Happy Mail For A PenPal! - #SendALetterDay

I was trying to think of something more 'interesting' for this hashtag, but figured that actually sharing some happy mail I'm sending along with a few of my personal tips when it comes to sending mail, might be helpful.

I've been out of the routine of sending letters to my penpals for a while now. My journals took over at one point and when MyGreenCow became my full time job I had to focus my time into other creative hobbies that I found myself being more motivated about. I basically had too many creative hobbies, and not enough time to do them all!

But I'm slowly getting back in the groove of things with happy mail, and I have missed it a lot. Saying that, the past couple of months I have been a little MIA from my penpals with everything that's been going on. But I am getting there, and I'm excited!

I wanted to share this not so 'super fancy' piece of happy mail. As much as I love sending out a flip book or something that I've spent a while creating, I do love putting together a simple but fun piece of mail. 

My go to for this is just the letter, and a little pocket of goodies. It doesn't have to be super decorated and packed full of things. I do my best to keep my letters to the 'letter' sizing that Royal Mail have, not just to keep costs down, but it also restricts me from going too over the top on decoration etc.

The little pocket of goodies tends to include some fun bits and pieces from my stash. In this one there is a few pieces of ephemera, some sticky notes and some mini envelopes. Sometimes I don't include a whole pocket of things, I might just pop a few flat pieces inside the letter. I think for things like goodies, you just have to talk to your penpal and see if they are wanting to do lots of goody swapping, or if they would prefer to focus on the letter writing. 

Personally I like shorter letters (1 or 2 pages) and a couple of goodies, with both sending and receiving. I don't have the time to sit and reply to a letter for hours on end, I'd prefer to be able to write a reply to someone in half an hour or so. 

There's no right or wrong length to a letter, just make sure you and your penpal are on the same page.

Envelope decorating is probably one of my favourite parts of creating happy mail. I think it's because I know that this part of the letter will put a smile on any postal workers faces too (well I like to hope!).

With all the bland, beige envelopes passing through the system everyday, I feel like it's nice to just make a little effort on the outside to break up all the blandness. 

You do have to be considerate of placement of stickers etc. Make sure you leave some space for the address label, the stamps and if you're sending it abroad then an airmail sticker and sometimes a customs form. 

One of my personal must have tools for happy mail is a set of weighing scales and one of these postage rulers! I have used this thing so much since I've had it. It's handy to be somewhat prepared for how much things will cost to send, before I get to the post office. 

I sometimes buy stamps in advance, and use the online postage calculator Royal Mail have. That way I don't have to go to the post office to buy stamps and send things, I can just pop them in my nearest post box.

You can find these rulers for about £5 on ebay if you search 'postage ruler'.

The ruler I have has two slots, one for the 'Letter' size and one for the 'Large Letter' sizing (I'm not sure if there's something similar for those of you who aren't in the UK).

Do you sending happy mail?

- Daisy X

*Please note, no products featured were sent to me for the purpose of this blogpost.

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I Bought 500 Postage Stamps!

Whilst searching on eBay for old postcards, I came across bulk listings of used postage stamps from all around the world. I've always loved stamps, and when I sent lots of happy mail I would collect the stamps in a little book.

So when I saw these listings I just had to get one. They were all lucky dips and the prices did range. In the end I decided to get a pack of 500 for £3.00 (total bargain if you ask me!) 

When I shared a photo on my Instagram I got the question 'what do you use them for'. The short answer is, as ephemera.

But I'll use them in my journals, on happy mail, in my art and wherever else I fancy! Some have such beautiful pictures on them, I'm really tempted to cover a notebook in them!

I did in fact count them all, you know, just to check I wasn't being taken for a fool by the eBay seller aha! I received 504 stamps in this pack, there was a massive variety, with stamps from all over the place! It was so much fun looking through them all. I think my favourite thing about these stamps is the fact that they are all used. They all have the stamp on them to show you that they've been through the postal system. The fact that each one of these stamps has been on its own little journey across the world just fascinates me so much!

This one was one of my favourites, it had a holographic image on it. When I found it, it took me back to the days of collecting Pokemon cards and finding a shiny! This was the only one like this I could find, but I'm going to have to look online to see if it was part of a set or something.

