Stick It Up Saturday: Starting Inspiration

I think I figured out what I want to do for Saturday posts. I will admit, I scrambled to put today's post together because I haven't yet gotten any subscriptions. Anyone have any recommendations for craft, home decor, indie, or fashion magazines I should subscribe to?

Anyway, onward!

It is safe to say we all have our moments of inspiration. Whether it be from things we see or things we remember, inspiration is everywhere. I decided to take a photo of the following items.

These items are bits and pieces of my recent inspiration. They sparked my New Year's resolution to be more creative.

So here is a list of what is in this photo:

• Purple tabbed filing folder.
• Rainbow unicorn glove.
• Hello Cupcake stationery.
• Scotch Expressions tape.
• Pen pal information card from Anna.
• Snail mail glass necklace.
• Dried rose petals.
• Inked napkin.
• The back of a hand-carved rubber stamp from my friend.
• Dangling pompom.
• Black ink pad.
• Glitter tissue paper.
• Mustache pendant necklace.
• Dollar Tree shopping list paper pad.
• A recently purchased book called The Jelly Bean Crisis.

Shop Feature Friday: The Fox & the Teacup

Today features The Fox & the Teacup, a simply gorgeous Etsy shop that deals with stationery and artwork. My words will never fully describe how beautiful the art is, so I will head on to pictures for you.

DISCLAIMER: All images included in this post belong to The Fox & the Teacup.

I ordered a set of stationery from the shop on January 5th. It took me several hours to decide which set I wanted since they were all incredible. I ended up choosing the following set. It came with 12 sheets of paper, 12 Kraft brown envelopes, and 12 matching labels with a similar design.

All together, it was $19 with shipping ($15 for the actual items I ordered). The owner of this shop designs each of these sets and prints them on high quality paper. Worth the cost? Absolutely. Not only was my package prompt, but it came with a small washi tape seal on the outside, and a darling bookmark and thank you card inside!

I did not order these postcards, but I came quite close to it. I stared at them for an hour and tried to justify buying them at the same time as the other stationery. I will be back for them in the future. 12 postcards for $10, plus shipping.

This is a sticker sampler pack that I also want to buy. It's $5 for the 54 stickers, plus $2 for shipping. Aren't they absolutely wonderful?

As with most Etsy orders, the shipping gets discounted for more than one item. 

So go ahead and buy something! Support our fellow Etsians!

Happy shopping!

Wrap That Wednesday: Etsy Packaging

Hey everyone! Still figuring out what it is Wednesday posts will contain. I'm thinking just a general variety of wrapping pictures and whatnot.

So today I'm going to talk a little about Etsy shop owners, despite the fact that it is not Friday. I recently ordered some goodies from Etsy. All my packages arrived promptly, but that's not the point of today's topic. What each package contained? Different story.

This is one package I received. It was simple white, sturdy cardboard, and sealed with colorful washi tape. That was just the outside. 

I adore the use of adhesive cello bags to wrap these items. They are very basic, yet can be decorated when the inspiration strikes.

This is one of several items I received in a different package. I love the clear resealable bag with a custom sticker on it. Simple. Clean. Also, I think it's very clever to have the item name and quantity beneath the logo.

Glassine bags are one of many weaknesses. I can stare at them and imagine what to put in them, but really I just want to ink them and put stickers everywhere.

Another really interesting thing to me? These paper bands that wrap around bags. Sealed with washi tape, a sticker, or a label, they're really fun to look at and keep.

It's all so inspiring!

Organize It Tuesday: Binders & Hanging File Folders

Today I am going to show you pictures of my organizational abilities as far as snail mail goes. I have two alternatives.

Alternative #1: Files

This option allows for a larger space, more detailed and thorough storage of information, and is easily accessible.

This is my big bulky black box. Inside, you will find more than just snail mail files, but for the purposes of this post, that's what we'll discuss.

All my pen pals have a tab on their folder that is found only on the left. This makes it simpler for me to find the pen pal section.

