A Postcard A Day - Friday 23 May 2025 - Friday Smiles and lots of stamps

 Hello lovely girls,

The week has slipped by again and we've got to Friday in a blink.

As per usual i have a postcard with its stamps:

This card comes to me from Amanda in Chicago. 

I love these old adverts. I have lived in Italy for many years but I have never acquired a taste for Vermouth (red or white). But the advert is very inviting.

The stamps are spectacular and I will tell you something about each one, but if you are not interested, please just scroll down.

The top left stamp celebrated Roy Lichtenstein, an artist I quite like. This artwork is called: “Modern Painting I” (1966). He made art fun in a time when art was very serious. I saw several of his works at the Tate Modern in London a couple of years ago and I bought a fridge magnet:

This is called 'Mustard on White' 1963 (magna on plexiglass).

Lichtenstein was born in 1923, so 2023 was the 100th anniversary of his birth and a whole series of Forever stamps were issued. 

From the USPS website: These eye-catching new stamps honor Roy Lichtenstein (1923–1997), the iconic American artist of the mid-20th-century pop art movement, which looked to popular culture for its aesthetic. Each of the five designs in the pane of 20 features one work of art by Lichtenstein.

“Standing Explosion (Red)” (1965) is a porcelain enamel on steel work that is part of the collection of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR.

“Modern Painting I” (1966) is an acrylic, oil and graphite pencil on canvas painting that is part of the collection of the Frederick R. Weisman Art Foundation in Los Angeles.

“Still Life With Crystal Bowl” (1972) is an acrylic, oil and graphite pencil on canvas painting that is part of the collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City.

“Still Life With Goldfish” (1972) is an acrylic, oil and graphite pencil on canvas painting that is owned by a private collector.

“Portrait of a Woman” (1979) is an acrylic, oil and graphite pencil on canvas painting that is owned by a private collector.

In the left third of the pane is a photograph by Bob Adelman of Lichtenstein standing in front of one of his dot-pattern paintings. His face is framed by a model of his 1983 sculpture Brushstrokes in Flight.

The stamp at the top right features a thick billed parrot, also a stamp from 2023 in a series about endangered animals.

From the USPS website: Nearly 50 years ago, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was signed into law. Under the ESA, more than 1,670 U.S. and nearly 700 foreign species are safeguarded to increase their chances of survival. With the release of the new Endangered Species Forever stamps today, the Postal Service is celebrating not only the law, but also the people, organizations and agencies who have worked so hard to protect and save so much.

The 20 stamps showcase photographs of endangered animals found within the 50 states and American territories, as well as two North American species living near U.S. borders.

Bottom left is a beautiful Tiffany lamp:

From the USPS website: This is the 1-cent Tiffany Lamp stamp. This definitive stamp features a rendering of a Tiffany lamp by artist Lou Nolan, capturing the art nouveau movement.

In 2008, the United States Postal Service reissued the 1-cent definitive featuring artist Lou Nolan's rendering of a Tiffany lamp. Nolan evokes the work of Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933), a designer of glass, ceramics, jewelry, enamelware, and metalwork who transformed everyday objects into works of art.

Tiffany's stained-glass lampshades glow with soft, colorful light. Considered one of the greatest designers of glass in his era, Tiffany is also remembered as a leader in the art nouveau movement, a style in the visual arts that transformed design in the United States and Europe from the 1890s to World War I.

And last but not least, the Statue of Liberty bottom right:

From the Postal Museum website I got this:

The 18-cent Statue of Liberty Airmail stamp was first issued on January 11, 1974 in Hempstead, New York. The stamp was issued in sheets of fifty and measured 1.44 inches by .84 inches. The red, blue and black stamp was designed by Robert Shehorn.

OK, enough of stamps. What have I been up to? 

I seem to have been cooking a lot of nice things. Friends of mine have just had a baby. She asked rather than presents, could people please cook a meal. Well, that is a great idea! So I have cooked them home made lasagna and cottage pie (on different days of course).

When my friends Kim and Andy came on Tuesday, we had a BBQ. The first this year. (See Tuesday's blog post). 

I've also been making a cake. I'm trying to avoid sweet things and I made this cake that has no added sugar and no flour.

As you can see, I've already had a piece. It tastes good.

I found it on the Internet but here is my version of it:

Towards the end it says: 'beat until fluffy'.(that word got cut off).

Oh dear, this post has become quite long. Lets do the funnies and call it a day! (And visit Annie at A Stitch In Time for more smiles)

Have a lovely weekend!

Lisca