Everything about this set of incoming letters fills me with childlike joy and whimsy. Winged horses and rainbow hearts? Flowers beyond belief? Beachbound seagulls and puddle-swimming ducks? Just what I needed to escape a week of very grown-up transitions and emotions!

Of course Emma the stamp-matcher extraordinaire is responsible for that delicate lattice of Ireland floral postage I included at the start of this post!

I wanted to share this other detail from her envelope, though, as I love how graceful she’s made my name look. (Writing a cursive K always confounds me!)

If writing in script still proves vexing, I suppose I could always just sign my name surrounded by anchors, starfish, and other seaside accoutrements instead! This nautical birthday card reminds me of treasured trips across the country to visit the Connecticut shoreline of my mother’s homeland when I was a child. Thank you for the beauty birthday wishes, my friend! (And for an amazingly fascinating World Heritage magazine that I’ve been reading eagerly!)

In from the island on the other side of the Irish Sea: an explosion of colorful stationery, vintage ephemera, and plenty of unicorns! (Yes, that’s the same envelope I featured above!) The rich jewel tones of this letter felt like that moment when I wake up back home, look out my window, and am awed to be surrounded by vivid green rainforest once more.

I’m especially fond of a trio of mini art pieces featuring what I can only describe as terrarium girls, all surrounded by gorgeous plants and dressed very much according to my own personal style. I’m pretty sure these will have a place on my future grad school desk!

To conclude, I can only expect that the postal service was as delighted to see this hand-illustrated envelope from my beloved as I was!

They didn’t get the pleasure of seeing this housed-dwelling hermit crab postcard, though. I’m very privileged to be able to add him to my ever-growing cabinet of curiosities! (Seriously, where else would a creature like this live?) A reminder of my arthropod fascination and someone very important – the perfect combination.

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