I’m kicking off the new year with a new project, born from my love of greeting cards and my geeky fondness for postage stamps. (I collected stamps as a kid, and was legit ELATED to unearth a sheet of 29-cent Elvis stamps in my grandmother’s house last year. I also got SUPER squealing-level excited over the USPS foil dragon stamps that I discovered all too late last year. But I digress.)
Last year, I spent hundreds of hours designing new greeting cards for my Etsy shop. What I learned was that folks seemed to enjoy buying assortments and bundles that they could share with friends. So one day I had this idea (and I’m sure I’m not the first) to create a unique subscription box that will offer three things:
- A set of greeting cards that are my brand new designs—a delightful surprise!
- Vintage, unused USPS stamps that can be used to send these lovely cards to friends and family in the US. (I’ve carefully curated bunches based on color, and grouped them in sets of 55 cents.)
- Tutorials and practice sheets that will teach you hand-lettering and calligraphy that YOU can easily learn to decorate your envelopes and make them extra special. I’ve dedicated a Pinterest board to all things hand-lettering, and you can follow that board to see inspiration, learn some tips, and even download some practice sheets. And y’all, people make some GORGEOUS envelopes that are next-level amazing. You can do it, too! (Below: an example on Pinterest from Kristina @ kwernerdesign.com.
After such a grueling year, I really wanted to make something fun that can bring joy—sometimes those things are small cards, but I can’t tell you how it’s made my day to get cards in the mail this year. There’s still something magical and heartfelt about hand-writing letters to friends, and doodling on envelopes, and sending a physical thing that someone can hold in their hands. When I get a handwritten card in the mail, I feel for just a minute that I’m not quite as isolated as I thought I was. It’s not the same as email, and it’s not the same as comments on social media. It’s a feeling that comes from knowing that someone took the time to put pen to paper, and write something from their heart, and send something that I can hold in my hands, and stick to the fridge, and look at each day to remember that they care.
So if you like snail mail as much as I do, and you love geeking out over things like stamps and lettering, check out the Rock Your Mailbox subscription. There are two ways that you can find these: (1) in my Etsy shop, where you can check out each month’s bundle, or (2) on my Patreon page, where you can set up a subscription that renews each month and ensures you’ll never miss the fun.
Here’s to a new year, new ways to be creative, and new ways to send some love.
