Quickie post

Hey there! I just sent out my first Christmasy packages! But I forgot to take photos of them. I've finally gotten back into the swing of letter writing. I was in a big slump for a while.

Just recently got a lovely note from Limner.

2013 Stamps!

Hey everyone, 

I completely forgot that in addition to all the wonderful Christmas-y things happening at this time of year, the USPS announces their 2013 stamps!

I'm so excited. As of today they have revealed two.

Visit Beyond the Perf 2013 Preview to see them.

I'm pretty thrilled that the Valentine's Day stamp is mail related!

Recent incoming

from Laura, quite close to where I grew up!

from my good friend from grad school

such cute kitty stickers!

and this was one of the awesome things I got in the Elevated Envelope swap!

Elevated Envelopes- Malicious Surprise

I finally joined in on the Elevated Envelope this time around for a "Malicious Surprise".  Halloween is almost my favorite holiday, so I was really excited. This is what I made:

For the special something inside I made artistamps using a skeleton stamp Clay gave me, a typewriter, a sewing machine for perforation, and washi tape.

I put one strip in a glassine envelope with a few other stickers.

here's the front of the card

and the inside--- I made a stencil of the tree and another of the crows, then used guache paint to fill them in. The crows are slightly purply.

then you add a crow!

and stuff it all in a black envelope

YAY!

There was a nice coincidence with the theme "murder of crows".  After I had started these I read a book from the library called Wildwood. I picked it up because it was just such a beautiful book. And then I read the inside flap. It was written by Colin Meloy who is in the band The Decemberists (a band that I like) and illustrated beautifully by his wife, Carson Ellis. Where is the coincidence? At the beginning of the book the protagonist's younger brother is kidnapped by a murder of crows!!  This event is the beginning of an adventure into the "Impassable Wilderness" to rescue her brother.  

In & Out

bought washi tape for myself for the first time! fun :D

Marijane went to a singalong of The Sound of Music. She mailed me the props they were given!

my first time using my LWA stationery!

Halloween Mail

but just a smidge, because I haven't taken pictures of most of it!

a friend gave me a TON of scrapbook paper a couple years ago and I finally got around to using some of the Halloweeny or spooky ones, like this candy corn.

I also found some envelopes in my stash that had already been stamped with the awesome Poe stamp from several years ago when I had meant to send them out for Halloween and then never did. I REALLY wish that the post office would make Halloween stamps.

Clay's pumpkin

my pumpkin

an odd pair

with Ms. Bea once we brought them inside. She was very interested. She was also very interested when we were carving them and we had to keep pushing her away lest she come to a goopy end.