look up, way up

First UP, some balloons from 2001

followed by some roadside attractions

with a ginormous coffee pot, a town's mascot 'happy rock', the Wawa Goose, and a giant puffin

 

for Sunday Stamps - shaped

sails

sailing ships from Ukraine

and, something unusual from Bermuda - green sails!

sails for Sunday Stamps

post offices

 

Post Offices in India, from top left

Lucknow, Cooch Behar, Nagpur, Udagamandalam, Delhi, Shimla

Post Offices in Canada, from top left

Miramichi, Saint-Ours, Battleford, Toronto

 

some historic post offices for a postal themed Sunday Stamps

light upon light

one of the common inscriptions on Eid lanterns is "light upon light", a phrase referencing God's light illuminating heaven and earth as divine guidance for all humankind (from CanadaPost website)

my choice for Sunday Stamps

(and, I now realize this is the second time I've posted an Eid stamp/FDC this year!)

International Workers' Day

 From the traditional arts series, a bookbinder

and this fun series from Brazil which included a carpenter and a dressmaker

 

people at work for Sunday Stamps

letters spelling words

 Brody Neuenschwander designed this Flemish and French "write each other" stamp in 2012

These older Europa stamps were the same for each country. Not nearly as inspiring as the themed ones of today, though I do like the way they incorporated the EUROPA into the design. It has a timeless quality.

 

 

However, this one from just a couple of years later, in 1971, is very much of its time. The geometric font spells out BC

some letters and words for Sunday Stamps

easter

one of the first spring flowers - a pasque flower from Slovenia, designed by Julija Zornik (2007)

a decorated egg from Poland, designed by Agnieszka Sancewicz (2014)

and a decorated chick, designed by Anna Khunova (1998)

Happy Easter 

for Sunday Stamps

birds

two Eurasian blue tits, hanging out together (1959)

a kakapo, the world's largest flightless parrot (1986)

and, finally, a pair of strolling ostriches in Cameroon (1962)

 

some random birds for Sunday Stamps

colourful joy

 

I have this sheet in a frame by my desk because it always makes me smile. I love the brightly coloured outfits the children are wearing. One of my pet peeves is seeing so many people dressed in black all winter long. It is such a depressing colour when there is so little bright light outside. These children were bucking that trend and making a fashion statement in 2008 with their whimsical hats and pastel coloured patterns. It is sad to think that when they grow up this eye-catching fashion will likely be abandoned for the not-to-be-noticed black.

for Sunday Stamps - fashion

heavenly

The China Palace Museum (2015)

the Gate of Heavenly Purity

Five different images of the sun that we don't always see. from 2000.

for Sunday Atamps - se-tenant, selvage

Ukrainians

 Traditional Headdresses of Ukrainian Women

 

a souvenir sheet from 2006

Ubrus and fur cap (Kyivan Rus)

Kerchiefs (Kyiv)

Namitka (Western Polissia)

Garland (Poltava)

Kerchief (Hutsul)

Koda (Bukovyna)

Kerchief (Central Ukraine)

Ochipok (Poltava)

Namitka (Hutsul)

Ochipok (Poltava)

Kerchief over Ochipok (Chernihiv)

Garland (Ivano-Frankivsk)

Canada has the third most number of Ukrainians (behind Ukraine and Russia). William Kurelek (1927-1977) was born in Canada to Ukrainian immigrants. Four of his paintings of The Ukrainian Pioneer are on these stamps for the 100th anniversary of the first wave of Ukrainian immigration (1991). 

Family Before a Vast Forest, Farmer in a Lush Field of Wheat, Group of Emigrants on the Deck of a Ship, and Barefoot Girl Going Out to Beg for Food

For Sunday Stamps - Ukraine

woolly and cute

 

There is something about the musk ox that makes me smile. Must be those curvaceous horns. The one on the left is from 1954 and the bottom one is from 1988.

 

He is shaped a bit differently from this wood bison, seen below from 1981, but the name musk ox translates to ugly moose, or ugly bison in the Woods Cree language

But enough of these big woolly creatures

we need something small, that coincidentally also makes me smile

like this red squirrel. They are noisy critters but so much cuter than the grey squirrels

For Sunday Stamps - animals

oops, sorry everyone. I'm going to blame the time change on this not posting earlier

modes of transport

I have been watching the latest 'Around the World in Eighty Days'

and the balloon trip is the most iconic of the modes of transportation that Phileas Fogg and company took even though it only happened in the movies

Also not actually taken was the Flying Scotsman, though they did travel by train a few times.

 

 

 

 

 

They also travel by sailing ship, and steamers

1999
1976

and, of course, elephant

for Sunday Stamps - transportation

dark

These are indeed dark times, certainly not expected when I chose this theme.

This was my original choice for a dark stamp. It shows the Princes' Gates in Toronto, one of the entrances to the Canadian National Exhibition grounds.

 

 

But here is another, for Ukraine, showing a giant Pysanka in Alberta. It celebrates the harmony, vitality, and culture of the community.

for Sunday Stamps - dark

Nigeria

 

There really aren't enough pink stamps..

Nigeria's national bird is a handsome fella, though it is on the endangered list.

 

For Sunday Stamps - 'N'

love

 

a love letter

 

 

with kisses

 

 

 

are you all familiar with Hershey's chocolate kisses? not a fan myself, but Americans seem to love them.

for Sunday Stamps - love, hearts

snow and ice

From speed skating (dominated in 1964 by Russia and Norway) to slalom skiing (dominated by France and Austria)

 

to curling (dominated in 2014 by Canada, Great Britain, and Sweden)

It was challenging to find anything not related to the Olympics, but then I remembered the World's, which is dominated by Sweden, Canada, and Finland (though it was won by Russia that year)

I can safely say that I have never participated in any of these sports.

For Sunday Stamps - winter sports

tigers

It seems Canada Post has given up making any more Lunar New Year stamps which is so disappointing.

Thank goodness I still have a souvenir sheet (with gold foil) from the last Year of the Tiger, in 2010.

This year, New Year falls on February 1st. I have already stocked up on dumplings.

From fifty years prior, another tiger from the Malaysian state of Trengganu. This tiger features on several identical stamps save for state name on the bottom and its sultan encircled in the corner.

for Sunday Stamps - Lunar New Year, tigers

maps

 

I like how Finland has a small map showing where the National Parks are located.

In 1949, Newfoundland and Labrador (plum colour) became the tenth province. In 1999, The Northwest Territories (purple colour) split creating three territories.

Sometimes it is good to have a map of all the islands so you can see where in relation to the others your specific island is located.

for Sunday Stamps - maps, flags

icon

 

This stamp of Margaret Atwood, celebrating her 60 years of writing,  has the line "a word after a word after a word is power" from one of her poems, Spelling. The photo was taken by Ruven Afandor in 2017. The raven cancellation is in honour of her interest in birds. "In my unlived life I was an illustrator" she has said, and one of her sketches of a version of herself, 'neither fish nor flesh' is also included.

for Sunday Stamps - writers, composers