I stopped at the post office today to mail a letter and pick up some stamps while I was there. After dropping the letter in the slot I checked my box and found a letter from Limner. If you don't know Limner, you can meet her at her blog, Oh, Write Me! It was a nice note card, one of those in-between-letters cards with a significant P.S. informing me that my seals are never SEALED. They come undone somewhere between here and there. Hmm, people have told me that seals arrive intact and now this. Perhaps wax sticks with a wick are good and glue gun sticks are not.... After purchasing stamps I explained to the postal lady behind the counter that I had just put a letter through the slot in a handmade envelope that was sealed with wax which I now know know to need tape (the letter I just got told me so) and would she please find it and tape it up for me. She looked at me a little puzzled when I said the letter told me so but when I read her the P.S. she understood and assured me she would take care of it. Perhaps I should send her a thank you note. Thank you, Limner, for letting me know about the faulty wax. I will be searching out a reliable alternative. I feel I was a bit of a bother at the post office but the courtesy I found there made me appreciate Kingsburg's little post office all the more.
7 Comments
2/27/2013 01:17:17 am
Hello, Mrs. Duffy! Have you tried the "flexible" more mail friendly wax sold by nostalgic impressions? It is what I use,
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2/27/2013 03:06:47 am
No, I haven't, nor have I heard of Nostalgic Impressions but I am very glad to know about them now! The glue gun wax is flexible, just not reliable like other flexi-waxes :( I see Nostalgic impressions is having a sale...good timing! Thanks, Lady Pamela :o)
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Last week I almost bought some glue gun wax to try at a new-to-me store I visited but after reading this, I think I'm glad I bought the J.Herbin flexible wax instead. (I used to buy Atelier Gargoyle's wax at a local store but sadly they no longer carry it.)
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2/28/2013 01:46:31 am
I am glad you saw this in time. I've never used Atelier Gargoyle but it's come to me with flying colors. I haven't used J.Herbin but have found Waterston's to be a very fine wax.
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Jan
3/1/2013 01:42:48 am
The fact that they said I'd need to buy a 2nd glue gun just for wax also helped me decide - my Scotch side just didn't want to spend the extra money. ;) 3/3/2013 01:37:36 am
I would not necessarily fault the wax, especially if others have reported the seals arriving intact. Keep in mind that letters encounter a varying array of sorting machines, most of them mechanized, on their journey. It could be that the ones near Limner are just particularly punishing, or something to do with her particular climate. Just because something reaches one person intact - or damaged - does not mean it will reach another that way... or even that it will be the same every time to each person. My strategy is to make sure that any pretty additions to an envelope are not required to keep it structurally sound, and try to keep in mind all the trials the envelope will encounter along its way.
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3/3/2013 05:46:06 am
Thanks for the thoughts, Missive Maven. I've been wondering if heat is part of the equation and the glue gun doesn't reach the same temperature as a flame. I'll have to hope for the best and plan for the worst by making sure my envelopes are sufficiently glued together, "structurally sound" as you so well put it.
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