Pen Pal Ideas

snail mail inspiration, fun questions, & more :)

[pen-pal-ideas]

random but can anyone recommend any artists with the same vibes as these stamps from Japan’s “my journey” series? they are pressing good buttons in my brain and i need more bigger

[pen-pal-ideas]

a strawberry letter for a spring gone by 🍓

p.s. i’m absolutely loving stamps lately and the stamp pictured is by catherine redgate if anyone wants to check out her art :)

[heyvamin]

the world needs more handwritten letters

[pen-pal-ideas]

📓 how to: diy gingham stationery 🌷

I’m a huge sucker for gingham, and I recently realized that with just a marker or two and plain writing paper (or envelopes), you can make your own gingham or plaid bordered stationery!

It’s fairly easy to do, especially if you are okay with the imperfect hand-drawn look. So I wanted to share a little guide on how to do it! See below the cut ⬇️

Step 1: Gather supplies. You just need whatever plain paper or envelopes you prefer, and any kind of marker, highlighter, or brush pen with a broad tip. Start with one color just to try it out! You can use rulers to draw your lines if you like, personally I find wobbly hand-drawn lines charming so I just wing it.

Step 2: Draw two vertical lines on each of the long sides of your paper, so you have two on the left border and two on the right border. Each line should go completely to the edge of the paper. Try to make your white space in between the two lines about the same as the thickness of your pen.

Step 3: Draw two horizontal lines on each of the short sides of your paper. Again, edge to edge, and trying to keep the white space about the same width as your pen. These lines will intersect with your vertical lines.

Step 4: Fill in the short horizontal lines on the long sides/left and right of the paper, keeping the spacing relatively even.

Step 5: And fill in the short vertical lines on the short sides/top and bottom of the paper.

And boom! You’re done! 💫

Now you can add stamps, stickers, or whatever you like to add to your letters! 🌸 I find that having a colorful border like this helps ground my stationery, so that I only need a couple stamps or stickers to bring the vibes together, instead of where I would previously be stressed trying to find enough stickers to balance the page.

And one other recommendation: Have a scratch piece of paper ready to try out different color combos.

[goinonawalk]

big fan what a delightful thing!

[pen-pal-ideas]

omg thank you for sharing yours I love it!! the animal drawings are so cute too 😭😭😭

[dame-nostalgique]

Details of an older letter that reminds me of the innocence of Spring 💌🌷

[roadkillimagearchive]

Moomin Mail sticker sheet :) - sold at a japanese post office

Really in love with this one, mainly the one in the bottom left corner with the whole gang, simply adorable.

[pen-pal-ideas]

📮 Letter-writing activism

Recently I became interested in the role that letters have played in activism throughout history (especially black history!), and was considering how this might be effective today in the U.S.

Who could we write letters to?

Neighbors. Invite your neighbors to local protests and activism events, inform them of boycott efforts, and just generally let them know how they can help. Much like a medical emergency where someone needs to delegate and say “YOU IN THE GREEN SHIRT — call an ambulance!” for anything to get done, your good-hearted neighbors might be frozen with anxiety, uncertain of what to do or how to help. A letter personally inviting them and letting them know their community needs them might be all it takes to get them to show up. (Bonus: you could hand-deliver to a neighbor, no postage needed.)

Elected officials. Yep, we’ve all heard this one before. But guess what? The few officials who are actually working their asses off for causes you care about need to hear your support and be assured that they are indeed serving the public. And some need to hear that you need them to step up. Others may not be able to hear much, but who knows, maybe you can pick an issue they might care about, i.e. taxes, print a graph on your envelope and demand to know why tax cuts are disproportionately benefiting the rich when you were told they were going to help the everyday American. And fun fact: You can make any issue into an issue politicians should care about by connecting it to “big government,” “American values,” “family,” etc.

Churches and religious leaders. Religion is unfortunately becoming intertwined with politics in the U.S. in an increasingly negative way. Challenge those local religious leaders who use their faith to justify hate. Ask, “how can we claim to love our queer neighbors if we are too busy pretending they don’t exist?” Draw on values that they claim to care about, challenge them, and let them know specifically how they are directly harming the very community they claim to shepherd. (If they don’t have a mailbox and you’re really brave you could go in and drop a letter in their donations baskets.)

Now on the one hand, letters are no longer as common a communication method as they once were. But on the other hand, this also means that receiving a letter can be a unique and meaningful moment. You also might have a better chance at reaching 75-year old Nana who doesn’t see your social justice instagram stories, but who personally remembers activism during the Civil Rights movement (for example) and can share valuable insights and knowledge.

If you’re interested, here’s a page (this is also the source of the image above) from the Smithsonian’s learning lab about the history of letters and activism, as well as tips for writing a letter of your own and making it stand out.

