Paper Tams Make Mail Kit

Greetings on this beautiful May Day morning. I'm very excited to share some Paper Tams news. This month I am launching the Paper Tams Make Mail Kit. 

This kit is the result of putting countless mail art and letter writing kits together for classes taught over the past year. It includes many of my favorite items for making mail. 

Inside you will find six sheets of my favorite off white Tomoe River writing paper. This paper is fountain pen friendly while having a tissue thin feel of the letters of old. I feel like Jane Austen when writing on it.

Also included is a small mail art pack for making three vintage style envelopes much like the ones I make and share on my Instagram account. The pack contains kraft envelopes, address labels and various collage items like vintage papers, decorative napkin, tissue sheet, tags and tickets. 

At this time, The Paper Tams Make Mail Kits will be sold exclusively by the kind proprietor, Tona Bell, at The Paper Seahorse in Tampa, Florida. They will be available online and in her beautiful shop, which I encourage you to visit. Be on the lookout for them this month. 

Journal Prompt: How Do You Give Back?

When I sat down to journal about my vision and goals last year, I organized my thoughts into four different categories: Mind, Body, Soul, and Earth.  The Earth category includes any and everything I can do to give back to the universe. I feel it is very important to give back.

Over the years, I've found many ways to give back. Mostly it's been through volunteering my time or giving financially. But, this year I'm taking a different approach. I am working hard to give back to the earth. 

My home sits on two lots and the yard is quite large. When I first moved in 8 years ago, I did what most people do when they buy a home. I started taking care of my precious green lawn. The house came with a really nice sprinkler system. And, I hired someone to come each week to maintain and care for this lawn. Over time, I started to notice a few trends. 

First came to constant need to seed, fertilize and water the beast. As I watched patches die, I wondered what I was doing wrong. I was told to water more. This immediately bothered me because I felt like I was already using too much water. Add to that, I was learning more about Florida's fresh water challenges as we are seeing sea level rise around the coastal areas. 

A few years ago I decided to stop watering and let nature take it's course. The weekly lawn service was reduced to just cutting what grass managed to grow. Here's what happened. Half my yard turned into dirt and mud during the rainy season. The other half turned into mostly weeds.  

Then something magical happened. New neighbors moved in beside me and I watched as they slowly ripped out their lawn and turned their back yard into the most beautiful butterfly garden. No grass. Just gorgeous plants, shrubs, trees and natural walk ways. I loved it so much I started spending several evenings just sitting with them in the garden and enjoying wine. Not only was it beautiful, it took less water and maintenance than a lawn. Many of the plants they used are drought tolerant. Their garden also gave back to nature, feeding the butterflies, bees and other beneficial critters. 

So this year I'm working hard to turn my back yard into something that gives back to Mother Earth instead of just taking her resources. The project is a slow one because I'm doing all the work myself and I have a limited budget. But, it is so rewarding. If you are interested in what has happened so far, I've shared some highlights in my most recent journaling video below. 

Creating With Intention: My First Junk Journal

Lately, I've been paying attention to things that draw me in and capture my heart. For the past two weeks I've been attracted to a series of videos featuring the paper crafts of a lady named Angie Bunner. She has no social media accounts of her own, but her creations are so beautiful many people share them on their own channels. 

For days I could not figure out what it was about her crafts that were attracting me. Everything she did resonated with me. After watching videos over and over, I finally figured it out. Her style reminds me of the French brocante and how I have always loved the light and colors of Paris. 

Me in Paris many moons ago. I love the blue and grey colors. Something about it reminds me of oysters. Photo Credit: P. Bright

This realization took me back to my time in France and Paris years ago. It reminded me of how much the French love of pleasure has inspired my life. I decided to take all this further and create my own "junk journal" and see where the process took me. 

A junk journal is a hand made journal created with scraps of things you have around the house. Many people give their journals a vintage look by tea or coffee dying the papers. I like this look and experimented with it. First, I started by making a few paper tags. Then I quickly moved on to the journal, itself. It was like it had to be created. I didn't stop until it was done. 

This journal took a while to make. I stayed up late for several nights working to complete it. I've included a flip through video of the final product below. I'm happy with the end result, but it was the process that was the most revealing to me. I had forgotten how much I loved France and the things I learned during my time there. Since the completion of the journal, I've been slowly incorporating these learnings back into my life. Starting with cooking and eating with pleasure. 

I challenge you to be more mindful of the things that are drawing you in. Explore it. There may be more to it than meets the eye.