Ok, so I got this package in the mail…

Which, I mean, look at it…it looks like a bundle of loving excitement! But, then I opened it to find this…

Which was even more exciting.  But, then, I opened that to find all of this…

And I was in postal heaven.  Louise in England, you are amazing!  Thanks so much!

The package also included a lovely response to a past Question of the Week: If you could have a few more hours in the day, what would you use them for?

• My craft room needs tidying up because there’s things all over the floor!
• Bleach the bathroom from ceiling to floor!
• Read some books on pregnancy — I’m 30 weeks pregnant!
• Clean & tidy the whole house ready for our little girl arriving in December =)
• Make some baby crafts
• Rest a little?!?!

Hehee xx

• Make some envelopes.  I’ve run out!

First of all, Louise, congratulations on your baby girl!!  I hope everything is going beautifully for you and your family.  Secondly, expect a little something in the mail soon, and more later!  Your package was truly lovely and put a big smile on my face.

Also, Louise has a fantastic blog, so definitely check it out!

Each letter that arrives comes adorned in its own details of its journey. Different postal stickers, scribbles of writing, postmarks, stamps, and barcodes.

And, yes, those are hamster stamps!

And then you open up these journey-soaked envelopes and find an equally diverse array of beautiful handwritten love.

Pavla from the Czech Republic recently responded to the following Question of the Week: What is your idea for helping save the post office?  It can be silly, bizarre, serious, quantitative, qualitative, or all of the above! 

Here is what she said:

Anyway, you’ve asked about our ideas on how to save the post office.  Well, I don’t have any (not sensible ones), but perhaps offering kids or people some kind of a reward might do the trick.  Like, for each letter you send you’ll get a special sticker and when you have 50 or 100 of them, you’ll be rewarded with something.  Silly.  :)

I’m glad that everything’s fine again with your P.O. Box, and I’m looking forward to your next question.  :)

Take care,

Pavla

P.S. I’m sorry for those hamster stamps.

Pavla, the hamster stamps were fantastic.  And thanks a bunch for sharing your idea!

This project is about promoting handwritten letters (which, in turn, promotes all sorts of other goodness, like kindness, connection, and cheer).  So, no matter how you choose to be involved—whether you’re responding to the questions of the week, requesting a handwritten note from me, or just sending a little “hello” yourself—you’re doing just what you need to do.

This little hello to the project came from Qatar.

Hello from afar,

Came across your blog via a retweet from another fan of letters.  I’m glad you take the time to do this for folks (and keep the USPS chugging along).  I travel a lot so am very happy to write a postcard though at times it’s difficult to determine who would want such an item!  Whenever I visit a city I seek out a post office and request 10 stamps to make it easy on the clerk, especially if we don’t speak the same language.  Acquiring these Qatari stamps the 1st time around was easy but accents were so strong I didn’t try to make conversation.  The stamps were of old world cup (soccer) posters — quite bland for a foreign country stamp.  Upon return to make mailings I purchased more and got these unique “creatures” of Qatar.  Much better, though I need to decide who will get a postcard with a stamp of an earwig.  Haha.  

Take care and hope this reaches you warmly…

This was such a fun and unique note to receive.  I can imagine this writer traveling the world at the same time that his or her handwritten notes also travel to and fro.  It makes me happy to think about the many ways the many places of this big world are brought together.

I’m still behind in my posts.  BUT…I did respond to eighteen requests for lovely handwritten notes this evening!

I look forward to flooding the postal system with art in the morning.  :)

Also, I know I skipped the Question of the Week on Wednesday…I’m sorry.  I vote we start fresh next week!

These lovely handwritten notes are coming in from all over the world. They’re coming from places I have been to and I places I have not.  They’re opening my world up to — the world!  I would love to share the uniqueness of where you live with the followers of this project.  Therefore, here is this week’s Question of the Week:

Tell me about where you live or where you are from.  How does it look, feel, smell?  What are the people like?  What do you love about it?  Is there something you would change about it?

Please send your lovely handwritten response to:

Lovely Handwritten Notes

P.O. Box 2674

Washington, D.C. 20013

United States of America

If you’re wondering what the Question of the Week is and how it works, start here.

I’m leaving town for my sweet California home for a while tomorrow, so I thank you in advance for your patience in regards to my responding to and posting your letters.  I’m also going to spend a little time getting caught up and posting the great responses I have received already from the comfort of my Golden State.  :) 

Maria in Sweden recently responded to the following Question of the Week: Which day of the week do you think is the best day to receive a letter?  Why?

I instantly fell in love with her handcrafted envelope — so fun and bright!

Here’s what Maria had to say in response to the question:

May 26, 2012

Hello,

I love getting mail any day of the week.  But if I should choose one day of the week when I prefer receiving a letter, it’s Friday.

In Sweden we don’t get mail on Saturdays and of course not Sundays.  So Friday is the last chance of the week to get something fun in the mailbox.

