Confession time: if you give me the choice between putting on real clothes to leave the house or staying home in my pajamas with a video game… I’ll choose the pajamas every single time. 😆

But last weekend, I made an effort to put on some clothes and a bra (ugh!), and I met with some members of our stationery Messenger group for the first time. Despite the lack of A/C, we spent a few hours chatting, comparing supplies, trading goodies, laughing over things that probably wouldn’t make much sense to anyone outside the stationery world… and drinking a lot of ice-cold water. 💧

Driving home, one thought kept coming back to me:

Stationery is better shared.

Not because you need other people to enjoy it. Most of us spend plenty of happy hours journaling, planning, or organizing our sticker collections on our own.

But sharing the hobby adds something you simply can’t get any other way.

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✨ When Strangers Become Friends

Have you ever noticed how quickly we connect with someone who shares one of our interests?

You spot someone reading your favorite book on the bus, wearing a T-shirt from a band you love, or carrying the same notebook as you, and suddenly they don’t feel quite like a stranger anymore.

Now imagine a whole group of people who share the same passion (or addiction 😜) for stationery as you do.

That’s where the magic happens.

At the meetup, we all felt immediately comfortable with one another simply because we knew we shared the same love of stationery. Suddenly, our conversations didn’t feel like strangers meeting for the first time. They felt more like old friends catching up.

We talked about family, dream vacations, work, money, and everything in between. We even exchanged real, honest opinions without worrying about being judged.

And of course, we talked about stationery too! We shared “secret” techniques, borrowed each other’s tools (a friend borrowed my TCMC Blob Stamp just to stamp it in her journal because it made her laugh), and discovered new artists, stationery shops, and products we probably wouldn’t have found on our own.

One person’s excitement became everyone’s excitement. We cheered each other on and rooted for one another. Like old friends. ✨

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💌 Tiny Moments Become Best Memories

This hobby is full of tiny moments.

Every stationery lover has supplies that come with a story. A notebook bought on vacation, the pen that writes just right, or the sticker sheet you’ve been saving because it’s simply too pretty to use.

Those little memories become even sweeter when they’re shared with people who understand why they matter.

One person at our meetup had recently traveled to Japan, and we all agreed it was basically a dream destination because of the incredible stationery stores over there.

Another had attended the Hubman & Chubgirl warehouse sale and showed us (and even shared!) some exclusive goodies.

These are the tiny moments I’ll remember for a very long time.

Proof that sometimes, the best part isn’t the stationery itself.

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🖊️ Finding People Who “Get It”

In a stationery group, nobody judges your ever-growing washi tape collection. In fact, there’s a 99% chance they’ll ask where you bought your latest roll!

Now we’ve all heard comments like:

“Do you really need another notebook?”
“Don’t you already have, like, a hundred million pens?”
“Have you even finished your last planner?”

Around fellow stationery lovers, those comments disappear.

Instead, we become each other’s enablers. People understand why you’re excited about the new pen you just bought or why you can’t bring yourself to peel that very last sticker off the sheet.

It’s refreshing to share a hobby without having to explain yourself.

And thankfully, you don’t need a big event to experience that feeling. You don’t even have to put on a bra and leave the house if you don’t want to. (I really, really dislike bras. 🤣)

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🌍 Sharing the Hobby

Sharing the hobby can look different for everyone. It doesn’t always mean having to sit around the same table.

I regularly look at journal spreads that other members post in our Messenger group for inspiration. We comment on each other’s creations, share promotions and sales, recommend our favorite shops, and celebrate each other’s happy mail.

These days, it’s easier than ever to find people who love stationery just as much as you do. You can connect through:

• Messenger groups and Facebook communities
• Discord servers
• Pen pals and happy mail exchanges
• Comment sections on blogs and social media

The important part isn’t how you connect. It’s simply connecting.

Because that’s where the real magic happens. ✨

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📚 More Than Paper and Pens

Stationery starts with beautiful (or cute… or spooky… or delightfully weird 😉) supplies.

But over time, many people discover that it’s also about encouragement, inspiration, conversations, and friendships.

Sharing creativity inspires creativity.

I can’t even count how many times I’ve attended literary events like the Salon du Livre de Montréal only to come home wanting to open a blank Word document and start writing a brand-new story.

The hobby becomes richer because we experience it together. And somewhere along the way, you realize something wonderful: You belong. 💕

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Conclusion

I still love spending a quiet afternoon alone with my journal and a cup of tea (or a nice strawberry lemonade when it’s really hot 🍓).

But now I know something I hadn’t really thought about before: Some hobbies are richer when they’re shared.

And stationery is one of them.

Sometimes, the best things we collect aren’t made of paper at all.
And maybe that’s the real magic of stationery. It isn’t just the pens, paper, stickers, or washi tape.

It’s the way a shared hobby can turn complete strangers into the kind of people who send you a cute pad of Post-its because they thought of you… or make a strawberry cow plushie the official mascot of the group. 💕