These were some of my other favourites that I came across. Of course I picked some of the most colourful stamps in there. But I also loved the tree stamps on the right, they were all still attached to each other and the detail in them is just amazing. I'm going to definitely keep some of these for my own little stamp book so I can cherish them for a long time.

I loved finding stamps from the same collection in there too, there were so many butterfly stamps! In this photo there's two individual sets, which are both equally beautiful. The owls were again another set I'd love to look into, and see what the other ones look like, because they are just so pretty. 

If you are interested in the exact seller I bought them from, you can find a link to their eBay page here.

There's lots of sellers on there with many different sized bulks and prices, so shop around and see what you can find. They really do make great ephemera and you don't know what little gems you're going to find in the pack!

- Daisy X

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Travelling Mail! [ TAKE PART & JOIN IN THE FUN!]

What is Travelling Mail? How is it different from normal happy mail? How can I get involved?

Travelling Mail is a type of snailmail (mail sent through the postal service, not virtually/online) that ultimately makes it way back to you. 

You set it off by sending it to a penpal, or to someone on the Travelling Mail Facebook group. They will add something to it, and then send it onto another person, that person will go through the exact same process, and so on. When it's full up and there's no more room for other people to add to it, the last person will get in touch with you to send it on it's last journey home!

I've found it to be one of the most interesting and rewarding types of mail to send & take part in.

There's two different types of Travelling Mail that I personally enjoy sending, those are Travelling Notebooks & Travelling Postcards. I've created a printable for both kinds, which are both available to download and print off in the Travelling Mail Facebook group.

On these sheets there is all the information you will need to attach to your notebook or postcard, making the whole process a lot simpler for you. Of course you can create your own rules for it, but I know not everyone wants to go through that process, and would prefer to just get on with setting their mail off on it's journey!

Below I have put together some helpful how-to's, which should help you get started. I've included things you will need, and a few tips you might want to take note of to make sure your travelling mail's journey, goes as smoothly as possible.

What you will need...

1. A small notebook. I'd recommend nothing bigger than a C6 sized envelope, as this will help to keep the postage costs down.

2. The printable info sheet. This is available on the Travelling Mail Facebook group. 

3. Something to attach the info sheet to your notebook. Use whatever floats your boat really! Just make sure it's somehow attached to the notebook.

REMEMBER - If you are using the printable info sheet's I've provided, you need to number your pages in your notebook! 

Just go through from front to back writing 1, 2, 3, 4 on sets of four pages. This makes it easier for people to know how much space they have to use, and also gives you a good idea of how many people will be able to take part.

What you will need...

1. A postcard. Or a few! I usually set off a couple at a time.

2. The printable info sheet. This is available on the Travelling Mail Facebook group. 

3. Something to attach the info sheet to your postcard. Again, use whatever you fancy! Just make sure it's somehow attached to the postcard, a paper clip or washi works the best for postcards.

So I hope that has helped to answer some questions about Travelling Mail! 

A couple of things to take into account when sending out this type of mail ... 

- If you are under the age of 18 please make sure you have got permission to share your address before taking part in anything like this.

- This type of mail can sometimes go missing, it happens unfortunately. But at the end of the day it's only a small notebook or a postcard, and a bit of postage you are loosing out on. So if it happens, it happens!

- If you are unsure of how much something will cost to post, always, always, always, ask at your local Post Office! It will save a lot of faffing in the long run.

 Please come on over and join us on the Travelling Mail Facebook group! The more people over there, the more places our travelling mail can visit.

I hope this all makes sense, if anything confuses you though, please ask!

- Daisy X

Happy Mail For Alice! April 2016

I'm definitely getting back into the swing of things with my happy mail. I'm still quite slow with getting replies out, but I'm at least managing to juggle my time around so I can create something fun and pretty for my penpals!

Today I have my most recent piece of Happy Mail to share with you all! This is for my penpal Alice (@the_lost_fox81 on Instagram). I did do a process video for this, and that will be at the bottom of this blogpost if you would like to see how I made it from start to finish.

For this piece I used two 6x6 pieces of card and stuck them together. I then folded both ends inwards to make it more of a rectangular shape (see the video to understand exactly how I did this). On the front I added a doily to break up the space a bit, stuck down some washi, and a little wooden 'hello' tag. I wrote 'Dear Alice' on some white sticky labels, and cut out each word separately then stuck them on. Instead of sticking down something else in the gap at the bottom, I decided to tie some string around the letter to hold it together, and tuck in some little glittery heart stickers.

