Quintessa

I'm a writer with an interest in ephemera, recycled art and repurposed stuff. In addition to my day job, I buy secondhand books and vintage accessories and housewares for independent stores - it doesn't make a lot of money, but it satisfies my love of shopping, marketing and old stuff!

I'm a dog person, and "mom" to 3-1/2 year-old Olivia, a Yorkshire Terrier-Toy Poodle cross. When the poodle part is dominant, she is smart, sweet and will jump through hoops of fire for treats. When the Yorkie part takes over, she's our wild northern hunting dog, sworn enemy of black squirrels.

I love images of wild birds, animals (if you're sending me a postcard, I'd love something of animals native to your state or province that we don't have in Ontario), fish and insects and appreciate a sense of humour in the design.

Food-wise, I love a good pot of tea (especially chai, but I'll drink anything in hot water!), enjoy a cup of coffee, and love chocolate.

I collect vintage women's kitchen tools, and and like to rotate my displays rather than have them all out at once. My collections include cookie cutters, unusual animal figurines, small 60s made-in-Japan figurines with well-painted expressions, ice-fishing decoys, raku fish sculptures, and bird art as well as abandoned nests and colourful feathers.

As for what to send me - I'm open minded - tell me something unique about where you live or a custom from your country.

I'm happy to do private swaps if there is something anyone wants from Canada that they can't get in their location. I've been very happy with private swaps done with a swapper in Peru - he has provided me with heaps of one- and two-colour older stamps for my paper crafting.

My favourite movies are those with a message such as Pay It Forward, The Rabbit-Proof Fence and Vera Drake, but I enjoy a good Bruce Willis movie! I laughed myself silly over Date Night - what a hoot it must have been working with Tina Fey!

My current favourite crafts are making envies from thrifted book, collage postcards and Christmas gift tags, but I've experimented with quilting (took too long to get results!), crochet (got tennis elbow from holding the hook too tightly!), and photography (a work in progress).

A lot of my collage material comes from thrift store books, but some I buy or swap for (Japanese papers, rubber stamps, postage stamps, etc). I'm drowning in envelopes after finding a stash of lovely ones for sale at five cents a piece in our local drug store/post office.

Lately, my favourite books have been those I can cut up for paper crafts!

Seriously - I read science fiction and historical fiction through my teens, twenties and thirties; non-fiction through my forties; and I'm finding I just don't have the patience for books that I used to have.

I did enjoy the Time Traveler's Wife and Memoirs of a Geisha recently. I hear The Lovely Bones is good, but think I'll just go see the movie! [Note: the movie is wonderful - keep hearing the book is awesome, too.]

... cutesie illustrations such as Disney (although I've developed a weakness for Hello Kitty). I prefer realistic or artistic interpretations of wildlife, especially if you've hand made it

... religious stuff (but I do celebrate Christmas as a non-religious holiday)

And that's about it!

... a recyclable grocery bag from Piggly Wiggly [Note: wish granted! Thank you to two wonderful swappers who went out of their way to pick me out two totally different bags from Piggly Wiggly! I'm now the envy of my work group with my out-of-country shopping bags!]

... images of polar bears - cartoon, real, on stamps, on wrapping paper, etc.

... handmade postcards (your choice of theme)

... bought postcards - of birds, animals, fish, insects, etc. native to your country, state or province. I know lots of people don't like images of snakes, but I find them fascinating!

... unusual papers for collage (down to 2x2 squares works for me)

... blank note cards or thank you cards (I send lots, so I'm always needing more)

... a sample of your favourite tea/coffee or other mailable beverage

If you're interested in a private swap and want to make me something handmade, message me. Here are some of the things I can send you:

• pages from foreign language books for collage
• Pooh images by Ernest Shepherd
• washi (Japanese paper) in your choice of colour
• vintage used stamps from Canada, China and other countries around the world
• new stamps from Canada (I can even get Canadian postage printed with your choice of image on it if you want to pay for it - minimum is about $25)
• blank or thank you notecards
• vintage greeting cards for various occasions
• new, used or vintage postcards (tell me what theme you're interested in)