I’ve always loved receiving mail. As a child it was birthday cards from my grandparents. Today my mailbox is a plethora of surprises with my favorite being the retail catalog. Most people look at a catalog for the sale items – I look at it for concept, design, print and paper quality and then – just maybe – the sale items. That’s just the way I’m wired after years of working in direct mail design. Plus, I really do get excited when I see exceptional work from other designers. I file these catalogs in my file cabinet under “creative inspiration” and all the others go in my “circular file.”

December is retail’s big month, not only for in-store sales but for the amount of Christmas catalogs that they print and mail. Major retailers start designing their Christmas catalogs in the late spring/early summer. By the time the catalogs are printed and sent to the mailing house, most designers and art directors feel as if they have delivered a baby.

As a rule, Monday is said to be the heaviest day for mail delivery because of the weekend. Experts say that for a mailpiece to be noticed it should arrive on Tuesday, since Tuesday is the lightest mail day. My question is, will catalog retailers follow this rule and cause Tuesday to become the new Monday? To answer this question, I will be conducting my own unofficial, non-scientific poll and will keep you posted as the results roll in.

The photo above is of my mailbox and it was taken yesterday which was Monday. It contained a business letter, a postcard advertisement from Hallmark, a 12-page Bed Bath & Beyond catalog (wahoo, now I can buy the Pajama Jean) and a crumbled, overcrowded sale flyer that I tossed in my “circular file.” Not the amount of mail I would expect for a “heavy” Monday going into the Christmas shopping season.

Please answer one of the following questions for me before you go:

1. Do you think that Tuesday will go from being the lightest day for mail delivery to being the heaviest during the month of December?
2. Which day do YOU receive the most mail – have you ever given it much thought?
3. Should I ask my husband for a new mailbox for Christmas or should I buy one for him?

I’ve completed my 28-Day Creative Challenge and even have room to spare in my file drawer. A big “Thank You” to everyone who followed along as I sorted, trashed and organized my creative morgue. Would I do this again? I don’t think so because it was more work than what I had expected. Thank goodness it’s over and that I’m no longer tripping over a big box full of files in the middle of my office. I think I may have just enough space in the back of this file drawer to store my new best friend “Jack Daniels,” lol.

Day 28, last day of my 28-Day Creative Challenge.

The envelope on the left was printed on translucent clear vellum. Shown on the right is the same envelope but with a matching, color coordinated letter stuffed inside. See how it changes the design and the color? I can see this being a cost saver for sure. Letters can be easily updated, personalized and used with this envelope again and again. I hope that they planned ahead with this in mind and had plenty of these envelopes printed!

I’ve had this extremely creative brochure for ages. What I love about it is the surprise that I got when I first opened it. The small goldfish bowl on the front cover is really inside a much larger goldfish bowl that’s on the inside. The story line tells us that a goldfish will grow in proportion to the size of the tank you place it in. Next it tells us that the same is true of people and your world and goals. This is a brochure for Dale Carnegie Training, of course!

This 2-sided, 4-fold brochure has found a permanent home in my creative morgue. Today is Day 27 of my 28-Day Creative Challenge. One more day to go!

This brochure is one of several for Sikkens that I snagged at the local hardware store. The subhead reads “Simply Beautiful” and I must agree — this brochure is just that! This series of brochures will be going into my creative morgue and filed under “Inspiration.” My files are becoming more manageable, thanks to my 28-Day Creative Challenge which is nearing an end.

Day 25 of my 28-Day Creative Challenge.

I live in a multi-cat household so this direct mail piece caught my eye. It uses minimal copy to tell the benefits of PETsMART’s brand of cat litter and shows it in a strong visual, too. Wonderful concept!

If this is the first you’ve heard of my 28-Day Creative Challenge, you may want to learn what it’s all about by reading: My Challenge: 28 Days To Clean Up My Creative Morgue. It’s a short post, only one paragraph.

Wow, what I thought was going to be a short, one-week break in my 28-Day Creative Challenge was almost two weeks! That just goes to show us that we never know when life is going to throw a curve ball. In my case it was a hot project for a client AND a niece who is now on her 5th day in ICU with an illness of unknown cause and origin. She is stable at this time and prayers for Jamie would be appreciated.

Let’s resume at Day 24 with this wonderful brochure for a weight loss drug. It’s designed to look like a tape measure and opens out with an accordion fold – very clever. I’ll be keeping this one but have thrown lots of others away that didn’t make the grade.

Remember that you can join me in my 28-Day Creative Challenge by letting me know if you agree or disagree with my selections or if you can you provide a better example. I’d love to hear from you!

This creative insert promoting Peru must have came from a travel magazine. We see what appears at first to be a straw camel’s head peeking through the die cut window. Curious, we open the insert  to see more — and discover this wonderful photo! I’ll be keeping this for my files as a reminder that advertising can be fun and full of surprises.

You can be part of my 28-Day Creative Challenge by sending me links to download or printed samples of creative work that you find inspiring. If it inspires me too I’ll feature it here along with a link to your blog or website.

Day 19 of my 28-Day Creative Challenge.

Check out all the “white space” this ad has. What a concept — and I mean that both literally and figuratively. It uses only 23 well-chosen words in both headline and body copy, a golfing photo that uses psychology to appeal to our hedonistic nature (that’s worth at least a thousand words, right?), and a powerful product shot. Toss in the two logos and a wee bit of descriptive copy that includes price, and we have a strong, clean ad. And that’s how it’s done folks!

This ad has certainly found a home in my creative morgue files as a reminder to continue to fight for “white space.” If you’d like to participate in my 28-Day Creative Challenge, please send me links to download or printed samples of creative work that you find inspiring. If it inspires me too, I’ll feature it here along with a link to your blog or website. Or you could just post a comment.

Day 18 of my 28-Day Creative Challenge.

Okay folks, the jury is still out on this one. Should I keep this ad in my creative morgue or throw it out? The design is extremely eye-catching and creative but something about it bothers me. I can’t put my finger on it, maybe the car should be pointed upwards… I don’t know, what do you think, should it stay or should it go?