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  • Six Shortcuts to Dress Up Your Envelopes

    by

    Lindsey Bugbee

    — 7 Comments

    ,

    If you want to send out impressive envelopes but find yourself fighting a losing battle against time, try these six shortcuts!

    Upcycled Creative Envelope | The Postman's Knock

    In a perfect world, all of the envelopes that you send out would be intricate artistic masterpieces. The world, however, is not perfect, and we only have 24 hours in a day! When you only have a few minutes to put together a snail mail ensemble, try the following tricks to make the envelope sing:

    1. Add a Wax Seal

    Four Artistic Ways to Write a Return Address | The Postman's Knock
    Modern, whimsical Kaitlin Style calligraphy contrasts beautifully with traditional wax seals!

    Wax seals lend an air of vintage elegance to any envelope! To stick to tradition, you can use wax seal sticks, a flame, and a seal to apply one. Alternatively, you can go modern and use a low-temperature glue gun with glue gun sealing wax (and, of course, a seal).

    2. Make a Postage Stamp Collage

    White Ink "Amy Style" Envelope | The Postman's Knock
    This Amy Style envelope would feel a bit bare without its beautiful postage stamp collage.

    Postage stamp collages add color and artwork to any envelope! You can learn more about where to buy postage stamps and how to arrange them in this blog post.

    3. Seal the Back Flap with Washi Tape

    Return Address with Washi Tape | The Postman's Knock
    Washi tape looks great on envelopes with pointed flaps and envelopes with rectangular flaps! The return address here was written using Janet Style calligraphy.

    Washi tape offers an easy and artistic way to seal your envelopes! Just cut off a piece and try to center it the best you can on the back flap.

    4. Decoupage

    Upcycled Creative Envelope | The Postman's Knock
    This gorgeous deer illustration is from a calendar that I collaborated on with Zakkiya Hamza of Inkstruck Studio. Zakkiya creates wonders with watercolor, and this deer is no exception!

    If you want to send mail art but don’t have the time to draw or paint anything, you can decoupage artwork on the envelope! As long as the edges of the artwork are secure, the envelope will go through postal machines without any problems.

    5. Make Paint Splatters

    Breezy Hand-Lettering Tutorial | The Postman's Knock
    You can learn how to make an envelope like this in the Breezy Hand-Lettering Tutorial.

    You can use metallic watercolors to add a shimmery interest to any envelopes! Simply moisten the watercolors with a few drops of water, then dip an old toothbrush in the paint. Use your thumb to distribute the watercolor all over the front of the envelope. Once the spatters from the paintbrush have dried, you can send it!

    6. Add a Sticker

    Four Artistic Ways to Write a Return Address | The Postman's Knock
    I love ordering custom stickers from Zazzle because they have such a user-friendly interface.

    You can order custom stickers off of Zazzle.com or buy some cool premade stickers locally or online! If you opt for custom stickers, you can save even more time by including your return address in the design.

    I hope that this post helps you next time you have an envelope to send out but find yourself short on time! If you have any suggestions or questions, please feel free to contribute in the comments. Thanks very, very much for reading TPK, and enjoy the rest of your day!

    Warmly,

    Lindsey's Signature | The Postman's Knock

    *This post contains affiliate links to Amazon