Adopting Postcards

A few years ago I learned of PostMuse's website Orphaned Postcard Project.  What a fun idea!  The PostMuse has a huge postcard collection but many are blank on the back.  She asks that you select postcards that are meaningful to you (ie. places you live, have lived, or have visited).  Once you select which postcard you wish to adopt, she sends it to you already addressed to her.  Yes, it is her collection and she receives the postcard back.  On the postcard you write why the postcard is meaningful or a story about your life or visit in the location.  You put on the postage stamp and send it back to her. 

I love the idea since my own postcard collection has blank backed postcards that aren't as interesting as the ones with information and stories handwritten by a sender.  I also like to see the postage stamps used over the years and throughout the world on the back of postcards.

I participated in the Orphaned Postcard Project in 2011 [link1, link2, link3] and just submitted another request for a couple of postcards.  I enjoy sending and receiving mail and sharing my travel stories.  Something always interesting happens when traveling with the me (even before I was a Riley)!  So much so that some people will not travel with me.  Luckily my husband is a brave and willing travel companion.

Paper Punch Storage

I have been rearranging rooms and locations of items in the house.  Since our master bedroom is so large and we don't need more than a bed for sleeping, we decided to make the master bedroom my Art Room!  Slowly things are being moved around - bed to smaller bedroom, furniture to appropriate room, sorting & organizing my supplies.  Below are my before and after pictures for my paper punch storage.

[Before] When I was using the room next to the laundry area as my art room, I had my paper punches on the Bygel rails (from IKEA) on the wall behind the door.  Well, then the punch design changed from the "whale tail" style to a flat, locking style.  The new style did not fit as well on the rails.  Luckily the Bygel rails have hanging wire baskets so I used those for most of the flat punches.

Yes, I have accumulated quite a few paper punches over the decades. So many fun designs and uses in paper crafting.

[After] Anyway, the door for the bedroom is in the far corner from where I am putting my work area.  Plus I want the punches closer to me since I tend not to use what is not visible or not in reach.  I have been seeing the storage items from Stamp N Storage on other blogs and really liked it.  So I saved up to get some.  I got one "whale tail" punch holder and the large lock down punch holder.  I have them stacked on the elfa shelving (from The Container Store) that is behind me when I am at my workspace.

There is so much more to move and organize.  I am trying to figure out how to keep things visible and in reach (out of sight, out of mind).  Also I am working on better organization and reducing / purging my supplies.  Keep the focus on what I really like to do, what I gravitate towards, and not collect so many supplies but actually USE them.

World Post Day

Thursday, October 9, was World Post Day.  To celebrate I mailed 17 pieces of mail (10 postcards & 9 envelopes) to 9 different countries and 5 states in the USA.  Most of the postcards were through PostCrossing and the envelopes and some postcards were through Swap-bot.  That day I received one postcard from a swap partner. 

Life Shifting and a Maximum Card Postcard

It has been quite a while since I posted anything.  Many things have been going on but not always something that is visible or measurable to the outside world.  Lots of grieving, realizations, refocusing, and exploring.  One of my current transitions is shifting my time from so much television watching to a more intentional life and purposeful activities.  Blogging more often is one of those activities.  The entries may not be consistent (every Tuesday at 4pm or some rigidness like that) but I will share and show aspects of my life.  I do not know how much interest there is to read the entries, especially since this blog isn't subject specific.  It has various topics such as travel, postcards, swaps & other creations, observations, and new endeavors.

I received this wonderful maximum card (postcard image, postage stamp, and sometimes post mark all match and on the same side together; also called maxicard) from the Czech Republic via PostCrossing.

Lunar (Chinese) New Year

Yesterday (January 31st) was the first day of the Lunar / Chinese New Year.  The element this year is wood and it is the year of the horse.  The new year celebration lasts two weeks which means it ends on February 14th (Valentine's Day).  I don't know much about all the ways it is celebrated but it would be fun to participate in some of the traditions.  I read that several different countries celebrate the Lunar New Year, not just China.  Another new beginning.

Artistamps & Zine for Charity

I am so excited that some of my artistamps are featured in a zine [A DISSIMULATION OF BIRDS Volume 2] by TangleCrafts.  She is selling the zine and other items to raise money for Beating Bowel Cancer.  She lost her father to the disease in May and is raising funds for the charity.  Please either buy an item from her Etsy store or donate to Beating Bowel Cancer.

National Postcard Week 2013

The first full week in May is National Postcard Week [NPCW] in the USA.  2013 is the 30th year and is the week of May 5-11.  This is the first year I have participated.  I used photos that I took to make my own postcards.  I created 2 designs and made 100 of each.  My goal was to send 200 postcards.  So far I have sent 208 - obviously 8 not of my design (store bought for specific swaps I joined).  I learned a lot about making postcards.  Mine look pretty amateurish and are a bit thinner than typical postcards - but still meet the postal regulations.  Below are the postcards I made for NPCW 2013.  I have received less than 70 postcards this week so far but I expect more will arrive over the weekend.  Plus I mailed many postcards to family and friends and do not expect a postcard in return.

These are my cats Grady and Zoey on their cat tree watching the mail truck make its rounds in the neighborhood.  Photo taken November 2012.

This is Hayden Falls which flows into the Scioto River in Columbus, Ohio.  Photo taken February 2013.

For more information on National Postcard Week, check out this website.  To see other postcards made and sent this week, click here [a page in the website link above].