My Martha Moment
February 22nd, 2008 @ 4:47 pm by Mrs. Tulip
For the most part, we’ve focused on only the important things for our wedding. Any high ambitions I may have had regarding fancy DIY projects have fallen by the wayside in light of my lack of time and energy….
But there was one Martha Stewart idea I simply HAD to try:
(image courtesy of Martha Stewart)
Yes, like Miss Lovebug and Mrs Gummi Bear, I fell prey to the allure of vintage stamps.
(Random mix. The blue stamp is the statue on top of the US Capitol.)
In my case, the stamps came from eBay. I purchased them verrrrrrrry early in the planning process, when we didn’t know how many invites were going out or how much they’d cost, so I wound up with far more than we would ever need. Luckily, postage is postage. They’ll be good for thank you notes and beyond!
I went with two basic themes — a DC-and-law theme (as Mr T and I, and many of our friends, are lawyers), and a classic-folk-art theme (’cause the stamps were pretty). I also had fun with two USPS “year books” from 1984 and 1988 that contained samples of all the stamps put out in those years. There was so much variety, and I tried to match the stamps with the recipients — for instance, geographical stamps for people who lived in those states, or a “Year of the Woman” stamp for a judge I once worked for and admire as a fantastic female role model.
(Conservation, Supreme Court, and ABA stamps for a friend who teaches environmental law)
My one regret was not paying more attention to color. There was a series of Supreme Court, Executive Branch, and Congress stamps that I loved for their DC content but whose black color was a bit harsh in combination with the other stamps. I also wish I had gotten more 5-10 cent stamps and fewer 29-cent and 3-centers.
(Savings stamps because I do securities law; and an upside-down ABA stamp because my vision was a little blurry at 4 a.m. with all that stamp adhesive in my system!)
By using eBay and bidding carefully (i.e., letting a beloved find go if the bid got too high), we didn’t pay a whole lot more than regular postage. And, yes, I licked them all and didn’t die!
Is anyone else using vintage stamps for your invitations? What themes are you going with?
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8 Responses to “My Martha Moment”
We’re both really into swing dancing and swing music, so mostly jazz singers/composers/band leaders. I think it will be great.
I think it’s really cool that you did this. Love the vintage stamps you found, very fitting for you both.
I love the idea - and have thought about the swan love stamp design. Unfortunately, while I love some of the vintage stamp designs, a whole bunch of stamps just doesn’t look good to me (messy - I admit I am a neat freak). I think I am going to go with custom stamps.
DesignBee, I remember I had a bit of trouble at first too. This is one eBay item that doesn’t lend well to searches. If you go into the Category tree, “Stamps” has its own category, and then there’s a sub-category for “Sheets”. That tends to be your best bet because there are a lot of them in one purchase (usually 20-50), and they’re by definition unused.
It takes a bit of browsing from there. If you find some good ones with low starting prices, it can help to check who’s selling them — you’ll notice there are a handful of sellers that list scores at a time. Then it can be helpful to just browse whatever they’ve got in stock. (”View Seller’s Other Items” button.)
Yay for vintage stamps! I love your fun, colorful mix. I’m sure your guests will get a huge kick out of it, too.
I absolutely had to try this too…and it was quite hard! I found a magnolia stamp and built off that using both our colors and the meanings…We both work in the aviation business - thus an airplane, my father was military (thus an army stamp), I was a wrangler (thus a horse), we also got stamps for the majority of our guests (TX & MN Statehood stamps) which happened to be in our colors as well! I haven’t tried putting them on the envelopes yet!
I think I am going to try vintage stamps, too! I love some of the really old ones, like the centennial of the American Society of Civil Engineers (for DH), but they are all .03-.05. And you have to pay way over face value to get them. So I think I am going to go with some slightly more recent ones, in the .13-.25 range, so I can use fewer and keep it neater. I am torn, however between keeping to all one or two styles of stamps, and mixing it up more, like you did. Either way, what a fun way to personalize!
Mrs. Tulip, DC
Age and Occupation: 36, Retired
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Counsel/DOO for Small Gov't Contractor
Engagement Date: August 8, 2007
Wedding Date: March, 2008
Venue: Still Looking!
About Me: In all my dreams of the man I'd someday marry, I never pictured anyone as perfect for me as Mr. Tulip. So now we just have to make it through the craziness of the wedding and the moving in together! I love crafts, sewing, jewelry making, and photography, so am looking forward to this chance for DIY fun. When not wedding planning, I'm playing with our dog and 4 cats, Ebay shopping, or watching too much TV (often simultaneously!).
I really wanted to try this out, but some quick searching on eBay didn’t bring up very much. Can you tell us how you found yours, maybe some good search terms? They look fantastic!