By: Lauren Gray, Head of Reference
Share the gift of history this holiday season.
Day 7: Stationery
(Part of the 12 Days of Archives DIY Series)
Ah, letters. Where would we be without them? Oh, that’s right, sending midnight Snapchats and posting our dinner on Instagram. Alas, we have entered the era of lost correspondence – gone are the days of languid ink trails and perfumed leaves of linen. Our social disconnect is practically a hallmark of the 21st century.
We say, let’s bring letter writing back! Make it a New Year’s resolution: send one letter this year to someone special, and bonus points if it’s written on a piece of this gorgeous DIY stationery! In a year of missed connections, remind your loved ones that they’re in your thoughts.
Making your own stationery is the easiest thing you’ll do all year, we promise. (Easier even than couch surfing Netflix because we’ve already selected the images for you!) For your DIY stationery, copy your selected image into a Word document, size it to scale in the corner, add a flounce or two (flounces available online), and print your new stationery on quality paper. Write your note, address it to someone special, and support the Post Office with a festive stamp. (Spritz of perfume optional.)
(Ok, we’re romantics around here, but the reality is: correspondence is an integral window into the past and to understanding our predecessors’ motivations and relationships. Fortunately, we have sheaves of letters and correspondence dating back to the very founding of Kansas in our archives. Want to see our pride and joy? Check this out: Correspondence between Dwight David Eisenhower and U.S. Senator Joseph L. Bristow concerning Eisenhower's appointment to a military academy - Kansas Memory. Where would the world be if Eisenhower hadn’t put pen to page?)
Mrs. Swayze (we assume no relation) brings a touch of Victorian style to your correspondence.
This colorful sunflower is smart AND pretty!
Send the gift of flowers – in print!
On the sixth Day of Archives, my archivists gave to me: Bookmarks
On the fifth Day of Archives, my archivists gave to me: Coasters
On the fourth Day of Archives, my archivists gave to me: The Memory Game
On the third Day of Archives, my archivists gave to me: Greeting Cards
On the second Day of Archives, my archivists gave to me: Magnets
On the first Day of Archives, my archivists gave to me: Puzzles
(You’re humming it now, aren’t you?)
Happy Holidays!