Letter Writing Questionnaire with Sarah

1. Please tell us about yourself, How old are you? What made you want to start writing?

Hi y'all! I want to take a moment to thank Hannah for featuring me here on her blog today! This was so much fun! :) I'm Sarah! I am a 16 year old, home-schooled Christian girl who tries to love Jesus with her whole heart.

I like music, letters, movies, reading, junk food, fashion, daydreaming, superheros, Disney, sparkles, pajama days, puppies and kitties, and the color yellow. :) I've always loved to play pretend-and writing. I always loved getting the mail, even before I wrote letters, always hoping there would be something for me but knowing there wouldn't.

2. When did you start writing letters?

I started writing letters when I was 8 years old. My mom was in a mom's email group, where they decided to have a pen pal swap for their kids. She asked me if I wanted to be part of it and I said yes. My first pen pal and I wrote for roughly three years. I have had several other pen pals since. :) Here are all the letters from the pen pal I've written the longest, that I still write. :)

3. Have you met any of your pen pals?

Yes! I met my pen pals Amy and Olivia in 2009, and I started writing my pen pals Heather, Anna, and Miriam after meeting them.

4. How many people do you write?..How many different states..Any out of the country?

I write to I think 7 people, some write more often than others. One of my pen pals (Amy) moved out of the country recently, so I'll try to keep up with her, but overseas postage is so much more expensive! Anyway, I write to people in three different states. :p It's pathetic, but most of them live in the same state.

5. What is your favorite thing about writing letters?

Getting to know people through a way where you can re-live your old conversations! Every so often I love to go through my old letters and re-read them, remembering what we were talking about and laughing at myself or at old stories we've shared. :)

6. Favorite place to buy stationery?

I haven't found a job yet, so I usually buy cheap stuff. :p Usually in the dollar section at Target or at the Dollar Tree. They have some cute stationery, though! :) I get a lot of stationery as gifts, too.

7. How do you store your stationery?

I currently have an old gift bag that I just dumped all my stationery in, then later organized it. I also have a box set of stationery that was recently gifted to me that had more than enough room in it, so I put a bunch of my greeting cards in there. :)

8. Where do you keep the letters you receive?

In shoeboxes on a shelf in my closet! I currently have four very full shoeboxes. I'll need to start using a fifth one soon!

9. Favorite letter writing blogs if you have them?

Yours :), The Lost Art of Letter Writing...Revived!, Winnie's Girl, Leaving a Paper Trail, Sarah's Scribblings, and Shannah Renee

10. In closing, What is something you'd like to share with us that you haven't mentioned yet?

One time on "Leaving a Paper Trail" blog, she mentioned filler ideas. Where to go when the words don't flow? I commented, listing some of my favorite ideas.

I keep a (now very ragged) simple, wirebound notebook with a couple pages for each person. In between letters I often think of things that remind me of them, or jokes I'd like to share, or even questions I'd like to ask them. All of that, goes in my notebook. Another thing I like to do sometimes, is ask the person I'm writing what they're wearing, or where they are and what everyone around them is doing. It helps them to set perspective for you, like a story, and I think that's fun. :)

Thank you so much Sarah, for taking time to send me your answers. I loved reading them and it was so nice to hear about your letter writing. I'm so blessed by your friendship and am happy that I get to be one of your pen pals . :)

If you would like to be featured on here, I'd love to share your answers with everyone. Please go here for more info

monday mail

two packages put together over the course of a few weeks. sent to sweet friends across the miles. i would say i'm quite fond of monday mail. Sent out last Monday
             
                                                 current inspiration loves one,two, three, four

Summer Mail

                                                             overflowing with love 

Letter Writing Questionnaire

hello everyone!

i hope you are all having a lovely day and enjoying this beautiful fall weather (if you currently are entering fall). today i am bringing you something new. interviews!  

i have a list of questions i'd love to ask you. if i get enough people i hope to make this a weekly thing. if you'd like to be interviewed, blog or not, send me an email at inhannahsworld@hotmail.com simply with the answers to the following questions. 

* please send pictures if you have them, whether to go along with your answers or just to add in. :)

I thought I would share my answers with you first. :) 

1. Please tell us about yourself, how old are you? What made you want to start writing?
    
 I'm Hannah, 17 and living in Michigan. I've lived here all my life and love being here. I have two wonderful parents and two older brothers. I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful family who I love very much. I'm a Christian homeschooled girl, it's my senior year and I can't believe high school is nearly over for me. Ever since I was little, writing has been one of my favorites. I have so many stories written by a little me, and many journals filled over the years, along with the love of letter writing. So writing has always been naturally a part of me. 

2. When did you start writing letters?
    
I have letters going back to first grade. I remember writing my friends from school and we loved corresponding even though we saw each other practically every day of the week. I love that I kept all those letters over the years because it's sweet to see what my young self and my friends were like back then. Sweet memories tucked away in hatboxes up in my closet. 