Inside on the left I decided to stick down a little mini envelope with some stickers inside. At the top is where I put the actual letter, I chose to use a binder clip to hold this in place instead of sticking it in. Underneath the binder clip I also added some little cupcake stickers along with a little hand cut and hand drawn envelope. These little envelopes are the simplest things to create, and they make such cute additions to happy mail!

On the right hand side of the inside, I stapled down the flap at the end to make it into a little pocket. In here I added lots of little gifts for my penpal. Because the pocket is folded inwards, it means I could fit a lot of things inside, as when the happy mail is closed nothing will fall out. 

Remember, you don't have to include goodies for your penpal, they are an added bonus. I don't always send this much every single time, but I've not written to Alice for a while, so wanted to send a bundle of goodies in this letter!

I also sent along a Travelling Postcard that I received from someone else, I'm really enjoying sending travelling items with my happy mail. They are great fun to take part in and something a little different to receive. 

On the back I added a little tag with some washi tape samples on. When I send washi tape samples with a letter I tend to send the tapes I've used on the happy mail itself. They just look like they 'go' with the happy mail better by doing this. I collaged a few stickers on the doily, to fill in some of this blank space.

I really like how the pocket on this one turned out, it's definitely a lot 'safer' because things are very unlikely to fall out of the letter.

If you want to know a little more about Travelling Postcards, then you can take a look at my blogpost on them here.

Feel free to watch the video I made, to see how I put this happy mail piece together:

There's a full list of the supplies I used to create this happy mail in the description of the video!

- Daisy X

Spring Pocket Letter, Brimbles Box Special!

Can we say 'Spring has sprung' yet?! Are we officially there? Well spring definitely sprung on this Pocket Letter I made!

If you saw my video on Monday (It'll be at the bottom of this blogpost if you missed it!), then you would have seen that this month most of the ladies in the Mrs Brimbles Design Team are taking part in a blog hop (makes sense, bunnies and all!!). 

We used most of the contents of our Brimbles Boxes from March to create some happy mail for one another. I was creating a pocket letter for the lovely Charlie from Sea Salt & Paper!

I'm going to talk through my thought process when creating this pocket letter, if you want to know where all the supplies are from, then take a look at the description on the video, as I listed them all there!

Top Row

So to start things off, in the top left pocket I used part of a Belle & Boo postcard for the backing card. It had a really cute section to write the address on, so I decided to have that side facing forwards. I added some brown twine along the edge as there was a large blank space next to it.

The middle card is part of the postcard from the Brimbles Box, I felt so bad chopping this bunny in half, but I think it turned out looking really nice. Postcards are a nice addition to Pocket Letters as they don't involve too much decorating, of course it'd be a bit boring if you used postcards in all of the pockets. But every now and again it's a good plan if you are struggling with what to fill a pocket with. I also added some of the felt flower shapes to the front, and put a few more of the felt shapes in the back.

The last pocket on this row is a washi pocket! For the backing card I used some packaging from the Belle & Boo letter set, and I wrapped the actual washi tape around some of the packaging from the packet of felt shapes! I put another card with washi tape on in the back of the pocket and added a bit of brown twine to the top so it pokes out.

Middle Row

I used the same pink backing card for the pocket on the left, I decided to use this card a couple of times as I thought the colours were perfect, and as I was going to have a lot going on as it is, I didn't want to add too many different colours into the mix. I made this pocket into a sticker pocket, and added some of the stickers I was putting in the pocket, to the front along with some washi tape for decoration.

The middle pocket was the pocket I had the actual letter in. I chose to use more of the Belle & Boo writing set packaging for this! I debated whether to stick it to some other patterned card, but decided to leave it by itself and have a little see through window instead! I folded up the letter, decorated it, and added that in.

The last pocket on this row was a paperclip pocket. I used the other half of the postcard I used in the first pocket on the first row, as the backing card. But this time I had the front showing. I tried a couple of ways to attach the paperclips, but this way worked the best. I simply stapled a strip of card to the backing card and folded it over, then I just clipped on the paperclips.

