How Do I Make A Letter More Exciting?!

[tweexcore]

I have just written a rather lengthy letter on some Clairefontaine paper instead of my usual tiny cute and already decorated Asian stationery, and now it just looks so awfully plain, all this text on a big page. I would like to make it a little more exciting but I have run out of little presents to attach! Any ideas to embellish/make a letter slightly more exciting to receive in the mail than just words, words, words?

[LoveMyLamy]

I use various embellishments at times on my plainer stationery: sticker, rubber stamps, sometimes draw out pictures or doodles in the margins.... Good luck!

[Halden]

Nice tips.

[Blade Runner]

I enjoy using rubber stamps and ephemera on envelopes, paper and cards. Here are a few examples. Enjoy the creative process!

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/TCM/IMG_5551.jpg

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/TCM/IMG_0012.jpg

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/TCM/Arab.jpg

[omicron]

Start the page out with a large fancy letters, as in old books. Blood-red ink. Draw page borders, and crests. Watermarks. Some people like scented inks. Comic stamps.

 

 

The problem is that 'cute' is a substrate to a very limited amount of interestingness. Perhaps you need a different format?

[tweexcore]

Oh those examples look beautiful!

 

My problem is that I lack rubber stamps and don't have nearly good enough calligraphy skills...but I guess that is something I just can't avoid and should strive toward for letters that look as nice as I want them to!

[Paddler]

I sometimes draw a vine down the left side of the first page. I use brown ink for the vine. Then the leaves are outlined and veined with a bulletproof green and colored in a lighter watercolor green. Then I add little purple flowers and red berries. This is actually one of the Nightshades, but none of my correspondents has tumbled to that yet. On the second and subsequent pages, I put a few leaves and berries in the top corners, just to make the stationery match. If that looks too Spartan, you can always gussie it up with mice and spiders. I would link to a picture, but I can't get it to work.

 

Paddler

[curiouslizard]

I enjoy using rubber stamps and ephemera on envelopes, paper and cards. Here are a few examples. Enjoy the creative process!

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/TCM/IMG_5551.jpg

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/TCM/IMG_0012.jpg

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/TCM/Arab.jpg

 

Those are wonderful and as a scuba diver I love your sharks!

 

In answer to the question, I use a richly colored ink that pops pleasantly on the page in a broad nib pen, often scented I almost always use a color coordinated wax seal and often draw flowers or vegetation on the margins is a different ink. If the letter is to a good friend or loved one I'll draw a little picture or a smiley face or heart or something cutesy next to my signature.

[Cedar]

I have just written a rather lengthy letter on some Clairefontaine paper instead of my usual tiny cute and already decorated Asian stationery, and now it just looks so awfully plain, all this text on a big page. I would like to make it a little more exciting but I have run out of little presents to attach! Any ideas to embellish/make a letter slightly more exciting to receive in the mail than just words, words, words?

 

Wow. I thought the "words, words,words" was the exciting part. People must be bored to death with the letters they get from me. Every now and then, if I have extra time and I'm in the mood after writing all those words, I may decorate the envelope. However, if the recipient does not comment on it at some time, I eliminate that, too. No sense wasting my time if the words are sufficient.

 

Cedar

[demeter]

I have just written a rather lengthy letter on some Clairefontaine paper instead of my usual tiny cute and already decorated Asian stationery, and now it just looks so awfully plain, all this text on a big page. I would like to make it a little more exciting but I have run out of little presents to attach! Any ideas to embellish/make a letter slightly more exciting to receive in the mail than just words, words, words?

 

Wow. I thought the "words, words,words" was the exciting part. People must be bored to death with the letters they get from me. Every now and then, if I have extra time and I'm in the mood after writing all those words, I may decorate the envelope. However, if the recipient does not comment on it at some time, I eliminate that, too. No sense wasting my time if the words are sufficient.

 

Cedar

 

Cedar

 

Exactly my sentiments. If the words can't get you into someones head you need a different medium. This isn't to say that I don't embellish my letters, but that comes as an after, and fun for myself as well.

 

If you love the embellishments, try reading/viewing the Griffin & Sabine books by Nick Bantock...envelopes and letters are included in the correspondence.

 

Best

Andrew

[GreenVelvet]

Rubber stamps, stickers, glitter, glitter spray (yes, you have to buy them), or you can find various graphics or borders online and print them on to your paper before you write it.

 

If you're artistically talented, you can draw... but that's not an option for me.

 

I frequently post examples of interesting and decorated letters on my letter-writing blog.

[Rena]

Choosing interesting postage stamps is another way to dress up a letter. If I'm not mistaken, Green Velvet mentions using vintage postage stamps somewhere in her blog. As long as the stamps aren't previously cancelled, several old stamps on the envelope can add a lot of interest, and they make the letter look even more important. But there are usually many interesting current issue stamps to choose from that you can coordinate with paper and ink too.

 

Lots of imaginative ideas here, and embellishments can be fun for both the sender and the recipient! But Cedar and Andrew are correct in that the words inside the letter, and the fun of receiving a handwritten letter is ultimately what it's all about.

Edited October 20, 2010 by Rena

[Cedar]

I didn't mean to give the impression that I don't enjoy decorated letters, I certainly enjoy receiving them as well as making and sending them. I did get rather focused on what made it "exciting" or not. To me the content is the exciting part the embellishments are the fun part but not exciting. I use rubber stamps, decorative papers (those used for scrapbooking and then I use an envelope template) maybe some rubber stamps on top of it, I bought a basket of cancelled and new stamps from all other the world at an estate sale for $3 ( though I hate to use the stamps...I may use a scanner and lay the stamps on it, print it and then fold it into an envelope) I use clip art, and photos. I use my own photos when there is any question of copywrite infringement. I use a Powerpoint program to postion them, print them out and fold it for envelopes. I am less likely to mess with the sheets used for writing.

Here's an example of shots I took at the County Fair. Where the images switch to upside down is where I fold the paper and the blank spot is for the address.

[spinningtrees]

Great ideas! I need to write more. It takes me a long time to finish a letter, though I do put a lot of thought into the words. I wish I could make a fancy beginning letter in the ornate style. My creative side usually stops at music!

[Doulton]

I think a nice letter with words is excitement enough for me. The time, the thoughts, the opinions and observations you offer should be more than enough to make any recipient thrill with pleasure. There is beauty sufficient in the simple act of sending somebody a letter and all the gussying up is mere window-dressing---nice enough, perhaps, but not "la sens de la visite".

[aura]

Hello Laura:

 

I once wrote an entire letter to a friend in a spiral fashion and added a slight touch of calligraphy... Inspiration came from a Nautilus shell artwork this particular friend gave me. No other embellishments were used and it turned out quite pleasing to the eye. She got a giggle out of it and phoned me as soon as she received it to tell me how much she enjoyed it. She said it broke the monotony of the left to right, up and down style and that I don't give myself credit enough for my creativity. She always encouraged my artistic endeavors, in spite of my resistance :embarrassed_smile:. I regret not having a picture of it to showcase and my friend has since passed.

 

Have you considered simply breaking the monotony of the white page by staining the paper with diluted inks in various colors (whatever you have on hand)? That would be another nice way to embellish... you could stain just the sides, or just the top or bottom or the entire page. Then, when the diluted ink dries up you will have a nice border or background to write on. You will be surprised at how this changes your mood and brings in inspiration...

 

Hope my two cents help you out. Good luck to you!!

 

namaste,

Aura