as well. Even the backs of each postcard are unique, and may have grayed out designs, the name of the artist, a fun fact about the front, and different style lines to write on.
They really start to take on their own personality once you add the stamps and note. There are so many beautifully designed stamps, and some that represent important historical figures or cultures. I even bought some holographic Halloween stamps once. I love being able to touch something that someone wrote on, and see their handwriting, and know that they touched it, and thought enough of me to put forth the effort to write, instead of texting.
Years ago, I signed up for a free account on Postcrossing.com using a PO Box. After signing up, I began sending and receiving postcards from all over the world! I loved reading the stories of strangers, seeing sights I’ll never experience, seeing their country’s stamp art- it was such a neat way to connect with other people. I hole punched every postcard I’ve received (okay, I need to get caught up) and put ring binders in them. They are like beautiful mini scrapbooks.
Greeting cards are also great- I would love to receive a pretty greeting card with a sincere handwritten note inside for Christmas! Not to sound ungrateful, but I often feel as though many gifts that I am given are just given to check off the “show you care” box during the holidays. I still have Christmas cards and birthday cards saved from years ago, and many of them are all I have left to touch someone I loved. I can read their message in their own words, and imagine hearing them actually say the things they wrote, while holding something that they touched, that they picked out just for me. I’ll take that over a figurine that my house doesn’t have room for any day.
I love having my designs professionally printed on stationery- it makes my art look so clean! I love to imagine how they will be used in the future. A thank you note? A love letter? Happy anniversary, birthday, graduation? A letter just because?
If you are on Instagram and also love stationery, you won’t have to try hard to find stationery shops and postcard collectors there. There’s even an organization called From Me to You Letters that takes donated stationery items and handwritten letters, and mails them to patients hospitalized with cancer, that need a little encouragement. I saw on their Instagram that someone sent them a book, so I may start sending them books I read through Bookishly. The link below is for Bookishly:
This past year, I started a job as a high school teacher, and some of my students asked me to teach them cursive- they seemed so excited to do it. Only a couple know how to sign their own name, and most of them have terrible printed handwriting. They spend so much time on their chromebooks for school and cell phones, I wonder if handwriting a letter and saving handwritten keepsakes will become a lost art.
I don’t read behind a “paywall,” so read as much as you’d like!