Haven’t sent much physical mail before? Here’s a guide from the USPS on how to address and mail a letter. A standard stamp costs 73¢ currently. Buy a sheet of stamps and share with your friends so that everyone can write a letter!

Lastly, I want to say I’m definitely not any kind of expert on activism, and I’m not usually active about it on social media. But as an avid pen-paller, I do feel there is a unique power in letters. As I watch the attacks on basic human rights and the grabs for power in the U.S., I figured making this post and sending a letter of my own was the very least I could do.

Please feel free to add on and share your own knowledge and experiences! Who else could we write to? What makes an effective letter?

I will be honored if anyone reblogs, and even more so if you commit to sending just one letter of your own!

🩷❤️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜

[sealsonwheels]

Envelope doodles (on Midori MD envelopes, from @jetpens)

[pen-pal-ideas]

I think if this envelope landed in my mailbox it would probably emit a magical glow

[eternelle-chenille]

Les lettres envoyées en janvier 2025 ❄️

[forever-rogue]

🌸🌼🌻Spring Asks🌻🌼🌸

April - what’s your favorite time of the year?

Apples - favorite fruit?

Bees - what’s your go to spring outfit?

Blossom - what’s your favorite flower?

Bubbles - Do you like bubble tea?

Changes - what signals the changing of the seasons to you? 

Collegiate - did you go to or are you going to university? what are you or did you study?

Comfort - who is your go to comfort character?

Cream - do you wear make-up?

Crush - any irl or online crushes?

Daffodil -  do you like to garden?

Daisy - do you have any pets? If not, do you want any?

Exciting - ideal type of unplanned adventure?

Favorites - what’s your favorite show, movie, and book?

Flowers - what’s the nicest thing someone has surprised you with?

Fun Facts - what’s something people would never guess about you?

Grass - do you get hayfever or spring allergies?

Hobby - what hobbies do you have or want to get into?

Holiday - favorite springtime holiday?

Introspective - what’s one thing you would have done differently in your life?

Jam - favorite thing to bake?

Kiss - what was your best kiss?

Lemons - what’s your favorite type of dessert?

Light - night owl or early bird?

Love - what’s your love language?

Matcha - what’s your go to coffee/tea order this time of year?

Meadow - do you prefer the beach or the woods?

Money - what would you do with your life if money was no object?

Music - what’s been on repeat lately?

New - what would you do if you won the lottery?

Ocean - what’s your favorite sea creature?

On/Off - what are your biggest turn ons and offs?

Partner - describe your ideal partner.

Past - what advice or wisdom would you bestow on your younger self?

Persona - what’s your mbti? your enneagram type?

Picnic - describe your ideal spring afternoon.

Pride  - what is something you’re proud of?

Quaint - do you prefer the city, countryside, or suburbs?

Rain - what’s your favorite type of spring weather?

Recommendations - do you have any fanfic recommendations?

Sage - what life advice would you give to someone younger?

Stars - are you into astrology? If so, what are your sun, moon, and rising signs?

Striking - what’s your favorite color?

Status - what’s your relationship status?

Thrill - what is one thing you’re looking forward to?

Touch - do you like hugs?

Travel - if you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

Universe - do you think there’s other life out there or are we alone in the universe?

Vernacular - what language do you wish you could speak or want to learn?

Warning - what would your warning label say?

You - what’s one thing you like about yourself? One thing you dislike about yourself?

Youth - do you feel your age?

Zoo - what’s your favorite animal?

[pen-pal-ideas]

📓 how to: diy gingham stationery 🌷

I’m a huge sucker for gingham, and I recently realized that with just a marker or two and plain writing paper (or envelopes), you can make your own gingham or plaid bordered stationery!

It’s fairly easy to do, especially if you are okay with the imperfect hand-drawn look. So I wanted to share a little guide on how to do it! See below the cut ⬇️

Step 1: Gather supplies. You just need whatever plain paper or envelopes you prefer, and any kind of marker, highlighter, or brush pen with a broad tip. Start with one color just to try it out! You can use rulers to draw your lines if you like, personally I find wobbly hand-drawn lines charming so I just wing it.

Step 2: Draw two vertical lines on each of the long sides of your paper, so you have two on the left border and two on the right border. Each line should go completely to the edge of the paper. Try to make your white space in between the two lines about the same as the thickness of your pen.

Step 3: Draw two horizontal lines on each of the short sides of your paper. Again, edge to edge, and trying to keep the white space about the same width as your pen. These lines will intersect with your vertical lines.

Step 4: Fill in the short horizontal lines on the long sides/left and right of the paper, keeping the spacing relatively even.

Step 5: And fill in the short vertical lines on the short sides/top and bottom of the paper.