On the outside of each pen pal's file is their information card. I have yet to scan these, print them on cardstock, cut them out, and adhere them to the files. It will get done eventually.

Alternative #2: Binders

This option takes up significantly less space, is alphabetically organized into sections by letter, and can be carried around when on the run.

This was my old method of organizing. For some, it works better than my file method. 

You can buy a pack of hole-punched tabs marked A through Z. Each pack makes a nice rainbow effect in your binder. It's super easy to decorate each tab since they're blank white cardstock.

My original information sheets were the name, address, and e-mail address of each person. Sometimes I would add in their username and site so I'd know where I met them.

I am going to be honest. I am absolutely exhausted. Please forgive me for the short post.

Happy organizing!

Must Have Monday: Address Stamps

I don't know about you guys, but man! This weekend was rough! If I didn't schedule Sunday's post to go up at a specific time last week, it never would have gone up until today. I wish I could say the same for Saturday's post, which will have to wait until the weekend, or some down time this week. I must gather supplies!

Anyway! This post is going to cover a variety of address stamps. I also do not have one of these, mainly because I wasn't staying in any one place long enough. Once I head to grad school, I will invest in one. I think three years of my life is a solid chunk of time to get an address stamp, don't you?

Just a warning, however. These stamps will make you ache for a wedding, as most of them are for families or newlyweds. I can understand why, but that doesn't stop me from feeling awkward when I view the listing and enter in my information containing one name. Maybe I'll just buy one for my parents...

It goes without saying that this stamp is my favorite, and it's quite reasonably priced for just under $20.

I adore cute birds, which makes this stamp appealing. However, I think I'll wait until I have a family before I pay for it. $45 isn't steep for something beautiful like this, but with my current budget, it's definitely not on the top of my list.

I love the font used in this stamp! It runs the cost of the average custom stamp, just under $30.

I thought I'd gotten over my obsession with skeleton keys. Obviously, this stamp thought otherwise. $45 will land you this beauty.

There is something about the mixture of thin font and thick banner that makes this stamp so perfect. At $29 for it, I think it runs at a very reasonable price for the quality of the carving.

Sunday to Sunday Haul: 1/7/13-1/13/13

INCOMING:

Two lovely packages! One from Le Box Boutique on Etsy, the other from Freckled Fawn.

A letter from Carolina and a package from Etsy.

The last letter I'll receive from Anna. She's taking a break from snail mail for a while. =(

A letter from Stephanie, a letter from Winslow, and a package from Etsy.

OUTGOING:

Letters headed out to Charmaine and Mia.

Two overdue letters to Svetlana and Naiche.

Two letters going to Miri and Michele.

One letter headed to a potential new pen pal, Mary. Check out her amazing blog, uncustomary.

Letters going to Desirae, Chelsea, and Allison B!

Outgoing letters to new pen pals Caity and Merissa. Check out Merissa's gorgeous blog here.

A letter going to new pen pal Allison P.

A special package for Kim! =)

Shop Feature Friday: Le Box Boutique

I'm sure most of you know I am a huge advocate for Etsy. What better way to make that apparent than by featuring a shop every Friday? So let me begin with Le Box Boutique.

DISCLAIMER: All images included in this post belong to Le Box Boutique.

I recently ordered some snail mail supplies from this Etsy shop. An assortment of 20 small rolls of washi tape (60 feet total), all my choice, from a wide variety of patterns, all in different colors and sizes, cost me just over $20 with shipping. 

The above photo is only one picture of the offered designs. There are options for fewer rolls and more rolls. Each roll has a minimum of three feet.

I also ordered several sizes of glassine bags in bulk. I have no idea what I'll do with them just yet, but I'm sure if I stare at my stamps and ink long enough, I'll get some inspiration. I believe the 150 small and medium bags I ordered cost me less than $11 with shipping.

The last item I ordered had, you guessed it, more washi tape! These gorgeous kraft paper envelopes came with my choice of washi tape to seal each one. There are ten envelopes total, each with washi tape, all roughly $9 with shipping. 

