{"id":1789671,"date":"2020-11-24T18:57:01","date_gmt":"2020-11-24T23:57:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/?p=1789671"},"modified":"2022-12-06T19:30:50","modified_gmt":"2022-12-07T00:30:50","slug":"a-guide-to-map-stationery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2020\/11\/a-guide-to-map-stationery\/","title":{"rendered":"A Guide to Map Stationery"},"content":{"rendered":"

To keep myself connected to distant friends and family members during the pandemic, one thing I\u2019ve been doing has been to send them actual, handwritten correspondence. A bit old-fashioned in the era of Zoom meetings and video chat, but it gets me away from the computer, and the firehose of awful that comes with it. Since I\u2019m me, I was interested in finding map-themed postcards, notecards and stationery that I could use when writing to friends and colleagues who shared my interest in maps. It turns out that there is some out there.<\/p>\n

This post is a roundup of what map-themed stationery for correspondence I\u2019ve been able to find. It can serve as a gift guide, if map-themed stationery strikes you as a good gift; the holidays, after all, are coming up. As usual, I link to stores selling the stuff; I get a small cut of the income from qualifying purchases.<\/p>\n

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Postcards<\/h2>\n

We\u2019ll start with postcards. Cavallini\u2019s vintage map postcards, which came out in 2012 and were reviewed here<\/a> in 2016, come in a stylish metal tin that contains 18 cards, two each of nine designs. They\u2019re printed on heavy, non-glossy card stock that foxes around the edges a bit, and on a per-card basis they\u2019re comparatively expensive ($12.50). Amazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>)<\/p>\n

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Notecards<\/h2>\n

Next up are notecards, which are basically blank greeting cards that come either flat or folded. They give you a bit more space to write than a postcard does, but you\u2019re not escalating things to an Actual Letter. Notecards are great and I use them a lot, though they can sometimes be a challenge to find. Most of these came out a few years ago and may not necessarily be in stock where you shop.<\/p>\n

Another thing to keep in mind that some notecards are too small to be mailed: they\u2019re meant to be enclosed or attached. Some are large enough for mail in the U.S. but not elsewhere, because the minimum width standards are different: five inches (127 mm) wide in the U.S. and 140 mm elsewhere in the world.<\/p>\n

\"WendyCalifornia artist Wendy Gold<\/a> uses maps and globes as her canvas; she\u2019s licensed her work to appear on various products, including the Maps of the Imagination<\/a> notecards ($13.99), which came out in 2014. They come 16 to a box, in four designs where wildlife and other vibrant elements explode from ordinary world maps. They\u2019re large enough for mailing, and the envelopes are classy as heck: I\u2019ve used these cards myself. Amazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>), Bookshop<\/a><\/p>\n

\"teNeuesteNeues has two sets of vintage maps themed notecards: the QuickNotes<\/a> ($13.95), which includes 20 cards in four designs based on a celestial atlas by Andreas Cellarias; and the GreenNotes<\/a> ($10.95), which comes in eco-friendly packaging and includes 16 cards in eight designs based on Joan Blaeu\u2019s maps. (QuickNotes are five inches wide and as such are a hair too small for mailing outside the United States; I don\u2019t know if the same goes for the GreenNotes.)<\/p>\n