Bottom Row

I added another sticker pocket on this pocket letter, I feel like you really can't go wrong with stickers! I'd used a few stickers from this sticker pad on the actual pocket letter, so it made sense to send some in the pocket. The backing card in this pocket, again, was some of the card from the felt shapes packaging!

This middle pocket I decided to try something new. These carrot tags came in the Brimbles Box, and I wasn't sure what to do with them. I did think about painting one, and then I had a pretty simple idea of punching out some shapes in the colours of carrots! I actually didn't have any orange paper to hand, so I used part of a colour guide booklet I'd recently picked up from Homebase. I'm actually really happy with how this turned out, it kind of acts a bit like a shaker pocket!

In this last pocket I added some twine and ribbon. I stapled some 'samples' of the different things I'd included in this pocket to the front of the card, and then on the outer plastic of the pocket I stuck down some washi and stickers for decoration.

This is what the front & back of the finished pocket letter looks like! I really enjoyed challenging myself to use mostly things from my Brimbles Box, I think I did quite well. I tried out some new techniques, and overall I think it looks super Springy!

I added some yellow twine along the left hand side and also going across the bottom section in a bow. This is something that's easy to add to a pocket letter and definitely helps to make that left hand side a little less bare. 

I folded up the pocket letter and added a little bit of ribbon, along with this adorable bunny die cut I got from Noodoll. I've been hoarding him for a while, and haven't been sure what to do with him, so I'm glad he is now going to do a bit of travelling!

If you want to see the process video of how I put this pocket letter together, from start to finish, then you can do so here:

Don't forget to head over to Charlie's blog HERE, and have a look at what she created!! Here's a little sneak peak for you:

I hope you enjoyed seeing what I did for this fun little Easter blog hop! 

You can find links to all the blogposts in the blog hop on Anna's post which is HERE. 

Also don't forget to give them all a follow whilst you are over there! They are all wonderfully creative ladies, and run such lovely blogs.

I hope you all have a lovely Easter weekend, whatever you end up doing!

- Daisy X

Happy Mail For Masturah! March 2016

The other day I posted a video on some Happy Mail I created for my penpal Masturah!

I thought I'd share a few close up photo's, and talk a little bit about what I chose to use and why.

There is a full list of supplies in the description of the video I posted, so I'll leave that video at the bottom of the blogpost if you want to find the products I used.

As usual I picked out some card stock that I liked and used that to create a colour scheme. Once I'd figured out the sort of colours I wanted to go with I then picked out some washi tapes, and other bits and pieces I wanted to use.

I find this is the easiest way to start as it gets you thinking about what colours look good, and sparks ideas for pockets & goodies too! I've found that a good way to finish a piece of happy mail is by using some twine. Quite literally tying things up in a neat bow really does work!

I've been stapling a lot of the pockets onto the happy mail recently, as I find this a really simple and strong way to create them. Especially as a majority of the happy mail I've been sending has been sent abroad, so the strength really helps. Of course washi tape works just as well, but the stickiness can vary depending on the brand and style, and after being bumped about in the postal system you don't know how it will be when your penpal receives it!

As far as the goodies I included go, I decided to send one of my new Travelling Postcards with this happy mail (you can find out more about those here), I added some stickers in the pocket on the left and some sticky notes, and die cuts in the middle pocket. On the right I used one of the notecards from Fancy Paperie, and wrote my mail tag on it.

I didn't get a photo of the pocket for the actual letter (well done Daisy haha, but it's already been sent now!) but you'll be able to see in the video when I'm putting it together.
I did manage to use up almost all of the 'blank' space on the card, fingers crossed my penpal will like it!

Though it looks like there is a lot going on, this is a very simple style of happy mail. I could have added a lot more, but I was very aware that it was being sent outside of the UK, so in order to keep postage costs down, I tried to go with minimal decoration and instead pack it full of goodies.

It's definitely something to consider as I'm pretty sure this cost me around the £4 mark to send?

I don't think happy mail has to be super busy to look good. Sometime you just need a nice colour scheme going on and it will look just as fun!

You can watch the video below to see how I put it together, and don't forget to check the description for a full list of supplies used!

- Daisy X

Travelling Postcards! [ TAKE PART & JOIN IN THE FUN! ]

A few months ago one of my first ever travelling postcards arrived back with me! I had completely forgotten I'd even sent it out, so it was a wonderful surprise when it was back in my hands.

