Edward Gorey #14

Who doesn't love to get a postcard in the mail? Sending these Edward Gorey cards from the 2011 Postcard calendar has been a lot of fun.  Behold postcard #14!

 People on bicycles eating berries, because that's what people in Edward Gorey's world do.

So I've chosen a number between 1-100. The first person to guess the number will get this postcard. Just leave a comment with your email so that I know how to reach you to get your mailing address.

#4 was the selected number in honor of the July 4th holiday. Since #2 was the closest, I will send bascombe2 this card. Send your mailing address to Jackie (at) lettersandjournals (dot)com or jackieflaherty (at) yahoo (dot) com. If anyone else who entered the contest wants to leave their address I will send them another card. Specify if you want 'Gorey' or 'Any'. If you select 'Gorey, you may get one of the upcoming ones. If you select 'Any' then I will send a MN postcard.

Letters & Journals Subscriptions

Letters & Journals has begun accepting subscriptions to the print magazine! We're offering charter subscriptions ($15 for 2 issues) to the first 1,000 people. The premiere edition will be available this Dec 2011 and the second edition will follow next summer, July 2012.

You can sign up by going to the SUBSCRIBE page. Payment options include check, money order or Paypal. The magazine will also be available in a digital version.

If you have any questions or problems with your sign up, please contact us:

Customer Service 
Jackie Flaherty

Thanks for being a faithful supporter of Letters & Journals as we started with an idea + blog and now have a website, e-newsletter and are on schedule to have the print magazine published in just a few months. Thank You!

Winner of the Monsieur Notebook

Olivia L from CA was the selected winner (#33) of the Monsieur Notebook as featured in this blog post.  Loved seeing all of the comments and emails about what people would do with this notebook should they win. Olivia said that she's an avid journaler and is about to finish her current journal so will start anew with her winning journal.

I neglected to mention the iconic mustached man with the monocle as pictured below (from the Monsieur website). This character is featured on the back of each journal. If you didn't want one before, you probably do now, I  imagine.

I should note that Tom from Monsieur Notebooks emailed to clarify that with use, the notebooks will lie flat. Mine is just too new and not yet broken in. I should go write a few notes in my journal now. Excuse me...

Monsieur Notebook Review and Giveaway

It's nice that every once in awhile we bloggers get sent products we sometimes blog about in an effort to review and promote the items being sent. Who doesn't love a blank journal made of supple leather that opens up, lies flat and waits for your stupendously brilliant thoughts to flow from your head to your pen to the paper?

The Monsieur Notebooks are the flagship brand of Hide Stationery, Ltd. They are brand new and currently only available in the UK, but are planning for expansion later this year. On the Monsieur website, these journals are described as:

"These covers are made from one single piece of thick vegetable-tanned leather. These have the scent and touch of leather, unlike inferior ‘bonded’, ‘recycled’ and processed ‘genuine’ leathers. Because of this our books have an authentic feel unachievable in mass-produced notebooks. Our books’ understated beauty only improves as they get used, battered and bruised."

 I sampled the small black notebook (below) with my lovely aquamarine Lamy Safari (medium nib).

The flow of the pen on the paper was ultra smooth and I was very pleased to see no feathering of the ink.

I was also very pleased to see there was no bleed-through on the back side of the page.

 The journal opens flat, but doesn't stay flat unless you hold one end down. I prefer journals with the stretching rubber binder that helps hold the journal closed, so was pleased to see that this journal has that.

Overall, I was very happy with the quality of the paper and the overall appearance and functionality of the notebook.

One of you can compare for yourself how these notebooks hold up under scrutiny by winning the large brown journal shown above. Tell me what general or special purpose you would like to use this journal for and either leave a comment (include your email) or send me an email to Jackie (at) lettersandjournals (dot) com. Giveaway ends 6/23/11.

Edward Gorey #13

Edward Gorey Postcard #13 is the mile marker to being halfway through the year and half done with the Gorey postcard theme. How does time go by so quickly? Slow down, I say.

There is a lot of detail in this color postcard called "The Galoshes of Remorse".  We see four bored gentlemen framing the scene of the woman in the swamp wearing gloves and holding galoshes.

"Frivolity, at the edge of a Moral Swamp, hears Hymn Singing in the Distance and dons the Galoshes of Remorse."

I have to be careful to send some of these cards to people who, either like Mr. Gorey's work, or who know that I'm doing this bi-weekly mailing project. Otherwise, what would they think when they receive this card about morale galoshes out of the blue?

I will send this card to someone who leaves a comment that they would like it. You will need to provide your mailing address either in the comment or in an email to me (unless you know that your address is already in the system) It will be a surprise as the person won't know until they receive the card that they were the one selected. If no one comments then I'll send it to my sister. She'll be confused but will probably guess its from me as she knows how much I love mail and postcards and such.

Crane Thank You Cards

I'm a big fan of Crane & Co as some of you may know. The quality of their paper is first rate as it is 100% cotton. I happen to follow them on Facebook and was rewarded recently when I signed up for a THANK YOU giveaway and won 3 sets of Thank you cards. Sweet!

I should start writing now as there are always lots of people and companies to thank. Now, which card to use first?

Stamps + Ephemera Winner

We have a winner for the May e-newsletter giveaway! Congratulations, Heather M. from Canada! This giveaway was announced in the monthly e-newsletter for May. Odds of winning were1 in 86.

Below are some photos of the assorted stamps and ephemera that were prepared especially for this giveaway.

I had fun putting all of the items together. Here is a portion of them.

Stamps, ticket stubs, page from a dictionary, stickers, stamped images, library card, front of a used envelope, blank sticker label, pictures from magazines, business cards, airmail twine, postcard, portion of a cut out letter, handmade envelope, scrap paper, plus a few other odds and ends.

I used a see-through vinyl packet to store all of the items as you can see below. The clear folder was the perfect receptacle to house the miscellany. Below is the front. At the bottom of the photo you can see a sticker that says "Expressionery" which is where I got this useful folder when I ordered some note cards recently.

Next is the folder when it is opened so you can see the two inside portions.

This last picture is the backside of the folder.

Putting together this packet of stamps + ephemera showed me just how much of this stuff that I have. Expect to see more of these contests in the future.