Ah, post. Lovely, papery, pretty, thrill-inducing post. The 'fffffffffllllllmmmmp' (just made that word up, thinking it poetically onomatopoeic) as it slips through the letterbox. The joyous bark from a certain furry young lady of the houndish variety. The anticipation as I open the door after work, or frolic downstairs to see what papery joys the postman (or lady - Bea's very fond of our postlady) has brought today.
I don't just love receiving post, but sending it too. One of the very best things about having an Etsy shop - apart from the joyous wonder that folk actually want to pay good money for my creations of course - is being able to parcel orders up and take a trot up to the post office with Bea so she can post them. It's become something of a tradition to utter a few friendly words of luck and happiness to the recipient of the parcel as we pop it inside the postbox, hoping it brings excitement and joy to its new owner when it fffffffffflllllllllmmmps onto their doormat.
Writing letters is such a therapeutic pastime indeed; there's something so soothing about writing by hand, and allowing my thoughts to tumble out onto the page. This slower pace of communication forces me to really think about what I want to say to my reader. None of this 'a quick few taps of the fingers and send' which I love so much when tweeting and texting, but the recipient of a letter will know I have taken the time to sit down with a cup of tea, choose my stationery with them in mind, spend a little time thinking, then carefully convey my message with the utmost care and my undivided attention.
Sending post has given me an excuse to become something of a stationery collector. Letter paper (hard to come by these days, or is it just me?), notelets and postcards are all gathered together, and added to whenever I'm out and about and see a papery greeting which makes me smile.
And yes, I'm even enough of a geek to have a correspondence drawer! Do you ever find yourself writing a card or letter, then never getting round to sending it? Stamps, address book, writing stationery and stickers are all kept together in here. I even have a letter opener so I can open my own post with ease (stops me tearing it open with rabid excitement).
Do you send a lot of post?
Have a communicative Wednesday,
Loved reading that, I love posting things to people. Such a lovely surprise these days. Wish I got more! Lovely idea for the blog :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post has become a rarity these days, hasn't it? I say we should all send more! (and hope post gets cheaper....hmmm, pigs might fly). x
DeleteLoved this post, I spent lots in TKmax the other day just on stationary! Ridiculous, but it was all so pretty, I'd love a cupboard just full of pretty cards, ribbon and paper! :) x
ReplyDeleteTK Maxx is amazing for stationery! I got this year's diary from there. We have stationery cupboards at work (albeit less exciting) so why not at home? x
DeletePretty stationary makes me smile.. I wish I received such beautiful post!
ReplyDeleteClaire.
You need a pen pal Claire, then you'll be able to send and receive lots of beautiful post :) x
DeleteI also have a correspondence drawer! I love writing letters. I have a penpal I have written to for 22 years and I class her as one of my closest friends. We've grown up together via letters and that is truly special to me.
ReplyDeleteI search for most of my letter writing paper on Etsy now. I try to avoid big chain stores for paper goods!
Claire x
Hooray for another correspondence drawer! I'm with you on avoiding the chain stores for stationery - though I will admit to writing paper from Paperchase - I've discovered some great sellers on Etsy thanks to other bloggers. x
DeleteBuying beautiful notecards is a bit of an addiction for me. I have a 'hangy pocket thingy' on the inside of a large cupboard door full of notecards and nice envelopes.
ReplyDeleteM x
A hangy pockety thing sounds ideal! *Chucks belts and scarves out and fills pockets with papery goodness* x
DeleteYou have some lovely stationary.
ReplyDeleteI love to receive post, it does bring a little moment of excitement to the everyday.
A good excuse to make a cuppa while you read it, too :) x
DeleteLove all these photographs. Makes me want to write letters. So beautiful x
ReplyDeleteLauren
www.threadandbutter.co.uk
I like sending letters to folk who wouldn't expect to receive it too. x
DeleteI love this post! I love sending and receiving mail! I write at least three or more letters a week. (Although this month I am writing one a day for Letter Month!)
ReplyDeleteYour pictures are beautiful and is that your mailbox!?! If so, I am super jealous--how cool!
I have a similar system of keeping my letters. I have a little box that I put my Letters to Write in (labeled as such) and then I have a big box to put my letters in once I write them back!
Three or four letters a week and one every day this month?! I am seriously impressed! Alas, I wish it was my mailbox. It lives in my village and I took a walk especially yesterday to snap it. Love the idea of your terribly organised letter system! x
DeleteOh I love how you've organised your letter writing! I too LOVE letter writing but aside from checking out Paperchase, I haven't found any decent shops in the flesh that sell lovely paper...must explore online some time.
ReplyDeleteI use to be part of a international pen pal group when I was very young. You could choose which country you wanted a pen pal from and the company would match you up with someone. Over the years I built up so many that I ended up creating a filing system for all the different countries, so that I could easily locate previous correspondence. Sadly, I haven't kept any of those contacts up but I do remember the utter joy in writing and receiving letters. Nowadays, I write to one of my best friends...we've been writing for years and I have a box full of her letters.
Ooh, now I want to sit down with a cuppa, some yummy paper and the perfect pen. Maybe at the weekend.
Jo :-) x
I think online might be the way to go Jo. WH Smith is mass produced, expensive and lacking in variety these days, and so many wonderful little online shops produce beautiful stationery. I used to send chain letters as a kid instead! Happy letter writing when you get the time. x
DeleteI buy so much on the internet that I get quite a bit of mail. It's always so exciting! I'm really bummed that we won't have Saturday delivery here in the US anymore. :-( Makes me sad.
ReplyDeleteHave you heard of Rifle Paper Company? They make really awesome stuff. http://riflepaperco.com/
I was just thinking the other day that it was getting harder and harder to find nice stationary. It's such a shame that it's a dying tradition. I'm totally with you on handwritten is more special both to write and receive.
ReplyDeleteRosie xx
I love letter writing - I rediscovered my love for letter writing about 3 years ago when a blog reader asked if I would like to swap letters and it opened up a whole new chapter for me.
ReplyDeleteI have made so many lovely penpals and friends through letter writing, what I love most is being able to write all my thoughts down on to paper and knowing that somebody has taken time out of their day to read them.
Receiving a handwritten letter through the post is such a lovely gesture and fills me with so much warmth!
You are right good stationery is hard to come by - Tkmaxx is a favourite of mine for finding unusual papers/letter sets!
I've written a couple of blog posts on letter writing here:
http://pookie-shoegal.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/signed-sealed-and-delivered.html
http://pookie-shoegal.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/art-of-letter-writing.html
http://pookie-shoegal.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/youve-got-mail.html
Such lovely photographs, you are very organised indeed! xxx
A lovely lovely post Anna, receiving post, whether it be a letter or parcel is the most exciting way to start the morning :) you own some beautiful writing paper too! Xx
ReplyDelete