I can't remember how long ago I started it as, being one of the first ones I'd sent out I didn't really know what information I wanted to included on the card so forgot to ask people to put the date.
I kept it simple and just asked people to put their name and where they were from on there.

Everyone who took part also added their Instagram and a little message which was really sweet. It was nice to see what was added as it was sent from one person to another, and it gave me ideas on what I wanted to include on any future travelling postcards.

I know it must have been a long time since I sent it out because it had my old email address and blog on the info sheet, both of which I hadn't had used for a good half a year. I've now obviously updated this and it's something to keep in consideration, you need to make sure at least one of the contact details isn't something that will be changed in the next year or so.

It can sometimes take a while for them to get back to you, but at the end of it you will have a postcard that has been lots of different locations.

The info sheet to send along with your postcard will contain your contact details (an email and your IG if you have it), so when it's complete the last person can contact you to get your address and then send the postcard home, this way you only have to give you address to one person.

There's also information on what to put on the postcard, and a short section with some rules and guidance for anyone who is new to travelling postcards.

I have actually created a PDF file that you can easily print off, cut out and fill in to send with your postcards. So the 'hard work' has been done for you! You can of course create your own, you might have a particular goal in mind, like specific places you want your postcard to travel to, or a certain number of people to take part. Make sure you include this information on the info sheet to make it easier for the people contributing to your postcards.

I have created a facebook group for travelling postcards and this is where I have uploaded the file for anyone to use, so feel free to come over and join in the fun. I'll talk a little more about the group at the end of this blogpost.

When it comes to what you actually need to send out a travelling postcard, it's pretty minimal.

You'll need postcards (obviously haha), preferably the classic size as you are going to be sending these along with a penpal letter or on their own so you'll want to keep the postage cost's low. You'll also need the info sheet, a paperclip to attach the sheet to the postcard and an envelope to send it in!

I get many of my postcards from Paperchase, they have an amazing selection, and thanks to them I've become a bit of a postcard hoarder! So I thought it was about time I found a way to get the postcards travelled but also ultimately be able to keep them.

So if like me you hoard postcards but feel a bit bad that they are sitting in a box blank, then this might be something you want to try. At the end of the day if they go missing you've lost out on a postcard and a bit of postage, BUT if they make it full circle it's an awesome to find out where it's been and who's contributed.

They also don't take up a ton of room, so once you get them back you can easily store them in a photo album or something.

The point of these postcards isn't to share a story or a message with one person, it's to share a journey across the world with many people who also enjoy sending snailmail.

If you don't have any penpals then you can still join in! As I said before, I've created a Facebook group where you can find people to take part. You will also have access to the printable info sheet so you can get started straight away! Come join the group here.

I just want to thank everyone who took part in my first ever travelling postcard, especially Erica for getting it back to me safely!

I'm looking forward to getting some travelling postcards sent out, and fingers crossed contributing to some of your postcards too! If you have any questions then let me know.

- Daisy X

P.s. 'Travelling' is spelt right, we spell it with two 'L's' here in the UK ;)

Happy Mail For Tabby! February 2016

I'm really getting into the swing of things with creating happy mail. I've always loved doing it, but I just haven't always had the time to sit down and do it. I've made it a personal goal to put a lot more effort back into my penpal letters! I have all these things to use, to create something beautiful, but because I'm worried about getting behind with replies I rush through them and forget about the whole reason I started sending snailmail. I haven't been taking on anymore penpals recently, and have also agreed to stop writing to a couple as I don't want to let them down. I feel like I've now got a nice amount of penpals to continue with this little snailmail journey without feeling too much pressure.

You may have already seen the video I did for this happy mail, if you haven't then it will be at the bottom of this blogpost so you can watch it there. But I have added a few things to it after I stopped recording, sometimes that just happens. I will record the process,  pack everything away, and then realise that actually I wanted to add something, or something doesn't feel 'complete'. Even though I'm dedicated to creating a good video, I'm not going to set my camera & lighting back up to film me putting down a strip of washi tape and a couple of stickers, so I hope you guys can understand that!

So I did go with a colour scheme for this one as you can tell. I didn't choose the colour scheme straight away, I picked out some card I wanted to use and then chose everything else to go with them.

