I can not wait to leave for Paris this month and on to the south of France. I plan to over pack for my tour of Provence.

I know we should be more practical with our packing. But my suitcases have wheels and are ultra light. I will be sure to leave room for shopping. But I will also over load on dresses, I never regret those.

Keys to over packing include, bringing every outfit you ever dreamed of wearing but never found the courage to wear in your hometown. If it looks fab you can pull it off on vacation.

If I am bringing a checked bag, I usually include my full size toiletries too. This depends on the item. But mostly it is comforting to set up the bathroom like I like.

Paris will be amazing! I can’t wait to share my pics!!

This spring, I was sad to hear that my favorite stationary company had shut it’s doors before I was ever rich enough to afford it. Mrs. John L. Strong came about during the nineteen thirties in the middle of the Great Depression. This was as elegant as it gets. For 80 years they offered hand made engraved stationary. They continued the process of hand engraving,with hand made dies made from steel, hand stamping and hand mixing ink colors long after other companies switched to computer engraving. How could a company built during the Great Depression not survive the Great Recession?

What happened?

We.Stopped.Writing.Letters.

Why? It seems like now days we need letters more than ever. With constant emails, Twitter, Facebook messages and texts, our communication often lacks any real meaning or connection.

A letter or note in the mail is like a gift. If it’s on lovely stationary even better for both you and the recipient.

Take a moment to send off a little note to someone, it will lift both of your spirits.