Monet Goes to Mexico

I was contacted a few months ago by one of my favorite stationers, Ink & Press Co., to curate a set with a romantic coastal theme. She told me to think: “Money goes to Mexico.” How fun is that? We landed on a lovely combination of postage in pastel tones with a few distinct highlights that I want to talk more about.

First, the 29c herb stamps from 2011. These were issued after Forever stamps became a thing in 2007, so why the 29c denomination? It’s because they are postcard stamps! (side note: As we stand on the precipice of yet another price increase, it’s hard to believe it will soon be 44c to mail a postcard yet 11 years ago it was almost 1/2 of that!). These herbs were issued in a collection of five designs, each of which highlights a different kitchen garden herb that also has ties to folklore.

The other stamp I want to mention is the 8c National Parks Zion stamp. This stamp is part of my favorite series maybe…. ever? I hate to actually type that because I don’t want to commit publicly, but I think I need to say it!

First, a bit of history: Zion National Park was established in 1919 but it was a bit slower to gain popularity among tourists because there were fewer roads to it. At the time this stamp was issued in 1934, Zion was only 15 years old. Theodore Roosevelt was President at the time and, as an avid philatelist, was involved in the stamps issued during his presidency. The Secretary of the Interior at the time, Harold Ickes, encouraged the President to issue a series of stamps honoring the National Park system as he was convinced the American People did not know these huge tracts of reserved land existed. Ten parks were chosen for this special series, all issued in 1934 to celebrate what had been declared National Parks Year.

• 1c - Yosemite

• 2c - Grand Canyon

• 3c - Mount Rainier

• 4c - Mesa Verde

• 5c - Yellowstone

• 6c - Crater Lake

• 7c - Acadia

• 8c - Zion

• 9c - Glacier

• 10c - Great Smoky Mountains

These stamps are especially difficult to source for weddings because they are hard to find. They are part of a set that people simply don’t want to break, so it’s not as easy as other stamps I typically work with. Also, my experience is that sourcing any pre-WW2 stamp in a large quantity is not something to be counted on, so I rarely do it!

However, this special couple wanted to honor their home of Utah in their stamp collection, and no other options were working. It had to be these, so I had to find them. And find them I did!

So how do you think we did? Did Monet make it to Mexico with these stamps?

If you are interested in wedding postage, please reach out gracie @ enfieldpost.com