By the way, thank you for a great blog! :)

Sunny summer greetings,

Maria

Maria, thank you so much for your response, and I’m glad you like the blog! :)

I think Friday sounds like a wonderful favorite day for mail — the last day to get little smiles in the post to carry you through the weekend.

P.S. Sorry for not posting on a daily basis lately, everyone.  I have been a bit preoccupied, but plan to catch up when I take some vacation days from work next week!  Keep the letters coming — your responses are inspiring!

Morgan is from Australia, and she recently wrote into the project in response to the following Question of the Week: If you could receive a handwritten letter from anyone throughout history, who would it be? Why, and what do you think they would tell you?  What would their letter be like?

Her letter was complete with cheerful pirates.  These pirates had glitter on their clothes and on their canons.  I am a member of the party that believes that a little glitter makes the world a much happier place.

Here’s her stupendous response:

Friday 18th May 2012

Dear Lovely Handwritten Notes,

In response to this week’s question, I would choose to receive a letter from Michelangelo.  In my mind, this letter would be on yellow parchment with paint and ink stains all over it.  His writing style would be extremely cursive, but rushed as I expect he was a busy man.  I chose Michelangelo because he is an extremely influential art historian.  He was a known sculptor, painter, architect, and poet.  He created the magnificent works of “David,” “The Creation of Man,” and he painted the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling.  All incredible achievements.

I believe he would talk about how busy his life is and all the demands and commissions he receives.  He saw himself as a sculptor, but his paintings were just as incredible.  If we were corresponding, I would ask him about what he believed were his favourite works.  I think I would also ask him if he regretted not marrying or having kids, but spent his whole life centered around his work. Anyway, that would be my historical figure I would love to hear from.

— Morgan

An art lover myself, I agree with Morgan that this would be a wonderful letter to receive.

Thanks for writing in! :)

Yesenia’s handwritten wonderfulness from Puerto Rico came in a fantastic envelope.

It was complete with this lovely quote stamped on the inside.

Yesenia responded to the following Question of the Week: If you could receive a handwritten letter from anyone throughout history, who would it be?  Why, and what do you think they would tell you?  What would their letter be like?

May 17, 2012

I would’ve loved to receive a letter from an unknown ancestor of mine.  Someone that did not know of my being, but that thought of me decades before my existence and that decided to leave a letter for me, knowing that someday I would read it.  I imagine that it could be from a great grandmother that lived at the beginning of the past century.  I think that her letter would include words of love and encouragement to live a life well lived and to enjoy the opportunities that destiny brings to me; to be enthusiastic about life and the future that awaits.

I imagine that her letter would include words of wisdom that tell the tales of the struggles of life, that a girl of her time would encounter and that she supposes, I would go through too.  Her letter would store some anecdotes worth saving for over a hundred years in a drawer, where she talks about people I would never meet, customs I would never understand and a time I would never know.  Dreams, ideas and secrets would be addressed to me, just for her desire to create a deeper connection with a girl that would “hopefully” understand her and make her live forever through “time-capsuled” handwritten words.  Always meant for an unknown yet familiar girl, living in an unrecognizable and uncertain future.

How did I analyze and think about my answer, the truth is that THIS IS WHAT I WANT TO DO for a future, yet unknowingly existent great great granddaughter of mine or a relative that I won’t have the opportunity to meet, but that I know will live someday.  I’ve always wanted to do it and I hope I will!!

I guess it sounds weird and maybe a little conceited, but I would just like to let her know that I existed.  I would like her to know, that somebody had the hope that she came into this world and that somebody thought of her before anybody else did.

I think it would be great to find words of wisdom left just for you, kept for years hidden or stored God knows where, just waiting for you; no matter how random they might be, in the end they might take a meaning of their own.

The first time I read Yesenia’s response, I just about melted.  What a romantically beautiful idea.  A handwritten note, all folded up, waiting to touch the heart of a future dreamer.  I receive letters from truly sensational minds.

Thank you so, so much, Yesenia, for such a thoughtful response that tickled my own dreaming heart.

I’m in awe of the creative souls this project attracts.

It’s the little details of this handmade postal love that can brighten any day.

One of these lovely souls goes by the delightful name of Madeline, and she lives in the United Kingdom.  I received this handmade card from her in the mail.  Yes, handmade.  Isn’t it beautiful?  It is so elegant and I love the colors.  I am truly impressed.

Madeline responded to a previous Question of the Week: Have you ever received a letter from another country?  Where, and from whom?  Do you remember what it looked like?  Had you yourself ever traveled there before, or did the letter make you want to?  If you haven’t received one, have you ever sent one to someone while visiting another country?

4th May 2012

…yes, I have received a letter from another country.  I once went on exchange to Hamburg, Germany, and before my trip my partner and I exchanged letters.  I think the first one was written in all different colours.  I was fascinated by the little things, like how Germans write their 1’s like a seven.  Strange thing to remember, but it stuck in my head.  I always loved getting those letters from Germany, and still do (we stayed in touch)…

All the best,

Madeline

I love that Madeline remembered the smallest details of these letters. What great memories to carry.

Thank you so much for such a fantastic, handmade card, Madeline! :)