Of course, I did get a slight discount for ordering more than one item, so shipping wasn't nearly as expensive as it would have been had I ordered each item individually.

The best part about this shop? I received this order only a few days following the transaction! Everything came bundled up with bags and labels and a receipt. Great products. Beautiful packaging. Anyone feeling the urge to go buy something? If so, don't forget to use a coupon code!

Spend $25 or more and get 5% off if you use coupon code:

25FOR5

Spend $60 or more and get 10% off if you use coupon code:

60FOR10

Happy shopping!

Wrap That Wednesday: Funky Gift Wrapping Options

I'm still figuring out exactly what I want to do on Wednesday posts. Today I thought I would share a fantastic page I came across that I found particularly inspiring. I never really saw the appeal of Martha Stewart until recently. It wasn't anything personal, because the woman has some great ideas. I just never felt that click between my style of crafting and hers.

However, while on the hunt for magazines to subscribe to, I realized a lot of crafty people I admire on the internet have subscriptions to the Martha Stewart magazine. I haven't started buying in just yet, but the pictures are fairly beautiful and inspiring, so I am more inclined than ever before.

40 Gift Wrap Options

The above image can be found by clicking on the link below it. This particular image is my favorite from the slideshow I found. I adore the diverse styling, the pops of color, and the combinations of newspaper, maps, wrapping paper, beads, and string. Plus, it's in a foreign language (to me, at least), which means it holds more appeal.

Organize It Tuesday: Photo Boxes

I'm not a particularly organized person, but I know if I had the funds to purchase everything my snail mail obsessed heart desires, I'd have an incredibly organized space to work in. One step at a time, though.

For the past several years, I've been hounding the newspaper for sales and coupons to give me a reason to go to Michael's, JoAnn's, and A.C.Moore. This is because their lines of photo boxes are immensely beautiful, and even more useful.

JoAnn's

A.C. Moore

I look at the advertisements to figure out when these boxes go on sale from being $7 for one box to $10 for three boxes. 

Once I get them home, unwrapped, and cleaned out, I start piling in my incoming mail, which I'll have responded to. I tend to only include letters with stamps, as packages would take up far too much space, but I do sometimes keep them on a section of my craft table if they were decorated.

These boxes are used in my craft room primarily for letter storage, but I know others use them for notecards, envelopes, stickers, and other crafty goodies. I, however, am already bothered enough by the fact that the stores in my area never carry the same colors or designs past one visit, so my obsessive side refuses to let me purchase these boxes in mass to organize anything other than letters. I have to carry all this, you know.

For those of you who may not share my need for uniformity in size, you can take the cheaper alternative and get lots of shoe boxes from your closet, friends, and family. Add some paint, paper, or fabric, and fill those babies up to the brim with mail love!

Happy organizing!

Must Have Monday: Letter Opener

Yesterday, as I was planning out the blog posts for this week, I realized I have a lot of items necessary for snail mail correspondence. It occurred to me, however, that I do not have a letter opener. After some quick searches, I discovered a few lovely must have letter openers.

This beauty is $14.00 on Etsy.

A bacon letter opener for $9.95.

I like penguins, so this $28.95 letter opener seems like a solid investment.

I like to think this would bring some fun to a long day for only $12.99.

Sunday to Sunday Haul: 12/31/12-1/6/13

I received a few orders of books this week from Amazon. I didn't photograph the boxes, however, but I might show you some of the artwork on the covers in a future post. This week was horribly awful in terms of drama and family issues, so I was unable to get out the majority of the letters I have mostly finished in a pile on the table. They'll all head out next week!

INCOMING:

A lovely letter from Desirae.

A package from Allison and a letter from Chelsea.

OUTGOING:

One outgoing letter to Sydney.

Also, I have some great news! After some incredible inspiration from a blog I discovered, I began to work on some creative resolutions for the new year. I decided to take several steps to improve The Not Quite Dying Art. I will have a content type for each day of the week, except Thursday. This means Friday through Wednesday will offer up individual posts ranging from mail art and mail love to organization and inspiration. Stay tuned! This all begins tomorrow!