The Art of Letter Writing

Hey there! There’s nothing like receiving a nice, handwritten letter in the mail right? In a world where texting, emailing, and video chatting are the norm, sometimes it’s nice to go back to what is most simple and do it! Letter writing is the perfect example of this! I mean, I get if you need to text your mom that you’re running late or want to video chat your cousin who lives 12 hrs. away, or have to email your teacher a question. I get all that. But despite all the modern technology we have, it is so refreshing to receive a handwritten letter in your mailbox. And it’s even better when that letter is filled with nice little goodies.

“So, what’s the point anyway?” You might be asking. Here it is: People can keep a letter, it’s something they can hold onto and re-read over and over again. It is something to treasure and a place where they can remember. (no rhyme intended) XD All that in a piece of paper, pretty amazing, right?

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So, now that my little letter-writing rant is over, let’s get to some fun stuff! 🙂

Note: I wrote a fictional letter solely for the purpose of demonstration.

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-The Structure of a Letter-

1. The Opening Line.

Every letter is begun with an opening line. This line could say, “Dear (name)” or “Hello (name) or anything else you’d like.

2. The Body.

In this part of your letter you tell your friend the things that you wrote the letter for. You can also ask questions and answer the questions your friend asked you in their last letter. This part of the letter is the main part of your letter and typically consists of the main part of a page to 3 or 4 pages.

3. The Closure. 

Once your are finished with the body of your letter don’t forget to write, “Your friend, (your name)” or “Sincerely, (your name)” or anything else you’d like.

4. The Postscript.

This is an optional part of your letter. If you’ve already signed your name and have just remembered something short to tell, go ahead and tell it by writing, “P.S. (your thought here). 

I hope the above information was helpful!

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-Extras-

In my letters I often like to include a little extra something in the letter to make it special and unique! Here are some ideas! 🙂

• Washi tape wrapped around a popsicle stick.
• Little polaroid prints.
• Flower seeds.
• Stickers.
• Collectable stamps.
• Bookmarks.
• ATC’s. (blank and finished)
• Gift cards.
• Sticks of gum.
• Crosswords and other puzzles.
• This or that games.
• Tic-tac-toe to complete together.
• Poems.
• Quotes/ bible verses.
• Tea or hot chocolate.
• Little earrings or rings.
• Miniatures.
• Little things you have made.
• Novelty stamps.
• Ribbon.
• Cute buttons.
• Recipes.
• Little art projects.
• Paint swatches/samples. (from paint stores)
• Fabric squares.

And basically anything that is flat and small enough to fit in an envelope, you can send! 🙂
Also, if you know they particularly like something or collect something then send it as well!

For example, your friend is making a quilt, so maybe you could send squares of a few of your favorite fabrics in the envelope!

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-Envelope Art-

Dressing up an envelope is ALWAYS fun! I mean, who can disagree? I love it when my pen-pals send me a fun and decorated envelope! Here are some of my envelopes: (and one of my pen-pals to) 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

The above one was done by my amazing pen-pal Emmie! Isn’t it gorgeous? Also, the weird blurred out parts are the address’.

 

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I hope you enjoyed reading this and hopefully it has inspired you to write some letters!

Also, I know a lot of bloggers around the blogosphere have done posts like these, so if you have done a post like this, please know I’m not trying to copy you! I personally have never seen a blog post exactly like this before!

And here are a few of those bloggers/blog posts:

The Ultimate List of Pen-Pal Ideas by Allison

DIY Envelope Art Ideas by Clara

Tips for being a Pen-pal by The Pen Company

Make sure to check out the above blog posts! 🙂

Have a great week and happy Sunday! 🙂

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Do you have a pen-pal?

Do you enjoy writing letters?

What is your favorite thing to include with you letters?

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