Lovely Letters: A Snail Mail Exchange

Hi friends! Today is a fantastic day! I'm all groggy from  my turkey and mashed potato hangover but I'm back at work for another day of fun-filled crazy day. Today is also really fantastic because I get to share with you a super fun secret project I've been working on for months!But first some backstory....I stumbled upon a post that The Duck and The Owl wrote describing their experience doing a snail mail exchange....I immediately got super excited and hoped on over to the Nectar Collective and signed up for the next event! This is where, if you'll remember, I met the fantastic Kerri. (notice the trend in crazy blog hopping here?!) Well I was hooked. But sadly, it was the end of the exchange! I was so sad. But! Then I found Esther. Who is wicked behind a camera, thoughtful, super nice, and was also a believer in the ways of snail mail. So, we began slowly forming the idea of starting our own exchange. Months of planning and traveling and life happening went by, but we worked through it all and are so, so happy to present to you the very first every event of the Lovely Letters Snail Mail Exchange!! Ta-Da! Imagine me making a creepy smiling face, nodding at you with jazz hands flaring! Ta-Da!First, what is it? Its like blogger blind dating. We set you up with someone, hopefully from a different country than you, give you a few ideas of what to talk about and then boom! Your BFFs. Ok, well kinda. You guys blog crush on each other, send emails/Skype/text/morose code, share ideas or favorite blogs, ask each other questions about your different cultures, etc. Pretty much, you do what normal humans do when they meet for the first time, but via the interwebs. Then, the most fun part! You mail each other a gift along with a handwritten letter or postcard! (Imagine here I'm performing amazing acrobatics to get the crowd pumped up!)We will provide you with a theme (optional), some questions and some suggestions to nurture your new friendship. Once you've gotten to know each other a bit, you choose something small (about $5) to send each other. Maybe you guys really hit it off talking about crafting so you send one of your favorite embellishments, tools, supplies or maybe your partner really loves hot teas and you send her your favorite fancy exotic brand only available in your country. It can be anything! It should represent you, your new relationship, your culture. The sky is the limit here (ok, well $5 is the limit here)!The point is to 1. Send/receive a fantastic package (everyone loves mail)2. To give/receive a small, thoughtful gift from a new friend  3. To receive/write a handwritten letter from someone you've never met in person, gushing over how fantastic you/they are!Here's how it works. Every month we will open it up for sign ups. We will then partner you, email you (privately so no spam or sharing your info with others), you guys chat, send your gifts, then you write-up a blog post introducing each other to your community of followers and then link up on Esther and I's pages for even more exposure! Boom. You've just made new friends, learned new things, received a really thoughtful gift and handwritten letter and been introduced to new blogging communities! Seriously, how can it get any better than that?!Our hope is to foster more connection and community in this crazy blogosphere! We want people to collaborate, make real friendships, learn and grow through this experience. The interwebs are huge, so this is a chance to make them a little smaller and more personal.You can read more info here on this fun little project and you can sign up for the May exchange here. This months theme will be spring, because, let's be honest, who's not so incredibly ready for spring?! We've opened this sign up a little bit early since it's the first one, so remember you wont hear from us until around the 9th of May to receive your partners. If you have any questions feel free to ask! And please share with your friends, the more the merrier!