And boom! You’re done! 💫

Now you can add stamps, stickers, or whatever you like to add to your letters! 🌸 I find that having a colorful border like this helps ground my stationery, so that I only need a couple stamps or stickers to bring the vibes together, instead of where I would previously be stressed trying to find enough stickers to balance the page.

And one other recommendation: Have a scratch piece of paper ready to try out different color combos.

[keys-home]

2.1.2025

[Image Description: A photo of a collection of items for a penpal letter on a wooden desk. there is an origami crane, set of 4 cat stickers, some blue sticky notes, 3 plant stickers, some memo sheets that are blue with rainbow designs, a small doodle of two cats in a green frame, a piece of paper with "Cunk On Earth" Quotes, and in the middle there is a folded letter with the name Coral spelled out using stickers with a cat sticker next to it. END ID]

This is a letter for my friend, Coral! Sending it out on Monday :D Been a while since I've done aesthetic penpaling, but it is quite enjoyable!

[pen-pal-ideas]

ok i wish i had learned how to make these before i had already sent out half of my christmas cards, they are the perfect flat little gift to fit in a card 🤍❤️🤍

[pen-pal-ideas]

shiny thrifted gift labels for my holiday mail ❤️💚❤️

[pen-pal-ideas]

one of my favorites 🍂

[forever-rogue]

❄️☃️🧣Winter Asks🧣☃️❄️

Anorak - do you have a winter staple coat?

Arctic - do you like the cold weather?

Aesthetic - describe your ideal winter aesthetic.

Black Friday - do you like going Black Friday shopping?

Blizzard - have you ever gotten caught in a snowstorm?

Balaclava - do you like wearing hats? what’s your go-to?

Brrr - do you like playing in the snow?

Celebrate - what’s your favorite holiday this time of year?

Champagne - do you do anything special for New Year’s Eve?

Cold - what is the best movie marathon?

Cuddles - how you like to stay warm on a cold day?

Curling - what’s your favorite winter sport?

Dance - what’s your favorite winter or Christmas song?

Episode - what’s your favorite holiday episode of your favorite show?

Evergreen - describe your ideal winter day?

Family - are you close to your family?

Festive - how do you get into the spirit?

Fireplace - do you like a nice crackling fire?

Frozen - do you have a favorite Christmas movie?

Gifted - what’s the best gift you’ve gotten or received?

Gingerbread - do you like baking?

Glow - Early Bird or Night Owl?

Green - what are some green flags when it comes to a partner?

Growth - what are you looking forward to in the new year?

Hallelujah - when is the right time to break out the Christmas music?

Hallmark - do you like cheesy holiday movies?

Hoodie - do you prefer hoodies or sweaters?

Hugs - what is your love language?

Ice - do you like going skiing or snowboarding?

Ideal - you enjoy spending time by yourself?

Joy - what’s your favorite part about this time of year?

Jolly - how do you take time out for yourself this time of year?

Knit - how do you keep warm?

Lessons Learned - what’s your biggest take away this year?

Lights - do you like decorating?

Loved - no question, just remember that you’re loved!

Mail Call - do you send cards out for the holidays?

Mistletoe - have you ever been kissed under the mistletoe?

Magic - favorite mythical creature?

Merry - what makes you happy?

Naughty - what are your turn ons?

Nice - describe your ideal partner.

Nog - what’s your opinion on egg nog?

Nutcracker - do you have a crush on anyone?

Obstacle - what is something you overcame this year?

Ornament - do you wear make-up?

Polar - what’s your favorite animal?

Quiet - what’s your favorite part of the festive season?

Read - what’s your favorite book you’ve read this year?

Reflect - what’s your favorite thing about yourself?

Scarf - you like wearing scarves, if so do you have a favorite?

Secret - if you could get your ideal gift, what would it be?

Seasonal - favorite winter beverage?

Simple - what are the small things that you enjoy?

Skate - do you enjoy ice skating?

Snow - what’s your ideal snow day?

Sugarplum - do you have a favorite holiday time dessert?

Sequin - do you like to go out all for the holidays or prefer lowkey holidays?

Tree - do you put up a Christmas Tree? If so, when do you set it up?

Travel - if you could travel anywhere for the holidays were would you go?

Warmth - how do you stay connected to your loved ones?

Weather - what’s the winter like where you live?

Winter Wonderland - do you like the snow?

Year’s End - how was this year for you? 

Zero Degrees - what’s the coldest weather you’ve ever experienced?

[bunnies-and-loverboys]

Started taking care of my cards before things get really busy, and it's proving a creative endeavor that's actually really fulfilling. They don't look professional, but that's not the point, is it? The point is having fun and sending holiday cheer. ✨