Irish Sun
Our Equinox-themed mail art exchange is complete!
I’d like to take this opportunity to publicly thank all 80+ participants of The Elevated Envelope. An extra thank you goes out to the 26 people who sent an extra envelope to me here in Ireland. Thank you! The postman was totally confused (but in a good way), and once again, I was truly blown away by your creative generosity.
I plan to share all the photos I took of all the Equinox envelopes that came my way, PLUS all the sneak peeks I found on Instagram. But without further ado, today I’m revealing 9 favorites that came through my own letterbox. Enjoy!
Day & Night
by Ally Thurstans (Australia)
This Equinox envelope seems simple, but it’s very effective! Ally used acrylic markers (Posca pens, to be precise) to create this striking day and night scene on a black envelope. She typed, cut, and pasted the addresses on top of her work. I really love how uncomplicated, but powerful it is. Find Ally on Instagram, or stay at her holiday rental in Tasmania! (Hmm… perhaps we need an Elevated Envelope retreat?)
Butterfly
by Kate Fama (Ireland)
Kate welcomed spring by drawing this very detailed butterfly with a black pen, and then watercolored it in. Watercolors, which she told me she “never uses.” Could have fooled me! Try new things – you might surprise yourself. I highly recommend following Kate’s adventures in garden rock painting on Instagram at SouthDublinRocks (I’ve been trying my hand at painted rocks lately myself!).
Duality
by Katherine Ruiz (USA)
Katherine drew, hand-carved and hand-printed this blue beauty! I absolutely love this, and really appreciate the effort and planning she put into her project. Instead of carving a linoleum block, she used a more flexible, eraser-like material called Speedy Carve. (You can order different sizes of Speedy Carve from Blick Art Materials (USA) or maybe get this kit from Jackson’s (Europe). I’ve used a different brand of this stuff before, and it’s great for making DIY rubber stamps for relief printing. You can also easily cut up the material into pieces for smaller projects.
Pro Tip: If you’re new to block printing, it’s well worth trying! You might give Speedy Carve a try first, because it cuts a bit more smoothly and easily than a linoleum block. I also recommend starting with an image that’s on the larger side – working too small can be challenging when you’re learning how to use the carving tools. (Ask me how I know…🙃)
Layered Perspective Play
by Michelle Davison (USA)
This is a wild one, so buckle up! Michelle is a scientist and artist who has confessed to enjoying “too much sci-fi.” (No such thing.) She was first inspired by the illuminated manuscript Les Très Riches Heures (pictured below). The envelope is painted in gold and hand-lettered, with tiny, punched-out “wormholes” for a peek at what’s inside. And you’d never guess what awaits you when you enter that dimension… A hand-printed and cut-out image of the view from the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon! What? That’s so cool! I really like how Michelle’s project takes you from the past (an ancient work of art) into a potential future (Star Wars).
Stardust
by Jennifer Lynch (Ireland)
This was Jennifer’s first envelope exchange! She’s a calligrapher, though, so it was easy for her to make it look easy… She applied gold leaf to handmade cotton envelopes and included this lovely quote inside:
There’s stardust running through your veins, and galaxies swirling in your soul.
Have you ever used gold leaf before? Every few years I give it a try, and then I find gold and silver bits all over the house and stuck to important things (like the cat!). It’s a very seductive medium, but you’ve been warned! Honestly, Jennifer’s envelope is making me consider giving it another whirl.
You can find (and hire!) Jennifer on Instagram and at Arcadia Script.
Sun & Moon
by Cassandra Christen (Canada)
Cassandra told me this was a “fly by the seat of your pants” project. She started with watercolors, including metallic watercolor, which was too light. She then added added alcohol marker, pencil crayon, gel pen, paint pen and iridescent blue tape around the edges. One of my favorite things about The Elevated Envelope is that you’re meant to experiment with different materials and just try things. (And in case you’re wondering, yes, Cassandra used the entire front of her envelope for the design, and put the addresses on the back.)
You can find Cassandra on Instagram as PrettyInkredible, where she showcases her visual journaling work with second graders.
Spring Earth
by Mary Carol Henderson (USA)
I think this was the very first envelope that came through my letterbox! I’m really attracted to the contrast of colors in this one. I love that cool-looking watery earth against the bright, hot orange. Mary Carol also used an embossing tool to add the world map background to the envelope. And the bright, natural vintage stamps are a perfect final touch. Beautiful job, Mary Carol! (You can find her here on Instagram.)
It’s Autumn Somewhere
by Rebecca Damsma (Australia)
Fun Facts: The vast majority (95%) of the envelopes in our last exchange originated in and/or traveled to the Northern hemisphere, where we just enjoyed the Spring Equinox. For just 25 of the envelopes, Autumn began that day instead (in the Southern hemisphere).
Rebecca is one of our Down Under participants, so she created this beautiful collage of autumn colors and motifs. I especially like the use of that yellowed dictionary page in the background, and the perfect stamps that coordinate so well. Collage is an extremely approachable medium, a great way to experiment with different materials, develop your design eye, and just plain PLAY.
For more of Rebecca’s collage work and curated vintage stamp sets (AWESOME!), check out Bec’s Vintage Post on Instagram and Etsy.
Balance
by Jenny Good (USA)
This is a very imaginative take on our theme. Jenny thought about “equinox” in terms of the many ways we all seek and need balance. She started studying cello as an adult, and has found it to be a rewarding part of a balanced life. Then, she took it all a step further to show how one literally balances the weight of the cello’s bow a certain distance from its edge. That’s what’s shown below: one third of the bow, hand drawn, and stuck onto an envelope she hand-made out of old sheet music. I think it’s so unique!
I also really appreciated that Jenny enclosed a detailed, type-written note about her envelope’s concept as well as a complete list of all the materials and methods used to create it. My favorite part of the whole thing is that she wasn’t too “precious” about her creation: She slapped clear packing tape on top of her drawing to make sure it wouldn’t move during mailing. Try it – it works!
Solar Envelopes by Mog Cherie
When I saw that Antonia of Mog Cherie had signed up to participate in our exchange, I was thrilled! They hand-paint the most beautiful, postal-themed illustrations, and turn them into stickers and cards you can buy right now. As you can see, they painted different designs on each envelopes which makes one grandiose image when they are placed all together. Then the series is separated, and sent around the world to each recipient, never to reunite. Or will they? You never know. Check out Mog Cherie on Etsy and Instagram.
I have a lot more to say about the Irish Sun, including more Equinox envelopes, and a great list of Solstice Events in Ireland!
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So what do you think?
Do you have a favorite out of these envelopes? Does it make you even more excited for next time?