3. Have you met any of your pen pals? 

Besides being friends with people I know in person and write , this past June I had the blessing of  meeting two very dear friends of mine for the first time ever. We dreamed for a long while before the day came, after many letters, tweets, and texts later we finally were able to have fun together in person.   I first started writing Liz in September of 2010 after leaving comments on her blog weekly for months , and after our first phone call together, I had the idea to write her sister Hope. :) This coming year I'm hoping to add a few more to the list of pen pals I've met. :) 

4. How many people do you write?..how many states..any out of the country?

Since starting my letter writing blog back in 2011 , letter writing became one of my favorite things to do in spare time, so I started writing a lot more people. Blogging opened up so many doors, and I've been given such dear friendships. As far as how many people do I write? I have about 13 people I can think of at the moment. Some I exchange letters with every month, others every few months. I currently write one person out of the US. She lives in Australia. I love hearing from her and she is so sweet! I've always wanted a pen pal from England , which has yet to happen but I have received a few letters over the last couple years. Love the British stamps! :) 

5.   What is your favorite things about writing letters?

 Snail mail is something I've loved ever since I was young. Going out to the mailbox and finding a letter addressed to me has always brought a smile to my face. To know that someone near, or far is thinking of me and taking time out of their day to sit down and write a note, truly means so much. I love snail mail because it's a way to get to know someone better. I think keeping snail mail alive is important because it's becoming a rare thing today. Letter writing adds that personal touch. Texts can sometimes come across wrong. And who doesn't love receiving a letter in between junk mail? (Taken from a letter project that my friend did and I sent in.)

6. Favorite place to buy stationery?

 I LOVE Papaya brand stationery. The designs are arsty and the envelopes are just darling. Though it is one of the most expensive brands I've found, the happy part is I found a place that sells not only Papaya sometimes , but other pretty cards . Home Goods is my favorite store to buy stationery. Everything is much cheaper , example: 6 cards from Papaya could typically cost $14, If I found them at Home Goods, they'd be $3.99. 

7.  How do you store your stationery?

 I keep everything in a hatbox that I believe I bought at Michaels. It's a nice sized box and I can store it all safely , without everything getting unorganized. 

8.  Where do you keep the letters you receive?

  Every time I receive a letter, I'll set it in my   
  handy dandy letter organizer -->

{front row is letters to be written, back row, to send out}

Once the letter has been written, I'll store them along with all my other letters previously received. I've collected different boxes the last few years because one just doesn't hold it all. :) :)

9.  Favorite blogs filled with inspiration/mail/journaling:
  
    There are so many inspiring blogs out there that share all the lovelies they receive in the mail along with beautiful photography, journaling , and much more. These are just a few favorites. I have many more though.

     Favs are ----> Rin , Sarah, Grace, Katie, Acacia , Lou, Gracie

10.  In closing, What is something you haven't mentioned yet that you would like to share?

I'm very blessed by each and every friendship that I've made through letter writing. It's a way for me to share with others who I sadly can't be with in person (the ones that live far away ). I love how I can meet people and learn about the way they live life, without ever leaving home. I love how people can share and write about their day and being interested in knowing how I'm doing. 


Would you like to answer these questions? I'd love to have you send in your answers and be featured on this blog. Simply just copy and paste these questions in an email and fill them out. Can't wait to hear from you. :) {Now they don't have to be this long if you don't feel like writing as much, I just went a little long ;) }


1. Please tell us about yourself, How old are you? What made you want to start writing?
2. When did you start writing letters?
3. Have you met any of your pen pals?
4. How many people do you write?..How many different states..Any out of the country?
5. What is your favorite thing about writing letters?
6. Favorite place to buy stationery?
7. How do you store your stationery?
8. Where do you keep the letters you receive?
9. Favorite letter writing blogs if you have them?
10. In closing, What is something you'd like to share with us that you haven't mentioned yet?

Outgoing Mail September 3rd.

During the month of August, I started to get the idea of changing the number of my p.o.box. I've had it since February 2011, and figured I'd have it for another year, but didn't feel like standing on my toes again , I thought It was time for a change. :) This past Friday I went to close my box (since It needed to be renewed the next day) and change to a new number. I like the spot much better now as I can see without stepping up. :p  

I held on to a lot of my letters because I didn't want to have any issues with having them transfer over. Today when I went to the post office, I had quite the stack of outgoing mail being sent all over the US. If you've been waiting on mail from me, it's most likely "on the way" though I do have a few letters/ packages I'm working on sending out. :)

 I have a couple more letters but they were used with the same stationery so I didn't post them. :) I felt like getting most of my mail out before school starts tomorrow so I would have a fresh start. Not sure yet how busy it will be. 

*Reminder, if you have any questions or something you'd like to see on here, please check out this post.  :)