If you aren't sure about how to choose a colour scheme then doing it this way might help you. The card is the bread of your happy mail sandwich!!

I did debate whether to write straight onto the card when replying to the letter part of the happy mail, but I didn't want it too look too busy. Instead I chose to staple a band one of the middle section, and just tuck the letter behind it. I used my Technique Tuesday Stamps to write 'HEY TABBY' (definitely my new favourite alphabet stamp set hehe). I stamped the date above this as I had kind of slanted the text a bit when stamping, so the date helped to fill this space above and it didn't look as wonky.

If you didn't want any of the written letter showing, you could always pop it in a mini envelope and tuck that behind it instead. It'd look just as cute!

I tend to write the mail tag part on an actual tag in my letters, as long as I have some tags hanging about in my stash. I feel like it's just a little bit more fun and something different to have in the letter. I attached some twine to the top, and stapled it to the card. Instead of cutting off the twine in line with the card I decided to leave it long, trim the end and add a sticky not to the top! I folded it round and cut a triangle out of the end to make it kind of look like a flag. It adds a little extra interest to the happy mail when you have things popping out the sides. Obviously being string it can easily be tucked in, to fit inside the envelope.

Under the mail tag I stuck down a journaling card to help fill in the blank space. I then answered the mail tag questions Tabby sent me, and on the end flap I added lots of paperclips which kind of went with the colour scheme I had going on.

Before starting this happy mail I did rummage through my stash and pull out a few things that I thought might go well with the colour scheme. I scattered bold text throughout the mail, as the colours I went with were all very similar to one another, so contrasting them with the bold make it all pop a lot better! If I'd gone with yellow/orange/red coloured text or a more 'floaty' style font, then it would have all blended into a big happy mail soup. Of course there's nothing wrong with this, but I prefer things to just POP!!

So there you go! That's my most recent piece of happy mail for my penpal Tabby!

I'm really really enjoying creating happy mail again, I can't wait to move so I will have more time to create! 

If you want to see the process video, you can do so here:

You will find a full list of supplies used, in the video description, so if you were wondering where things are from take a look there.

Speak to you all soon!!

- Daisy X

Happy Mail For Jack!

I put together this card/letter/mini project thing for Jack almost two weeks go now, but I obviously didn't want to do a blogpost on it until he had definitely received it!!

I did briefly mention a little bit about this, on an Instagram photo I posted. But basically, me and Jack are currently going long distance (again, lost count of how many times this is now), and we would always send each other mail, but recently I haven't really sent him anything.

We are going to be moving into our own place very soon, it was mean to happen at the end of 2015 but didn't. There's been delays with the process and the house is still a complete mess. BUT it's all moving along gradually, and we are closer than we've ever been before.

Anyways, I wanted to put together a nice bit of happy mail for him, seeing as once we've moved in together, this is something we will no longer be able to do!

I picked up this Paperchase card a while back, and I kept it to send to Jack. But I wanted to do something a bit more fun with it, instead of just writing a little message inside.

I had plenty of ideas whizzing around my head, so like always I just rolled with them. No planning, no initial colour scheme to go by, just my brain ideas and trying things out as I go.

When you open it up this is what you first see. I added a large journaling card in the middle so I can have an extra page to work on, and a smaller journaling card on the left with a beautiful quote on.

Because the larger journaling card was very orangey, I went with that as a colour scheme for this section. I picked out some gold and orange tapes, and also put a splash of red & orange watercolour on the bottom section. At the top of the left side I added some film strip washi tape and a fun sticker from Anke Panke, along with a little sun emoji sticker.

When you open the flap on the left, there is one of my favourite little photo collages. This is from the only holiday me and Jack have ever been on together, we went to surprise my family in Cornwall. We were laying on one of my favourite beaches in Cornwall, trying to take a nice selfie but the sun was so bright we couldn't actually see what was being taken. We were trying our best to smile and then ended up laughing because we couldn't see what was going on, none of the photos were overly posed, they were natural and lovely.

On the left hand side I added a little caption. Over the photo collage I added a little bit of 'Love You' Washi Tape from HEMA, and a kiss face emoji sticker.

When you flip the larger journaling card over, this is what it on the other side. This colour scheme was a little more random, each side sort of has it's own colours going on. 

