Flow: Book for Paper Lovers

More than three hundred pages of paper goodies — and yes, it really is a thick book. Inside you will find postcards, DIY envelopes, address labels, coloring pages, stickers, even a pop-up and a little garland, gift tags, sheets of wrapping paper, and much more. It is the kind of book that makes you want to clear off the kitchen table and start making things immediately.

Irene Smit and Astrid van der Hulst, the creative directors of Flow Magazine, came up with the idea as a way to celebrate the magazine’s fifth birthday. They wanted to put together a whole magazine without any text — just paper, illustration, and things to use. And they were right, it works beautifully. There is something quietly luxurious about a book whose only job is to be looked at, snipped from, and stuck on envelopes.

I felt almost overwhelmed when I first unwrapped my copy. So many tiny illustrations, so many different paper stocks, so many small invitations to play. The contributing illustrators come from all over — there are familiar names from the magazine and a number of new ones — and the whole thing has been printed and bound with the care that you would expect from the Flow team.

It is not the kind of book you read in one sitting. It is the kind you keep on a shelf and dip into whenever you need a little birthday card, a wrapping idea, or a small treat in the post for a friend. I have already torn out a few sheets and stuck them on parcels, which is rather the point.

If someone in your life loves stationery, postcards, scissors and glue, this is the gift.