Necessary Frivolities

If nine months out of commission wasn't enough, I have so much catching up to do just within the last six weeks! This photograph is one of a batch from a friend's lovely January 2nd wedding, and I'm still editing away at them. I have over 3/4 developed now, and then the bride and groom (and inlaws) can print and share to their hearts content!

Anyway, Tiny Prints keeps slipping these sly little deals into my inbox (because supposedly I'm an affiliate. I am. I just, am not sure why, other than that I LOVE them). I figured, hey, maybe one or two people would actually enjoy some of these! (These are Affiliate Exclusives.)

"Enjoy" (you hear that, you better enjoy!) "20% off your order for new customers only."

If you've never used a stationary printing service before, and you're the kind of person who loves both paper/stationary and photographs, it's really neat to have a handful of these for close friends and the scrapbook.  Greeting cards are a highly affordable way to decorate.  I always keep one out of each box of seasonal cards that I buy throughout the years because . . . pretty . . . and you never know when you'll be able to pull them back out, string them along a clothesline, and decorate your mantel.  But these personalized ones are worthy of framing!

"Enjoy 10% off your order--no minimum order."  Hey!  And if you were looking into a big order, here's 15% off of $75 or more and $30 off for orders of $75 or more for NEW CUSTOMERS ONLY.

There's also more to be found than just stationary, so see if something strikes your fancy.  I get some sort of percentage from sales (not sure how much), so there is that.  And I'd be amiss not to give a shout-out in a post about party stationary to my college friend Jen at Oh Hello Events, who works for the sophisticated Invitation Consultants.

Photographs and stationary are funny.  They're not immediately necessary, not in the sense that they minister to your bodily needs.  But I am a huge believer in beauty.  You could easily live without pretty things, but pretty things nourish the soul.  They can be as free as wildflowers brought into the home or as frivolous as an expensive piece of art that serves no function but brightens your heart every time you look at it.  I think it's important to foster beauty in our lives.  The soul who seeks to bring beauty into his home best embraces the gift of creation.  If you're not convinced, think about the stagnant, utilitarian set-up of a factory or a science lab.  Think of the kind of person whose home is like a hospital operating room.  Yeah.

That's one of the beauties, pun intended, of being Catholic.  We're not Puritans.  We believe beauty, and things--even useless things!--are good, and good for us; given that they're kept as our servants and not our masters.  Mine are just pictures and paper.  Yours might be pies and  accent pillows.

Hope you're having a beautiful, fruitful Lent!  I better get to work.