Dear Everyone ~
I continue to receive lovely appreciative emails from customers …
some of whom have ordered gift parcels for friends …
who in turn send wonderful emails of thanks to the gift-givers,
who then share them with me. And, now, I am sharing them with you.
I have to start with Jill,
who did not order a gift for her cat,
but the cat didn’t know that. Jill wrote:
“ My curious 10-month-old kitten got ahold of
your lovely package before I did…luckily the only
damage was to the tissue paper! Thank you again and I
welcome the distraction these beautiful pencils will surely bring.”
I’d been out of one of the Luminous Lyra Colours
Jill had ordered, so when I had restocked,
I let her know her pencil would be en route …
and she decided to add several items to her order.
When she received her parcel, she said:
“ Getting a package from you is like Christmas in April.
Thanks so much! ”
Last Friday, Alyson, a long-time customer, asked me to
send a Bundle of Stationery Joy as a surprise to her friend Bob.
She hoped I could include a card that said With the compliments
of the Maven of Mail. Absolutely! Alyson was able to track
the progress of Bob’s parcel on the USPS website … and minutes after the
mailman had deposited it by the front door midday-ish on
Monday, Bob emailed Alyson. He has graciously allowed me
to share this bit of his e-thanks to her:
“ My Bundle of Stationery Joy has provided the final nudge
I needed to recruit more people into my correspondence circle.
I have been contemplating reaching out to my collection of friends
from college and asking them to forgo digital in favor of
pen and ink. I have a degree in Creative Writing, and my old friends
were all artists and writers. This is the motivation I needed to spur
me on to recruit more folk into the lost art of correspondence. ”
Susan K. lives in Chicago and is a frequent visitor to the shop.
She has recently taken to sending gifts to numerous
friends who live in and near New York City.
In each, I enclose a postcard on which I write,
It’s a delight to assemble this parcel for you,
with love from Susan.
A few days ago, Susan shared with me
her friend Lydia’s thank-you for her parcel:
“ Thank you so much for the beautiful package.
It’s all so wonderful. I've been looking at every piece several times.
It was wrapped so beautifully, and every detail was so
interesting: the stamp [1¢ apples on the postcard],
Bari’s business card, the string, besides the stationery.
I just love it, and it took my mind off what's happening in the world.
The pencils are fantastic and it's inspiring me to do some artwork.
I'm going to try to sketch now with the pencils.
What a wonderful store to have nearby. ”
Last week, Susan asked me to assemble an assortment
for 10-year-old Yael, who lives in New York City.
I had a fabulous time implementing Susan’s creative vision
for her young friend. Here’s what I sent. I am tickled to have
received from Susan a video of Yael decanting her parcel.
Tree, who lives in California, made my heart sing
with her most recent acknowledgment:
“ I received your package yesterday, and it was such a healing balm.
I love that each piece is wrapped in such beautiful ways.
I have a Bari box on my worktable in which I save the wrapping
elements to use. May you find many happy moments in this fine day. ”
Kristina ordered a gift certificate for her friend Elise. She wrote:
“ Elise’s birthday was yesterday, and I can’t think of
anything better for her to look forward to than
visiting your studio in person eventually or online now.
Our minds should be able to wonder and wander while
we’re at home and saving lives. Hope you’re staying healthy. ”
It’s uplifting for me, in the midst of packing parcels,
to receive details from customers and their friends.
I am always honoured to be asked to include
a personal note on behalf of a gift-giver.
Your delighted scribe,
Bari