Letter Writers Alliance

Sympathy Note Writing

I am all for letters all the time, but there are some cases in which you should absolutely, every time send something tangible. No Facebook message, Tweet, or text is ever, ever, EVER a replacement for a sympathy letter. I know that they can be challenging to write; that you feel like you don't always know what to say, that you don't want to sound trite.

Fortunately, you are not alone. There are experts you can turn to in this for guidance. Most recently, I found a great wealth of points on what not to say in sympathy writing over at the European Paper Company blog. This article, written by Cole Imperi, really analysed some of the typical items mentioned in sympathy notes and had insights that I hadn't considered.

Most importantly to me, she said, "I didn’t say I knew or I understood when I really don’t know and I really don’t understand. Plus, I was positive. I wasn’t talking about death, I was talking about life. Be considerate of this when you sit down to write a sympathy note."

Thanks for the insights, Cole. I'd make you an honorary Alliance member, but the record shows you already are one. By the way, Cole frequently writes about episotolary issues on her own blog, Simplicity Embellished. It's worth checking out.

Stamped Eggs

You know, I could swear I made a post about this years ago, but I searched and searched and did not find it. Nevermind! What matters is, here's how that clever team at Martha Stewart incorporates stamps into their Easter decor.

From their directions: Working in sections, coat a blown-out eggshell or a wooden egg with water-based glue sealant (such as Mod Podge or Elmers); position stamps so they overlap. When done, paint a thin layer of glue over entire egg.

Now, what they don't say is that blown-out eggs are a bear to make. I remember doing some as a kid and how much my cheeks hurt afterwards from all the blowing. I'd say go for the wooden option or even use a plastic egg coated with gesso.

Thanks to everyone who sent this link our way!

 

Envelopogami

Got some security envelopes lying around? Here's yet another project for using everyone's favorite "junk" mail material. The pictorial step-by-step at Zakka Life is super easy to follow. When you're done with this, you could make some tape, or some bats, or any number of other things!

P.S. Spotted this on the Shoplet Office Supplies blog.

Bloesem Kids DIY Stamp Collecting Book

The Bloesem Kids blog has a whole bunch of how-to projects up for kids, but I think it's unfair to let kids have all the fun. They have easy instructions and pictures to guide you along the way on their project page. It wouldn't be hard at all to increase the size of the pages if you wanted a larger book for your ever-growing stamp collection. You could be more precise about the maps you choose and put the stamps from the countries on their corresponding map pages. And remember, as always, if you make something fun and postal related, share it with us over on the Flickr page!

P.S. Thanks to Paper Pastries on Twitter for the heads-up on this!

Get Kids Writing Cards

If I ever have kids, I hope to be like Merrilee of the Mer Mag blog. She's always inviting and involving them into her creative life and it looks like a blast. Not to mention that her kids are adorable and quite photogenic. One of their holiday projects this year is thumbprinted Christmas tree cards. What I liked most about it is that the making of the cards seemed to inspire her boys to really write in the cards as well.

Look at that face! How is that not a future Alliance member in the making? Merrilee also has a download of the tree graphic, all ready for your inky fingers on her blog. Keep on writing boys {and everyone else too}!

P.S. As with all free downloads, it's always polite to say thank you and show the creator how you used their design. I think they appreciate it.

Holiday Paper Reindeer Postcard

This is a free download and tutorial available from Eat Drink Chic for this darling of deer card. Get working on those handmade cards! The 25th will be here soon.

Stamp Collage Tags

D. Sharp, of the famous cake stamp garland, had a cute idea for a stamp collage tag for gifts sent through the mail. She's included a downloadable template. I like her point of using colorful tags because bows tend to get crushed in the mailing process.

International Response Coupon (IRC)

Due to the Initiative Response project, we get a lot of questions about IRCs (International Response Coupons) Firstly, look above - this is what an IRC looks like. Now lets get down to what it is:

WHAT: An IRC is a coupon that can be redeemed for first class international postage.

WHERE: You can purchased or redeem and IRC at any post office within a country that is part of the Universal Postal Union. (List of countries here.)

WHY: If you are a non-US resident, you don't have access to US stamps. An IRC steps in to help you with that. If you are requested to send an SASE to a country outside your own, an ICR acts as your "stamps" to get the SASE back to you.

