Paper Show Loot & a Giveaway!

I've been cutting and pasting away, using my loot from the Allentown Paper Show to create some new postcards for my mail art partners:

As far as I'm concerned, I could glue an airmail envelope to a 4x6 inch piece of paper and it would be a perfectly gorgeous postcard, but I've tried to add some additional touches.

I have included some handcarved stamps (like the hand and footprints above).

I've also included lots of decorative tapes to try to pick up the colors in the stamps of the original envelopes.

I've also used some of the Cavallini and Company postal-themed stamps in several places.

A friend of mine just bequeathed some pretty card-making papers that she isn't using any longer, so I used those where I could, as well.

All in all, there's nothing like a new stash of paper to inspire a healthy session of cut-and-paste!

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I included so many photos of the Allentown Paper Show in my last post that I didn't dare include all of the photos of the items that I purchased--too many photos for a single post!  So today I will share with you all of the loot I walked out with from my five hours at the show.

At one booth, I purchased a bag of cardboard and paper coupons for Octagon laundry soap, La Perla macaroni and Ronzoni pasta.  I was creating mail art postcards in my mind as I handed over the cash!

One booth had some pen and ink drawings with no indication of the artist.  I was taken with the following sketched portrait and had to add it to my collection:

I found most of the available cigarette cards too expensive to bother with, especially when I compared their prices to what I have seen at Briggs Auction house.  I couldn't resist a few, though, especially this gas mask (or "civilian respirator") card:

I bargained for a bag of bills of sales for a local hospital, and it satisfied my desire for some handwriting ephemera.  Most of the other examples--letters, contracts, etc--had asking prices beyond my willingness to pay, or even bargain.  

Photographs were available for such a variety of prices.  I mainly purchased from a "four for a dollar" bin, and am so happy with my selections.  I looked specifically for individuals and expressions that spoke to me.  I find myself drawn to pretty young women, some children, and groups of friends:

Postcards also came for quite a range of prices, and I tried to stick to the bins labeled 25 cents to a dollar.  I was especially drawn to those with handwritten messages, often in French. 

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I wanted to specifically share this "Busy Soldier's Correspondence Card," where the soldier was able to check off the key parts of his message:  how he feels, what he's been doing, what the weather is like, and what he wants to be sent.  There were a couple of these "check off" postcards at one particular booth, but I thought the soldier's card was especially poignant:

One seller had a selection of letterpress stamps, and was willing to sell ALL of his stamps, along with the printer's drawer, for $50, but it was late in the day, I had spent a lot of money already, and I just didn't think I needed to go home with them all.  So I settled for two:

My last purchase of the day was a box of stamps and postmarked air mail envelopes.  The stamp collector had glued the stamps and envelopes to notebook paper, so I went through and detached all of them so that they could be used for collage purposes.

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And now, for the giveaway!

I have put together a package of 95 goodies, mostly drawn from my paper show purchases, to send off to one lucky recipient.  If you love ephemera, and think that you might be able to use an injection of new additions to your paper stash, please comment on this blog post for a chance to win this selection.  Make sure that I know your email address in order to contact you.  I will draw a winner on Monday, May 6, 2013.  The winner will receive the following:

6 postcards
4 internationally postmarked airmail envelopes
4 foreign currency bills
57 stamps (from Japan, the United States, Great Britain, the Netherlands)
4 Octagon coupons
4 Ronzoni coupons
8 La Perla Macaroni coupons, two sizes
8 posters promoting stamp collecting

Two sample stamp collecting posters

Good luck!

EDIT:  It's 9:30 pm on Sunday night, May 5, 2013, and the giveaway is officially CLOSED!  Thanks to all who entered; the winner will be announced tomorrow, May 6, 2012!