Mail Art Call

The Mail Art call...
  
  Since The end of summer is in sight and back to school is at hand, I thought it would be fun to have a mail art call. So here we go:

Mail Art Call

 "What I did this Summer".

Any size post card or envie

Deadline: September 5, 2011 

Design a piece (or pieces) of mail art illustrating your summer fun and send it to me at: 

Elle Mental

POB 535

       Waxhaw, N.C.

                  28173

  All mail art for this call should be marked with  "Summer Fun" somewhere on the piece so I will know it is for the mail art call. All contributions will be scanned and posted to the blog with credit to the mail artist and then archived on a static page collection on the sidebar. I will send a summer fun mail art piece of my making to each contributor. There will also be documentation sent to all contributors at the end of the call so please, put your mailing address on the mail art piece so I can put it in the documentation.

All rights remain with the artist, but submitting something titled "Summer Fun", will automatically permit me to post images of your artwork to my blog and any other promotions I may do for the mail art call . Each piece will be credited to the artist who sent it so make sure your put your name or moniker on your contribution.

   I am looking forward to seeing your contributions and sharing in your summer fun! 

Please feel free to post this mail art call in its entirety to your blog or mention it on your blog linking to www.artofaletter.blogspot.com

See you in the mail!

I'm In!

Letter Writer's Alliance

This fabulous package came in the mail this past weekend.

 It is from the Letter Writers Alliance.  I am an official member, now.  I have a button, that you can see on the package.  (This entire set actually came inside another envelope.)

 This is the welcome letter and I got some cool envies with matching stationery.

My official membership card.  I can't reveal the secret information that is on the back.  I can get all kinds of cool stuff from their website.  Love it!!!  I am in letter writing nerd heaven!

Idaho Postcards

These are postcards that I found in Cascade, Idaho on the way to Yellow Pine.  

This beauty I found at a flea market at the Yellow Pine Harmonica Festival.

Woo Hoo!

When I came back from our trip to Yellow Pine, Idaho (Harmonica Festival) I had a huge stack of mail!!!

This Beautiful postcard is printed on birch.  Definately a new favorite!

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From my first penpal: Vicki.  She makes the best envelopes!  Ironically, she's from Cincinatti.  I had to move to Idaho to meet her.  

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This is also from my friend Sirpa.  Some of my Ohio friends may remember her from girls camp!
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Awe!

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From a new pen pal in California.  She also writes zines.  (She is my inspiration & gave me some positive feedback on my first zine.  Send me a postcard if you'd like to read it.)
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My second penpal who lives in Florida.  She and I share a fondness for Hello Kitty.    This gal has more siblings than anyone I know.  (And I know some folks who come from large families!)

There are photos of our trip on facebook.  Our drive there and back was nice, beautiful, and a bit scary at times.  We were winding back and forth on this road that was inches from giant cliffs.  The festival was in a tiny village; population 35.  It was mostly a drinking festival.  (That wasn't posted on the website.)  We stayed there for only one day.  The second portion of our vacation took place at Warm Lake.  Beautiful place.  Compared to the other fresh water places we've swam in in Idaho, it is the only fairly warm place to swim!  We got to go out on a fishing boat thanks to our friends the Kings.  There was swimming.  Campfires.  S'mores.  Bear warnings.  (Yep.  We heard gunshot.  Then a grizzly looking fellow came along to tell fellow campers that a brown bear had been sighted, again.  I really wish he hadn't of told us in front of the kids.  They were a bit freaked out that night.)   And my hubby got a bad sunburn.  (A first in our 16 years together --usually I'm the one getting fried by the sun.)

There is actually one more package, but I'm saving that for another post.  But just a warning:  my oldest son thinks I've sunk to a new low/or risen to a new high in nerdness!

Swap Update:

One of the newest swaps I am participating in is "How-To from your favorite book character."  I am to write a letter explaining how my favorite book character might do certain things.  (i.e. cast spells with a wand, travel through time, shape shift)  I have decided to write about Katniss from the "Hunger Games."  I think I will focus on how to survive in District 12, "where you can starve to death in safety."

In addition to the letter, I'd also like to create a mini-zine to go with it.  This is something that I have just started to do (make "zines").  I have created one and sent it off to a penpal in California.  (I am anxiously awaiting feedback.)  I thought the swap would be a good way to keep up my rusty writing skills.  (If I ever had any, that is.)  The zine, I think, would also help me to stretch my creative muscles.  (Again, assuming....)  Something interesting to think about instead of dwelling on the usual worries.  

If you'd like to see the first zine (if I'm not too embarrased to share) let me know.  Requests accepted via postcard to my home.  (For my collection, of course!)

Mail Art Envie 2

Why send out an envelope plain?  You can choose pretty envies.

Re-purpose a plain envie with scrapbook papers.

Paint.

or doodle.

One of my favorite new hobbies is taking used envelopes and change they way they look.  Free magazines from the library (discarded or donated...not stolen) are my tool of choice.  I'm not very good a drawing.

And Now A Word From Our Sponsors

This is an advertisement postcard from Australia.

Cardboard that came in one of my swap packages.

Let's go there this summer!

Handmade by a fellow swapper.  A definate favorite!

This postcard swap involved making a pc from recycled materials.  Read the card (below) and it will make more sense!