Free Vintage Envelope Printables for Junk Journals and Collage Art
Inside This Post
Two printable collage sheets of genuine vintage envelopes featuring cursive handwriting, stamps, and postmarks.
Includes both large and miniature envelope designs for layered journaling and collage work.
Ideal for junk journals, art journals, and mixed-media projects needing a nostalgic postal touch.
Authentic mid-19th-century envelopes scanned in high resolution.
There’s something irresistibly evocative about a vintage envelope. The soft patina of the paper, the looping handwriting, the faded postmark hinting at a journey taken long ago. These envelopes once carried love letters, business correspondence, and family news across great distances. Now, they can carry something else: your imagination.
This set of free printable vintage envelopes preserves those delicate traces of history and turns them into creative raw material for journalers, collage artists, and paper crafters who love the aesthetics of the written word.
About the Free Printables
This giveaway includes two printable collage sheets of genuine vintage envelopes:
Sheet 1: Four large envelopes and four miniature ones — ideal for journal covers, tuck spots, or mixed-scale layering.
Sheet 2: Eight envelope fronts, each unique in design and postmark detail.
Every envelope was scanned from authentic correspondence featuring original postage stamps, postmarks, and period handwriting. The result is a collection rich with character, imperfect, textural, and beautifully aged.
These printables are designed to print on standard U.S. letter-sized paper (8.5" × 11") and can be scaled down for smaller projects.
How to Use These Printables
Vintage envelopes add instant storytelling value to any page layout. Here are a few ways to make them shine:
Tuck spots and pockets: Fold or cut the envelopes to hold tags, notes, or pressed flowers in junk journals.
Faux mail art: Layer them with washi tape, wax seals, or scraps of old letters to build collaged “correspondence” spreads.
Photo mats and layers: Use the envelope imagery as decorative backgrounds for small photos or journaling snippets.
Mini art envelopes: Shrink them down when printing to create tiny postal embellishments for ATCs or mixed-media collages.
Because they feature authentic stamps and handwriting, they bring subtle realism to projects inspired by memory, travel, or correspondence.
More Creative Inspiration
If you love combining text and texture, these vintage envelopes pair beautifully with other forms of ephemera — postcards, maps, antique catalog images, or vintage labels.
You might also:
Create a “Letters Never Sent” themed journal using these envelopes as symbolic pages.
Print them on textured paper or lightly ink the edges to enhance their antique look.
Combine them with sepia-toned portraits or botanical cut-outs to tell layered stories through paper.
For digital artists, these images also make excellent base textures for hybrid collage work or printable stationery.
Other Free Printables You Might Like
Free Vintage Postcard Printables — Complement these envelopes with antique postcard ephemera.
Free Vintage Store Ephemera Printables — Antique in-store advertisements that pair perfectly with postal-era pieces for collage layers or journal pockets.
Free Typography and Lettering Printables — Elegant letterforms and scripts ideal for backgrounds or type-themed pages.
Free Daguerreotype Portrait Collage Sheets — Add a human element to your postal layouts with antique portraits that look right at home in correspondence-inspired art.
FAQs
Can I print these on regular printer paper?
Yes — standard printer paper works fine, but heavier matte paper or light cardstock gives better texture and durability for cutting and layering.
Are these envelopes editable or blank inside?
They’re decorative scans of real envelopes, not functional stationery.
Do the postmarks or names have historical meaning?
Each envelope was once a real piece of correspondence, but they were chosen purely for their visual charm. The handwriting and stamps are authentic, making each one unique.
Final Thoughts
From the curl of the handwriting to the ghost of the ink, these vintage envelopes are small reminders of how personal communication used to feel. Whether you use them as focal points, journal pockets, or layers in mixed-media spreads, they’ll add depth and storytelling to every page.
If you love paper with history, this printable set is a little window into the past, ready to be repurposed into something entirely your own.
Love These Printables? Support The Art Scavenger!
I love sharing free vintage printables, and if you enjoy them, there are easy ways to support my work so I can continue creating and offering more free designs:
You may also enjoy these free collage sheet printables.
Terms of use:
Free to use for personal or commercial projects. You may print the collage sheets as many times as you wish for your personal crafts or in your projects to sell, including: art journals, scrapbooks, junk journals, collage art, etc. You may not redistribute or sell the collage sheets “as is" in either print or digital form.
If you wish to share the files on your own website, please do not make the files available for download directly from your site. Instead, include an image with a link back to this site.
To the best of my knowledge, these are all royalty free images that are in the Public Domain in the US. However, you should always do your own research if you plan to use them commercially.
