already posting festive things

I have been making some envelopes from festive paper (not wrapping). I have sent a couple of cards with letters out in them. I hope the two I am showing here arrived safely at their destinations.

Is it too early to say Merry Christmas?!

On Tuesday of this week, Royal Mail released their Christmas Stamp issue. 

I only bought the overseas values, 87p, £1.28 and £1.90. I should still be able to buy first and second class festive stamps at my local post office. I have already received (in October) my first Christmas card from a penpal, but I only brought down the Christmas cards from storage this week. I will post today a letter to the US with a Christmas card! The first one for me to send this year.

That envelope, I sealed with one of these festive seals I found in a card shop, sold at a very reasonable price and I bought loads! Each pack has 24 stickers! They won't all get used this year! The snowflake ones I suppose I could use during the rest of winter...

Fireworks tonight!

Last night, went to a fireworks display at the local football club, nice display.

Received a nice letter today from a penpal in Germany.

October stats:
Posted 15 letters
Received 13 letters (up until 27th October)

November

I have been on holiday and came back home to 3 nice letters. I also wrote some letters while I was away on holiday. I will work out how many letters I have sent/received for last month, shortly.

Star!

Last week, Royal Mail issued some stamps celebrating Space Science. I bought some, as I do.

The stamps feature the Sun, Venus, Mars, Saturn, Lutetia (an asteroid) and Titan (Saturn's largest moon)

A friend sent a postcard to be postmarked with a special cancellation mark from Royal Mail

on the first day of issue with the Star (a village on the Isle of Anglesey) postmark. This was then sent to me in an envelope...

although the postmark on the envelope did not have as much care taken on stamping it.

Other special postmarks are available. Up and coming postmarks can be seen in Royal Mail's Postmark Bulletin, and a non-Royal Mail website where there is news and information about British stamps is http://www.norvic-philatelics.co.uk/ - well worth checking out, and Norvic's blog (link on that website, and in my blog list).

Handwriting

 As you can see, I do use fountain pens.... This one is a Parker Calligraphy pen (medium nib)

I write to my penfriends using fountain pens and last finished a letter today using one (it is now on route to France).

Yes, although it could be neater. If I use a Biro  it often isn't as neat. A fountain pen nib can seem rather delicate so I tend to write more carefully.

I look forward to receiving letters from penfriends and am able to recognise the sender, most of the time.

The reason for these questions is because of Philip Hensher. His book, The Missing Ink was published today and an extract appeared last weekend, in a newspaper and online by The Observer. Also, he appeared on Start of the Week with Andrew Marr on BBC Radio 4 earlier this week. The programme should be available to listen to online for at least a year at Start The Week, 8th October 2012.

The programme mentioned postcards.... They hadn't heard of Postcrossing!

The answer to last month's post about most important technology ever invented.... 25th was Writing, but... first was....

The Bra ??? Tools. Electricity. Wheel. Controlled Fire. Computer Games ??? AC Electricity...

It is October

 Yesterday, I posted 3 letters. Strangely, I managed to use all the same stamps!

I don't have many Winnie the Pooh stamps left.

These are the letters I received in the month of September (actually, one letter sneaked in and one stayed away). I haven't included Postcrossing postcards in this. I received more than one letter from a couple of penpals in that month. The camel postcard came with a letter from the United Arab Emirates.

September stats.
Received- 18 letters; sent - 16 letters.