Do you like handwritten letters, or an unexpected card from a friend? Or perhaps a beautiful postcard from a friend wishing that you were walking along the Seine River with her in Paris?
 |
| Image Here |
Letter writing seems to be a thing of the past, in fact cursive writing is not even taught in schools anymore. I cannot believe it, how do they sign their name?
 |
| All images from here down, The Suburban Pen Pal |
I love to write letters and post cards and I love to receive them even more. It is a wonderful treat to go to the mailbox and find a card from my sister or my mom, or sometime from a friend I normally only hear from by email. And most recently beautiful post cards from the world over written by my friend Jeanne at Collage of Life.
As I have said before, I grew up all over the place and in between new schools and friends the one constant in my life and my families were the beautifully written letters from my grandmother. She would write often and make sure that we knew how things were in the family, at the store (she was the proprietor of a men’s clothing store), what adventures my grandfather was up too and to of course be sure that we were being good kids. And she always put money in the envelope so that we could have a treat because she wan’t there to do something with us.
I try to do the same for my nieces and nephew. I want them to know that they are loved and missed and of course in my thoughts. And I often send letters to my parents and siblings just to let them know I miss them and am thinking of them.
One of my most treasured possessions is the boxes of letters from family. My parents would send me a letter a week when I lived in Washington D.C, or when I was away in France each summer. And my husband sent me the most beautiful love letters during our 4 year long distance relationship. My sister always knows when something is not right, even across the miles she can sense that I am lonely or just need a pick me up and there will be a funny card or just a handwritten note saying all the right things.
Recently I discovered the most wonderful blog, it is written by San Francisco artist and art historian Laura Dunkin-Hubby. Laura is a mail artist, as well as a blog writer and member of the International Union of Mail Artists.
The Suburban Pen Pal is the name of Laura’s blog and on it she features her incredible letters. Each letter is carefully crafted of assorted materials, anything from old photos, to library cards, to stunning art images and more. Each letter truly is a work of art. I would love to receive a beautiful letter like one of these in the mail!
In addition to her own beautiful work Laura also features the work of other artists that she finds on Etsy or through her blog roll. There are so many beautiful and creative things to see on The Suburban Pen Pal I hope you go over and visit Laura!
I would love to hear if you have discovered some fabulous new blogs, do let me know in the comments! I am sure that I have room for more if I only stay off Pinterest.
Have a great day!
ALL IMAGES FROM THE SUBURBAN PEN PAL.
Artist Spotlight: Ria Krishnan
Artist Spotlight Vikki Chu
Artist Spotlight, Kate Lewis
Silent Sunday 2-9-2020
Good morning, BEAUTIFUL! I saw your picture on Pinterest and I had seen your photo a while back, but it was just lovely to see you again.
Letter writing is something I enjoyed for so long as a child. Now in recent years with email, it is so hard to GO BACK, but I have to admit, there is something magical about writing a letter. And yes, I am nearly appalled at how children do not learn cursive. If I would forget and write in cursive in my classroom, several students would always say to me that they CANNOT READ CURSIVE..what a shame!
LOVE POST FOR TODAY MY FRIEND! Anita
Elizabeth, What a wonderful post. I will certainly visit "The Suburban Pen Pal". I, too love to write notes and letters. I loved having pen pals, from camp or schools I no longer attended, as a child. I can still remember the long letter my friends and I would exchange enclosing a tissue to catch the tears shed while reading. Yes, we might have been a bit dramatic.
Thankfully cursive hasn't been taken out of our curriculum….yet.
Thanks for a beautiful post and the suggestion for another blog for me to read. Have a wonderful day.
I really need to take a look at this blog. I love handwritten notes!
I've never heard of a mail artist. That is so interesting and the art is beautiful. Thanks so much for your visit and for following me, I'm happy to be following you as well.
Wow, thanks so much for the post! Love your blog.