Inspiring Crafts From History: The Art of Letter-Writing

Today I was looking at StumbleUpon and I came across a blogger who had a recipe for Cocoa Smoothie, and she was lamenting the lack of letters we write these days.

She longed for the days when we communicated in a much simpler way. Before the advent of Facebook, mobile phones and emails. When you got more than bills, packages from eBay and junk mail in the post. When young lovers awaited love-letters, when mothers awaited letters from sons fighting in wars far away and letters didn’t have to mean dread or final demands.

It got me to thinking about that myself, and it inspired me to write to my mum. We both enjoy writing and receiving letters, we don’t always have the time and with Skype, sometimes there seems little point.

The Art Of The Letter

The art of the letter should be celebrated, it needs to be taught to the newer generations. We still have uses for the humble letter, quite often a good letter to a prospective employer can help you along, or a letter of query or complaint to a service provider may help you get information or even a rebate on a bill.

Letter writing skills can help write a professional looking email, so even though you may not need a “hard copy” for snail mail, you can still cultivate the art of letter writing for the 21st Century.

The beauty of a letter or even a card is that its easily available to be re-read as many times as the receiver wishes without having to search in your Inbox. I think letters can be comforting and encouraging things, and if I know of a friend that feels down I will send a card or letter to let them know they are not alone. To send some words of encouragement that will be there when I can’t be, say at 2:30 am.

Some Pointers For The Would-Be Letter Writer

Letters don’t need fancy stationary, and in fact the planer the better when it comes to a professional letter to a prospective employer, a letter requiring information or a letter of complaint.

However, with a pencil or pen you can decorate a plan piece of paper, and make a letter more of an occasion when you write to a friend or loved one.

This is my humble example of decorating a sheet of paper, ready for a hand written letter.

There are many blogs and websites where you can find tips for writing in a professional context. When I did a search I even found a website that has free cover letters. I would recommend anyone wanting to write a letter to Google “How to write a letter” and going from there.

When writing to friends or family, I’d suggest putting the place of writing and the date in the right hand corner. A letter will begin differently for different purposes, so if your writing to a family member or close friend: Dear Jenny/Dear Mum. Ending “with love”, “best wishes” or something else equally affectionate.

If your writing to someone you don’t know well about a personal matter, like an invite or something like that: Dear Mr John Doe/Dear Mrs Joanna Bloggs. Ending with “Yours Sincerely”.

Address the envelope so that the address sits in the centre, sometimes its appropriate to put a senders address on the back of the envelope. I often do, that way the reader will know who sent it before they even open the letter.

Consider Writing A Letter

Whether its to a loved one or some other kind of letter, I hope that I have inspired you to write a letter. To acquire the skill of bygone days.

I’m sure the receiver will appreciate your effort. I know a love letter is always appreciated by the receiver. So listen you lads, if you want to charm a girl, a well written letter would be a good place to start.

Until Next Time

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Davita