Poisson d'Avril

SF Correspondence Co-Op meeting on Sunday -- we had poissons -- I mean, fish!

The SF Public Library (Special Collections) has acquired 770 vintage Poisson d'Avril postcards -- that's April Fool's to you and me.
We got to view them at our mail art meeting and then we made some of our own.
Read about Poisson d'Avril here
My son went to a French immersion school and on April 1 the kids tried to pin paper fishes on each others backs (without getting caught). 

If you are local, and want to see some of these funny cards, the SFPL is putting on a show  -- and newsflash -- you may see some collaged fish cards by the SF Correspondents Co-op too.

You know how I am.....I went rogue and, well.....here is some of my cards..

When 1948 yearbook meets fish this is what can happen....

Don't you just love table tops that look like this?

I know I do!

My little workspace at the library...

Besides Fish, we had some chickens at the meeting -- Maureen brought some of her collection of vintage French stamps. If you look closely you can see they are chickens -- and were used to teach little French kids how to count.

More vintage French stamps -- and another chicken.

Something about those fish showing with French people all dressed up a hundred years ago or seeing them with college students from the 40's just cracks me up.
April Fool's is coming right up so watch out for fishes on your backs.
Want to get more inspired?
Listen to my favorite Bay Area Band - Rupa & the April Fishes

So, Happy April 1 and Happy easter and Happy Poisson d'Avril and happy birthday to KSP and Missy Millie and ME -- all Aries celebrating too.

SEND GOOD MAIL -- GET GOOD MAIL

With A Little Help From My Friends....

Happy 2018!!
I really do hope your new year is starting off better than mine.....my sweetie got the flu,  my very old car died and went to car heaven, some personal family issues......not the best start to year.
But - I had fun on Sunday at the first Mail Art Meet-Up of the New Year.
We get by with a little help from our friends, right?

We came, we stamped, we talked, we made things....
(and thanks to Margarete for bringing the cool vintage USPS stamps to play with).

Just being around busy hands and a creative mess cheers me up.

We played with lots of postage stamps thanks to Margarete and Brianna.....

We made Valentine cards.

We pawed over the well stocked swap table.

I had my eye on Barb's postal pouch....

We made cards....

These are some that I made....

We got our artistamp passports stamped (thanks JU)

No idle hands here...everyone was making something.

Here's a blank card for YOU. What would you like to make?

If you are thinking of starting up a mail art group ( NYC peeps I'm talking to you!) I say get busy and do it! It is wonderful to share supplies and inspiration with like minded people.
Now, I'm just hoping my 2018 starts improving. 
Fingers crossed.

How is your new year so far?

SEND GOOD MAIL -- GET GOOD MAIL

PDG Visits the PDXCC

It took a while, but I finally made it to a PDXCC (Portland Correspondence Co-Op) meeting -- our sister mail art group started a bit more than two years ago by Niko Courtelis.
On all those shelves you see? Zines! Imagine that.

Here are Miss Polly and Niko giving some highlights of the evening's meeting...

Typewriters!
They have typewriters at every meeting....how cool is that? (And, BTW, I noticed that there are A LOT of typewriters in Portland).

JJAlltheWay is giving this one a workout.

Really.....what can I say about this beauty? Except I really wanted to take it home with me.

I brought a few things along for show-and-tell....

...including all six of my SFCC artistamp passports...

And -- lucky me -- Niko had a Will Call passport waiting for  me to finally pick it up.
Passport dated January 2015
Picked up April 2017

Artistamps by Niko
Check out his artwork here
Philatelic Atrocities

Of course, if you read my blog, you now I cannot leave things alone so I had to do a bit of altering in my new PDXCC passport....I added photos I took at the meeting and some of the artistamps Niko made...

That's a photo of me and Sugene, wonderful maker of zines, who I was happy to finally get to meet.

The AFTERPARTY!
Nostrama in PDX has a happy hour starting at 9PM. My kind of happy hour. So, after the PDXCC meeting we trooped over for cocktails and some pizza and salad....

Things up there in PDX are really just too much fun....I'm thinking that I have to go back. Soon. Very soon.
You are all forewarned PDX Peeps!

One of Niko's Philatelic Atrocities -- If you want to see more, you can buy his book
right here at Kat Ran Press
I'm lucky enough to have a collage and the book and recommend both.
And now -- I am off to a San Francisco Correspondence Meeting -- yup, two mail art meetings within  two weeks. Not bad.
If you don't have a mail art group where you are I suggest starting one up.....
you won't be sorry.

SEND GOOD MAIL -- GET GOOD MAIL