stephiedee

December 2021.

I'm no longer active here. My profile is staying because it can still be useful, but I won't be checking in. If you need to reach me for some reason, you can find me at the links above.

If you want to use one of my past swaps as inspiration for a new swap, feel free. Just don't plagiarize my descriptions. That's pretty shitty.

I have no plans of ever stopping my creative habits. Sharing and exchanging crafts and mail art will be more on a free-agent basis now. If we already exchange, I hope we'll continue. If we don't, but you'd like a new mail pal, feel free to reach me at one of the links above. :)

Hi, I'm Steph (she/her)! I'm a 40-something nerdy, social misfit from Florida. I live with my husband and adult daughter in Tallahassee, Florida, amongst the pine trees. I was born and raised on the coast in the Tampa Bay Area, 200 miles south of here. I love my state, crazy as it can get some times.

I'm a homemaker and try to cram as much creative playtime into my day as possible between one boring chore or another. I’m obsessed with making things. I’ve been at it for awhile now - crafting for at least 20 years (going back to when I scrapbooked my daughter’s babyhood) and I've tried oodles of things. For the past 12 years I’ve been focused on paper/mixed media art and swapping. Right now I’m all about mail art, gluebooks, ATCs, artbooks/zines, and just generally gluing paper to paper. I got myself a Gel Press for my 40th birthday in 2019 and am over the moon about it.

I am very enthusiastically a homebody, thanks to some major introversion and social anxiety (and general anxiety, let's be real). I have the social instincts of a goat sometimes. Making art (and swapping) is my way of coping with the internal junk and connecting with people. Crafting is the great neutralizer; I'll talk shop with literally anyone, damn the shyness and social anxiety.

My creative style leans a little eclectic. I love making things in a scrappy, colorful, busy collage style. I love quirky/offbeat characters, irreverence, humor and not taking (artsy) things too seriously. Though I can also throw down the classically pretty, "proper" styles when the time/mood calls for it. I mix together any sort of paper things I can get my hands on: office supplies, stationery, gift wrapping stuff, thrifted books/mags, catalogs, scrapbooking supplies, handmade papers, printables. I'm a thrift store stalker and discount department store hunter.

Well, this is what I like. It's not everything, but it's a fair amount. See also: MY PINTEREST.

Making, sending, receiving and collecting...

• ATCs, altered index cards, little art cards of all kinds.

• mail art; handmade postcards, fully decorated envelopes, naked mail.

• artbooks; glue books, art journals, zines.

• paper collage goodie stuffed envelopes (decorated or not), paper bombs (1 ounce of random paper stuff), painted papers.

• 3D assemblages, wall decor, funky little ornaments, repainted figs, altered wood blocks.

Eye Candy

―collage/mixed media art with lots of texture/layers
―altered Mona Lisa and other art muses (Lina Cavalieri, Theda Bara)
―cheeseburgers, strawberries, lemons
―tropical flora/fauna; beachy aesthetics; Springtime
―celestial (astronomy) art; Spacecore, sun & moon faces
―60s/70s retro aesthetics; big florals, mustard yellow, groovy hippies, boho style
―Vaporwave, 80s/90s pop culture; cartoons, New Wave
―Cyberpunk, Retro Futurism
―Raccoons, squirrels, cockatoos, alligators
―big boofy flowers; camellia, Persian buttercup, dahlia, peony
―deep sea divers (helmets only or whole suits) - it's a hometown thing.
―Zetti, mixed up characters, stripey legs, anthropomorphism
―lava lamps, light bulbs, neon signs, old TV sets
―symbols - peace signs, evil eyes, plus signs++++, hamsa
―Buddha/Budai (the classic one/the fat happy one)
―CLOWNS, mimes, jesters, circus performers
―fantasy creatures, cute monsters, aliens
―VW Buses/Bugs, old rusted out trucks
―mystical/occult imagery; phrenology, palmistry charts, anatomy art, skulls
―creepy, vintage, campy, Gothic Halloween.

I would say the supplies I use are 70% misfit, upcycled things and 30% legit art/craft supplies. I have a small used bookstore in my craft cave - though I'm trying to pare that down as I find myself more and more relying on printable imagery (it's easier to store 😂).

Paper supplies I can always use these things
―interesting graph/grid papers
―fun, FLAT stickers
―painted papers/palette papers
―vintage yearbook portraits
―city road maps (tightly concentrated road grids)
―text printed tissue paper/napkins
―collage style rubberstamp images (that cut out easily)
―found words from books
―any flat embellishment type things
―bold patterned & brightly colored papers
―images/background patterns from magazines
―diverse collage imagery (people of color)
―machine stitched strips of paper
―paper bombs - random 1 oz./1 stamp envelope of collage stuffs.

Postcards: I don't collect any particular kind, but I'd love any featuring favorite imagery I've mentioned or any sort of modern art or handmade. And I really don't care what you do to fill out the postcard; you don't have to tell me a story or go into the details of your day. You don't even have to write anything; free free to sticker it up, doodle, whatever.

Please send postcards NAKED (unless you're sending blank ones, of course), especially handmade postcards. I will always prefer them naked and uncovered - it's why I join/host handmade postcard swaps!

Sticker Preferences
―NO puffy/epoxy/3-D; I mostly use stickers for mail
―NO planner specific (days of the week, appointment reminders, etc.)
―NO Disney Princesses, baby themes.
―YES random kawaii characters, doodle style, silly/cute animals, rainbows, stars, unicorns, foods with faces (I love the Fashion Angels line of sticker books, so I have nothing against kid-centric styles of stickers) +++also more adult themes, like botanicals, non silly animals, faux postage, alphas, word stickers, larger vinyl stickers, "happy mail" labels.

Top 3 worst things to send me...

• sharks. Pictures, stickers, whatever. I have a phobia and don't need to be scared shitless when opening my mail.

• religion/religious items.

• edibles/potables of any kind, including tea bags and candies.

In the Slightly Less Offensive Yet Still Undesirable Department, I'd rather not receive...

• paint chips, recipe cards, tiny note cards (ones too small to mail)
• Tim Holtz/Dina Wakley/Jane Davenport, etc. branded supplies (if you enjoy using these things in your art: COOL! I just rather not receive these supplies....save them for the fans).
• any lace/blingy supplies; antique aesthetic, Victorian, Paris or steampunk themed paper craft supplies.
• patriotic, presidential or monarchy stuff.
• holiday stuff - with the exception of Halloween. Fall/Winter stuff doesn't do much for me either. Hi, lifelong Floridian. Those seasons barely exist down here.
• coffee/tea themes, wine/boozy themes, 420/weed culture.
• true crime, serial killers, murder mysteries....I'm not into ANY of that stuff.

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Thank you for coming this far and taking any of these things into consideration.