Things are picking up in the Liberate Your Art postcard swap! We are a little less than four weeks out from the swap deadline and I’m getting some gorgeous mail art. I thought today I would share a few ideas for decorating a manila or kraft envelope coming from swap participants. You might not think of the yellow-brown surface of these envelopes as a great canvas, but you would be surprised!

Janice in California created the envelope at the top of this post. I love how simple but how perfect it is… Postcards inside!

Mikki in Colorado used colored pencils to create this cute little guy…

Found collages are perfect for these envelopes! Sarah in Georgia decorated this one. Back…

…and front. The front has some nice encouraging messages on it. Mail art as part of the message – nice!

Another collage from Cathy in WA. I loved the little messages she added… like this one: Art makes us come alive.

And I think I recognize Janet from California’s work, making good use of that neutral brown background:

Here we have an extra special “Seal” on the envelope. Love it! From Diane in Australia.

And last, but not least, Jeanne in Washington makes great use of an old Inter-Departmental Envelope with some stamps and watercolors. Remember these envelopes? We actually still have them floating around at work! She resized it by sewing the bottom shut. How cool.

The creativity never ceases! That’s what I love about this swap. It shows you that there is no one way to do anything. We can all bring ideas to the table. Or to the envelope, I should say.

Watch for more next week!

The envelopes have been arriving for the Liberate Your Art Postcard Swap, and there are some beauties in terms of mail art! As I looked at many of these, it got me to thinking what it takes to turn a regular envelope into “mail art.” Let’s explore the range of possiblities…

Mail art can be as simple as a few swirls and a special sentiment sketched in ballpoint pen, like this one from Monica from Michigan.

You can use some of that washi tape you’ve been collecting (yeah, you know I’m talking to you), like this envelope from Sherry in Alaska.

You can gather up your colorful markers, and fill up that white space! From Christine in Arizona.

How about adding a wonderful printed sentiment along with your doodled swirls? I swear, Mary in Missouri’s handwriting looks JUST like my Mom’s. (My Mom likes Elvis too!)

Or, you can use the envelope as a canvas, and create a masterpiece. The rest of these go well beyond “simple” and are just plain gorgeous. I never cease to be in awe of the wonderful art that comes through my hands in this swap!

Jewels in Michigan created this stunner. Front…

…and back! Oh yes, Marie, please let them Liberate their Art! The back is my favorite. That’s definitely going up on my postcard display!

Bright colors, great balance. I admire Gina in California’s ability to compose a beautiful piece with such disparate elements. Wow!

And last but certainly not least, Pat in Oregon creates some eye candy with her mail art. Both front…

…and back. Let’s all make our life a work of heART!

It’s not too late to join the swap if you haven’t already. Sign up here. Lots more mail art to come in the next few weeks. I can’t wait to see what arrives!

The first mailing in the Liberate Your Art Swap is off! The next three weeks, lots of wonderful mail will be making its way around the world. So how many people were in the swap this year? From where? You’ll have to wait on those answers… I’ll share all of the swap stats along with a video of the postcard art during the Blog Hop, which will be April 16-20, 2015. All of the details on the video and the blog hop will arrive via email for those participating in the swap.

We had a wonderful Swap Day on Sunday! Here’s what it looked like around my house, all swapped and waiting for the volunteers to arrive. The swapping itself is a process that would not work well with many people, too many opportunities for mistakes, so I got up early to do that part.

Then came the sticking of labels and stamps on all of the postcards. With 8 of us, we finished in record time – 1.5 hours.

Here are the last of the decorated envelopes I received in this year’s swap. What gorgeous mail art I received this year! I think I will go into withdrawal after this. 🙂

A mermaid from North Carolina swam to Oregon, courtesy of Beverly.

I loved the message on this envelope, found within another envelope, from Chris in California…

A lovely painted piece graced the back of this envelope from Nancy in Florida:

Diane in Michigan is making the best of the cold weather — sending mail to warm the heart!

Another stitched envelope! This one from Jen in Arizona. Great “Liberate Your Art” motif going on here.

This elegant envelope arrived from Texas, sealed with wax. Kirsten‘s lettering is gorgeous!

Dani sent this fun greeting from Australia…

Another celebration of winter from Vicki in New York.

These flowers bloomed all the way from Danie in Australia! Can you imagine how many people smiled at the envelope along the way?

Kristen, here in my home state of Oregon, created a lovely collage on the back of her envelope…

And last, but not least, Cindy sends a bit of glitter with the phrase, “Not all who wander are lost.” I love that saying!

That wraps up the mail art for the 2015 swap. It was the best year yet for decorated envelopes. Thank you all so much!! It has been so much fun to received them.

The next swap update won’t be until the Blog Hop in April where we wrap everything up for the year. Stay tuned!!