Mail is Magic

Mail is Magic 

Dive into a different aspect of mail art in each of the five episodes below!  Hosted by Madeline Garcia, MCBA’s Education and Community Engagement Coordinator, these 10-to-15-minute lessons cover everything from DIY envelopes to hand lettering and printmaking techniques. Madeline shares lots of inspiring examples and prompts to get you started.

You’ll support the USPS while you’re at it. #MailedIt


In Lesson One: Envelopes, Madeline showed us how to make an envelope from scratch by folding any large photograph or paper sheet into nine sections.


In Lesson Two: Artistamps, Madeline showed us how to design a sheet of “artistamps,”which play off of real postage stamps for design inspiration.


In Lesson 3: Hand-Lettering in Mail Art, Madeline inspired viewers to create mail art composed entirely of letterforms (with the help of scissors, stickers, and colorful pens).


In Lesson 4: Rubber Stamp Carving, Madeline demonstrated how to carve your own stamp with an Xacto knife and a rubber eraser.


In Lesson 5: Collage & Found Objects, Madeline inspired us to repurpose paper scraps and found media into a mail art collage.


LOVE LOCAL: MAKE POP-UP VALENTINES

Learn how to make 3 unique pop-up valentine cards to send to your loved ones! Fun and accessible to many developmental levels, this hour-long workshop is open to all ages. Families can choose to work together or side-by-side to create their valentines.

MATERIALS NEEDED
To follow along with the workshop, all participants will need to prepare the construction paper or card stock cut to the following dimensions, along with the tools below:

Flower Bouquet Card
1x 5 ½ x 8 ½ in. 1x 5 ¼ x 8 ¼ in.

Nesting Accordion Card
1x 4 ½ x 11 in. 1x 4 ½ x 7 in.

Love V-fold Card
1x 5 ½ x 8 ½ in. 1x 3 ½ x 7 in.

TOOLS
Bone folder or alternative (popsicle stick, spoon)
Scissors
Pencil
Glue stick
Ruler
Waste sheets for gluing
Additional scrap paper to decorate your cards


LOVE LOCAL: SUMMER EDITION

Follow along and make three summer-inspired pop-up cards to send to your loved ones! Fun and accessible to many developmental levels, this workshop is open to all ages. Families can choose to work together or separately to create their cards (some adult help suggested when using Xacto knife).

MATERIALS NEEDED
To follow along with the workshop, all participants will need to prepare the construction paper or card stock cut to the following dimensions, along with the tools below:

Umbrella Pop-Out Card
1x 5 ½ x 8 ½ in. card stock paper
5x 1 ½ x 4¼ in. construction paper strips of different colored paper
1x 1 ½ x 8 1/2 in. sand colored strip (optional)
1x ½ x 4 in. strip (optional)

Campfire Pop-Out Card
1x 5 ½ x 8 ½ in. card stock paper
5x 2 ½ x 2 ½ in. strips of yellow/orange paper
1x 3 x 3 in. strip of brown paper

Lift-the-Flaps Card
1x 5 ½ x 8 ½ in. card stock paper
1x 4 x 5 ¼ in. different colored paper

TOOLS
Bone folder or alternative (popsicle stick, spoon)
Scissors
Xacto Knife
Pencil
Glue stick or double-sided tape
Ruler
Waste sheets for gluing
Additional scrap paper to decorate your cards


LOVE LOCAL: MAKE 3 HOLIDAY CARDS!

Learn how to make three holiday-inspired cards to send to your loved ones! Fun and accessible to many developmental levels, this workshop is open to all ages. Families can choose to work together or separately to make cards (adult support is needed for young children).

MATERIALS NEEDED
To follow along with the workshop, all participants will need to prepare the construction paper or card stock cut to the following dimensions, along with the tools below:

Window Pop-out Card
1x 5 ½ x 8 ½ in. card stock paper
1x 4 x 5 ¼ in. different colored paper (preferably blue)

Cross-fold Card
1x 8 ¼ x 8 ¼ in. paper

Tree Pop-out Card
1x 5 ½ x 11 in. card stock paper (preferably green)

TOOLS
Bone folder or alternative (popsicle stick, spoon)
Scissors
Xacto Knife
Pencil
Glue stick or double-sided tape
Ruler
Waste sheets for gluing
Additional scrap paper to decorate your cards