HOW: Ask your postal clerk for an IRC. Mail the IRC with your self-address envelope and that is it! It will magically come back to you with the proper postage needed to be mailed from the country you sent it to.

Above is what a IRC from Australia looks like. It is indistinguishable from IRCs from other countries, except for the fact that is says the country of origin on it. Some countries do not imprint the origin place on the coupon. When a member sends us one of these, I go to our post office and trade it for a first class international stamp, seen below the IRC in the photo.

So, if you are an international LWA member and want to participate in the Initiative Response project here is what you need to include with your request:

- An IRC and a self-addressed envelope.
- A money order or US$ with the total amount for the Initiatives you request
- A note letting us know which Initiative(s) you want to participate in and your member #

More than one Initiative can be sent back to you in one SASE, so no worries about including more than one SASE/IRC for multiple Initiatives.

You can read more about IRCs here and here. We are also happy to answer any other questions you have on IRCs ourselves! We hope this clarifies things for our international members and helps them participate in overseas postal projects!

 

Hosting Your Own Letter-Writing Social

{photo by Gina Visione, from the L.W.A. Flickr group}

The annoucement of our Inklings program really got a lot of response from you guys. Many of you asked about setting up your own letter-writing socials in your area, but were a bit unsure about how to go about it. Here's a brief list to guide you along.

STEP ONE: Find a place to do it. We tend to avoid coffee shops because the typewriters are so noisy, but if you aren't using typewriters or the owners are okay with it, then that might be your best bet. Also libraries, art stores, maybe book stores and stationery shops. Heck, Kathy and I even have ours at bars sometimes.

STEP TWO: Promote it. Let us know about the time and place and we'll put it on the blog, but you should also put it on your blog if you have one and see if the local paper or a magazine is interested in this crazy person who wants to write letters. There is also Twitter, which we love and Facebook, which we hate, but to each their own.

STEP THREE: Prep your supplies. We tend to use backstock of our stationery or design a neat little black and white number specifically for the social, but there are tons of free stationeries for download online.{L.W.A. members have access to a lot of downloads through our member site, for example.}

50 sheets of anything seems like more than enough and if you run out, CONGRATULATIONS, your social was a huge success. Postcards are nice for people because they feel less intimidated by them. You also don't need envelopes for them. We take a bunch of pens. I use those "free" return address labels from charities to identify my pens.

If you're doing mail art, take rubber stamps, scissors, ink pads, glue sticks, tape, and a stack of magazines or other papers for people to make envelopes with. Sometimes it's easiest to just stick to letter writing because of space and again, some people can get intimidated. They should know they only really need paper, ink and a stamp to send a letter; everything else is optional. We give all the supplies for free except postage stamps and those we sell those at face value, even vintage ones.

If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed, take heart! We are here to rescue you. We will be offering both L.W.A. Social Starter kits and Mail Art Starter kits through the member site. They should contain nearly everything you'll need for at least one social. One of the nicest things about stationery is that it doesn't expire, and you can use any leftovers for the next time. I'm still using stationery from the first social we ever did! {Admittedly, I probably made a bit too much for the first one.}

STEP FOUR: Have your social, write some letters, and have a great time. Take pictures and share it on the L.W.A. Flickr! That'll earn you an inkling for sure.

Commonly asked questions at socials:

"Who do I write to?" -Whoever you would like, but family members are a great place to start. If there's a phone call or an email you've been meaning to return, do it in a letter instead, right now. WRITE NOW.

"What do I write about?" -Describe what they are doing right then and what their senses are experiencing; what they smell, hear, taste... It's an excellent way to really bring the reader into the moment of the letter.

Be prepared for a lot of basic questions concerning address and stamp placement. I think most L.W.A. members are up on that info, but the U.S.P.S. website is a pretty excellent resource for questions regarding mail regulations.

Good Luck and Write More Letters,

Yellow Owl Workshop's Junk Mail Stationery

The Yellow Owl Workshop's stationery line is quite popular with us at L.W.A. Headquarters. They prove themselves to be that much more cool by partnering with Unconsumption by Rob Walker to offer this sweet tutorial and free download for making stationery from junk mail and other discarded papers.

 

Junk Mail Stationery from Yellow Owl Workshop on Vimeo.

Thanks to our Member Thanh-Thuy for the tip. Got tips for us? Please share with the rest of the class!