The Language of Stamps

You have to see this lovely and wonderfully illustrated post on the blog Poemas del río Wang on the now-vanished delicate art of stamp placement. Depending on how you placed a stamp on an envelope, it told an informed recipient you sent a kiss, you were thinking of them — or (sadly) that you were not free. Fascinating — and something it would be charming to revive for Valentine's Day, I think.


(untitled painting by Raimundo de Madrazo y Garreta {1841-1920} via poemas del río wang)

For BPS Members Only

Just for BPS members — a little advance notice about a rather special giveaway on my automatism blog tomorrow! I'll be giving away a set of six collectable stamps produced by the Royal Mail, celebrating the work of the world renowned design house Morris & Co. For a chance to win one of five presentation packs, stop by automatism tomorrow and leave a comment. They're gorgeous — I know you'll love them!

xo


(photo by me)

Just a Reminder

November 20, the postcard package mailing deadline, is approaching! To make sure your package doesn't get lost in the holiday mailing loopiness, send it off as soon as you can ...


(photo via anthropologie)

BPS Giveaway!

I've been wanting to do a little thank you to the wonderful members of the BPS for a while, so I thought we'd have a fun giveaway for the BPS! Three lucky Benevolent Postcard Society members will each win a set of one large and one small stamp magnet, reproductions of antique European stamps. All you have to do is leave a comment below for a chance to win. Contest closes at 12 midnight (PST) on March 15 2010 — I'll announce the winners on March 16. Good luck!

Please note: this contest is open to BPS members only — thanks for your interest!

Chocolate-Scented Postage Stamps

Last month France's postal service La Poste released a limited edition chocolate-themed — and chocolate-scented! — set of ten postage stamps to celebrate the 400th anniversary of chocolate's arrival in France in 1609. Getting mail with these would not only be fun, but delicious. From Serious Eats, via A Cup of Jo.