I was going to have two flaps in this section but I didn't like how it would be unbalanced, having double flaps at the bottom of each of the pages.

The left hand side flap is a square journaling card which meant I could stick a larger photo onto it. It is a photo I found on Pinterest and has a very similar layout to our living room. Obviously it's not exact, but having visual goals is always really nice especially since the whole moving process is taking such a long time. 

Hooked onto the photo is a little Noodoll bookmark I got for Christmas from Jack. I've found these really hard to use because they are so cute, so I've been hoarding them. But adding this one to a card to Jack means I technically get to keep it about right?!

When you open the flap there's another photo, this one is actually a photo of some polaroid photos I took when we went on a little trip up to Pendle Hill. It was the first time I'd tried my Instax camera to take selfie's and it was hard to know what was in shot and what wasn't. It was also super sunny which never helps things haha.

On the back of the square journaling card flap, I attached a little bingo card. I got these in a Hey Little Magpie random grab box (I think), and the instructions on how to use them confused me. So I basically told Jack to use a random number generator to generate ten numbers. If he got a row then he would win a prize. Funny enough he didn't win, even after letting him have two extra goes!!

Last of all I added a little photo of our new house, with a sarcastic caption of 'hopefully by spring yeh?!' seeing as moving in wasn't happening anytime soon. But now looking at the timescale and what's getting done with the house, it will most likely be somewhen around Springtime that we move in! I used a mixture of alphabet stickers from Hey Little Magpie, HEMA and the 'Spring' sticker is from a Simple Stories sheet.

So that's how my little happy mail project for Jack turned out. I was really chuffed with it, even though it's a bit all over the place. I enjoyed making it and he was totally surprised to receive it, so all in all it was a success!! 

It definitely makes me want to do more happy mail projects like this, because they are so different to other sorts of mini projects. You know you are making them to make someone else smile, so there's a lot of motivation to make it as fun and interactive as possible.

I hope you enjoyed seeing what I created, and thank you for reading!

- Daisy X

Fancy Paperie Etsy Shop Share!

So recently I was sent a beautiful package of paper goodies to share with you guys from Fancy Paperie!

 I featured them in my recent Collective Haul video, you can see that here.

Amanda, who is the owner of Fancy Paperie sent me a variety of products to show you, all of which she designed herself. She has a pretty unique style which is one of the things I really loved about her products. They have a lovely hand painted feel, and the colours used are so beautiful!

Above is the Pastel Floral letter set, included in this set are x6 green envelopes, x12 sheets of card stock to write on, and then x6 letter seal stickers. I was surprised that the cards you write on were in fact card not paper! It's definitely different to any other writing set I've had before, and I was really impressed with the quality of the card.

The stickers have been hand cut so they aren't 'perfect', but again I think that adds to the handmade feel of all the products.

The Fancy Floral postcard set was definitely my favourite out of everything I was sent!

I think I just preferred the pattern and colours used on these, plus I'm a bit of a sucker for pretty postcards. You get six in a pack, and they are completely blank on the back. These are also the only product I received which have a glossy finish to them, which I definitely prefer to the matt finish of all the other products.

Above is the Hello Doll Floral Greeting card, this was completely blank on the inside so it can be used for any occasion. I tend to use cards like this a lot when I'm sending RAK's or when I want to add a little note in a giveaway package. Alternatively if you want to write a letter to a penpal on something other than a letter set, greeting cards are just as lovely to use. 

The last thing Amanda sent me was one of the cards from her Holiday Greeting cards collection. Again this card is blank on the inside, so it is more versatile. You can buy this card in a pack of ten, you get x5 of this design, and then you'll receive x5 of the white fox design! They all come with a brown kraft envelope.

Overall I am impressed with Amanda's designs, they are beautifully unique and I can't wait to start using them! I feel like the print on the postcards is much better quality than the rest, I'm not sure whether this is just because they have a glossy finish or what. But they are just much more crisp than the other designs.

Saying that though, her prices are very reasonable for the products you receive. The postage is a little pricey to the UK, so definitely keep that in mind if you aren't from the US.

Overall I definitely encourage you to check out Amandas shop and social media links, all of which I will leave below for you:

Etsy Shop

Storenvy

Twitter

Instagram

Thanks so much for reading!

- Daisy X