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

Wrap It, Send it and Here's How....

This is how things are looking around my studio......Santa's Little Workshop. Oddly enough I don't even like Xmas. But I like my friends and I like to mail them things. I like wrapping presents and making things look pretty too.
(and, of course, I LOVE getting mail)
BTW, I recommend listening to Snow Angels by Over The Rhine while wrapping gifts. Best Xmas music ever. Let me know if you like it....

I bet you've got presents to send.....
Do you know some of the best ways to mail them? (via USPS)

I'm betting most of you already know about the USPS Flat rate Priority Mail boxes......but on the off chance you don't...they come is Small, Medium and Large and no matter what the heck you stuff inside or how heavy they are there is a flat rate -- AND -- $50.00 insurance and tracking included. And there are delivered in one to three days.
What's not to like?

Ready to fill!
But how many of you now about these babies? Flat rate padded envelopes are in Santa's workshop ready to fill.
See below at the very end of the post on bow to get them. Blogger is screwy and won't let me get that photo inserted where it should be....

Santa's Notes
I had just been thinking I need to keep track of what I send to people when I spotted this little charmer in a shop in Redlands, CA. Only $4 so how could I resist?
I send out a lot of surprises and sometimes forget what  sent to whom....so this file is just what I needed. And it's really cute.

Of course, thanks to ScrapSF (and JU) I was fully prepared with with lots of cool old  3x5 cards with tabs and index cards.
I've already typed them up for this year's Xmas offerings....now if only I could remember what I gave my friends last year...

At the same shop I also found vintage tags and an unused packet of Dennison Xmas stickers for $2.50. My husband couldn't understand my excitement.... For someone who doesn't even like Xmas I was still happy -- I love vintage.

Redlands Postal Museum
My pal Monica alerted me to the Redlands Postal Museum on her blog a while back so I stopped in. It's tiny but fun to visit.

Don't you think Santa should have these USPS mail sacks to deliver presents?

I thought this was a riot!

Check out that fabulous ironwork -- do you see what it says at the bottom? So cool. I wish I'd be standing in line at that post office to mail all my Xmas boxes and envelopes.
I could gaze at that USPO for a while.

Coming home from a quick LA trip I got three days of mail on Sunday night. Yes! After a BAD mail week (three days with nothing at all) this was a happy night.

How many of you know about the wonderful Priority Mail Flat Rate Padded envelopes?
I am using LOTS of them this holiday season -- and I use them all year to mail surprises to my mail art pals. They can also be as heavy as you want and I can stuff A LOT inside.
You have to order them -- FREE -- at the USPS website right
HERE
They ship them in packs of ten -- trust me, you will use them. $6.45 to mail off with $50.00 insurance and tracking.
My secret mailing weapon.

LA was fun but  am very happy to be back in SF and settle in with my long TO DO list.
I want to get all the wrapping and mailing out of the way so I can make art and bake cookies.

Sadly, a lot of us here in the Bay Area, especially in the art community, are feeling very sad about the horrible tragedy in the artist space the Ghost Ship in Oakland.
It seems to be hanging over our whole community and there is much sadness for the lives lost and the remaining friends and families who are suffering. 
A moment of silence for all that was lost on December 2.

Take care, friends.

A little booklet tease

So, you said you wanted to see some of the little booklets I've been making.
OK.
Here is Tallie's Solar System booklet.....

Inside of Tallie's booklet
I love all the little pockets in these booklets -- there are four pockets to tuck in tiny photos,
a letter, some stamps....anything you can think of.

Here are a little series of map-covered booklets in process......

How about travel booklets? I was thinking of making one booklet  each day I'm on a trip
using maps, metro cards, menus all the paper ephemera from the day.
If I don't have time to make them while actually on the trip, I can put the stuff in
zip locks bags each day and make them when I get back to SF.
Good idea, yes?

The fun part is putting the pages inside -- you can use so many different things --
graph paper, onion skin paper, dictionary pages....anything you can think of...

For this one I used Chinese Joss paper....
(don't you love that FACE???)

I have so many ideas for these little books. How about a
SF edition with restaurant tips and addresses and suggestions for fun in SF?
I can hand them out to visiting pals.
Or, a Chinatown book -- with joss paper, biz cards, suggestions...
Oh the places we can go....

I heard you talking and switched to the sharper photos. Even though the comments were
only from a lovely and select few of the viewers
I will assume the sharper photos are preferred.
But I still love those Polaroids and will sneak some in here on the blog
and on the FaceBook page for Cappuccino&Art as well.
You have been warned.

OUTGOING
A little booklet went out inside a Chinese envelope, inside a collaged envelope --
al the way to New Zealand!

OUTGOING

I made this booklet out of a Japanese supermarket magazine page......
I feel so lucky to have
Japan Center here in SF - the source of so many wonderful things,
like Green Tea Kit Kats and BlueBerry (& Coffee) gum!

OUTGOING

I have been collaging as well as making booklets...here are a couple of collaged
postcards that just went out this week.

OUTGOING

Going out to KSP who does like to read....

OUTGOING

A Swap-Bot Mailbox postcard swap -- uh oh...I thought the swap was for
mail box photos but I think they might have meant personal
mailboxes at people's homes.....too late now....

INCOMING

Got some fabulous incoming today -- this from Karenann...a wonderful
sewn collaged envelope with two mini-zines tucked inside.

INCOMING
From Annejo in The Netherlands -- great mail, as usual

INCOMING
From Jennifer -- always delightful

                                                                               

AT MY POST OFFICE

Who says they are all going postal at the PO???
I found this delightful little lady at my post office sitting on top of the do-it-yourself
postal machine (I know there is a name for those things but I cannot think of it at this moment).
Someone at the PO there made it. So funny. And she has been there for two weeks
without anyone stealing her!


So, how'd you like the booklets????

I did shoot some step-by-step photos while making one of them but I'm not sure if the how-to will
be totally clear from the photos....