The Value of a Sheet of Paper (And a Stationery Haul)

I am an avid collector and user of fine stationery. I love agendas, journals, notebooks, notepads, sticky notes, deco paper, letter paper, pens and writing accessories, greeting cards, gift wrapping stationery, all things paper. I have an impressive collection of all kinds of fine stationery in my home office, and I love it so much that I tend to purchase more than I have time to use.

In these times of acute environment issues that we as the human race are facing, I learned to respect and love paper as it had a soul of its own, and not just as a random commodity. To me, paper isn't simply a random commodity, but a valuable asset. To me, respecting paper is respecting the tree that it came from, and furthermore the environment that we live in. Remember, we only have one planet. If she's gone, we all are gone -- gotta be conscious about that, right?

As such, I have learned over time to appreciate paper to its fullest value, and I use it to its full potential without wasting any of it. To me, paper is a valuable asset not be wasted, as I always remember the tree. Each sheet of paper, each greeting card and each notebook are meant to deliver a message of love, and I will never discard it before it does its job and delivers the message.

Just think what a piece of paper can do.

• Writing handwritten letters to your penpals; 
• Writing holiday cards to friends and family; 
• Wrapping gifts for your loved ones; 
• Jotting down your thoughts in a journal; 
• Keeping your memories alive. 

And I love to do all these things with fine stationery. Among my favorite places to buy fine stationery in the City of Toronto are Indigo, Winners, Marshalls, HomeSense, Dollarama, Dollar Tree. When I go to any of these stores, I like to immerse myself in their stationery aisle, and if I could, I would never leave! And when I do leave, my shopping bag will be full of stationery!

But I also love to thrift for stationery. I love the stationery and office aisle in a thrift store just as much as I love the stationery aisle from Indigo. Remember the tree? Thrifting for stationery is a great way to save a tree, not to mention the treasure hunt which is so thrilling. Why let all that precious paper go to waste, when it can get a second life on someone else's desk. To me a thrifted notebook, if it's still in good condition, is just as good as a notebook that comes from Indigo or Marshalls.

I also love using online stationery, and PaperlessPost.com is a great resource for those who prefer all things digital. I discovered PaperlessPost.com two years ago, and I came to appreciate this online stationery website for its variety and endless choices. Sometimes it's just easier to say it online, isn't it? The online stationery and greeting cards from PaperlessPost.com are great for that.

And here's my newest stationery haul, all things paper that I love so much. Some of these notebooks and journals have already been written, some of them have been given as gifts to friends, some of them are still awaiting in my home office to be filled with precious memories. Some of them came new, some of them are thrifted.

Photo credit: Victoria West

Review: Online Stationery from Paperless Post

I am an avid lover and user of stationery. I love paper and anything paper, but beyond paper itself, I love that it helps you send the message of love to your dear ones, when you want them to know how much they mean to you. I used to love writing and sending hand-written letters to my friends by mail in the pre-internet days. I still love writing and sending out handwritten cards to my friends and family for holidays. I am a long time journaler and I have been journaling on paper for decades, a habit that I still keep today, even though I also spend quite a lot of my time online, including writing this blog. My home office is a haven of stationery -- greeting cards for all possible occasions, envelopes of all sizes and for all purposes, notebooks for my journaling, pens, paper, wrapping gift stationery, and anything else in between.

But besides paper stationery, online stationery is also available to us in an array of options. It is the internet era after all, isn't it? Just like any other aspect of our lives, when we went from analog to digital in everything over the last generation, the world of stationery has done the same -- going from analog to digital, from paper to paperless.

Recently I discovered a wonderful source of digital (aka paperless) stationery, Paperless Post. It's a website where you can create and design your own stationery, and send the message of love to your friends and family. How does it work? The trading currency on Paperless Post is the coin, which can be purchased on the website, in any desired amount. You have the option of creating and designing your own stationery -- that is cards for any occasions, and you use coins as means of payment to send those cards to your recipients. Free cards that don't require coins are also available on the platform.

You can send out cards from Paperless Post using an array of available designs to create and customize your own stationery, to your liking, for absolutely any occasion. The entire online stationery on Paperless Post is grouped in 7 big categories -- Graduation, Birthday, Wedding, Parties, Professional, Cards with other themes, Flyer. And each of these categories have subcategories with dozens and dozens samples of stationery and cards you can choose from. For instance, under Birthday cards, we can find general birthday cards, birthday cards for her, birthday cards for him, and even belated birthday cards! Under Parties, we can find invitation cards for all types of parties -- dinner parties, cocktail parties, graduation parties, farewell parties, baby showers, baptism parties, first communion, and many-many more.

Another section full of inspiration on Paperless Post is the designer stationery. Paperless Post partner with the world's best designers, fashion houses, lifestyle brands and independent stationers to bring you distinctive designs for any occasion or style. Among the designers and brands who collaborate with Paperless Post to create exquisite online stationery are Kate Spade, Mary Katrantzou, Oscar de la Renta, Vera Wang, Charlotte Olympia, The New Yorker, and others.

I also noticed another exciting section on Paperless Post -- design your own stationery, where you can upload your own designs (photos), an option that allows you to get even more creative!

And for those who still prefer paper stationery like back in the days, Paper Source section on the website is what you need -- greeting cards for all occasions and holidays, craft paper, personalized stationery, gift wrapping, journals, planners, and much more.

I have a certain amount of coins available in my Paperless Post account that I can use to send cards to my dear ones. First time when I accessed the website, I browsed all categories and styles of paperless cards, and I sent a few cards to some of my friends, just to cheer up their day. I loved it! The designing process is very easy to follow, and you can create your perfect card to send to someone dear to you in mere moments. You can create so much beauty on Paperless Post, that my only regret about it is that I didn't know about it sooner! Most certainly I will come back to Paperless Post to create more exquisite online stationery.