Welcome!

 

 

Welcome to the California Collectors’ Series showroom of blank scenic note cards and original watercolors painted by California artist Royce Vaughn.

And that's me -- Judy Vaughn -- loving wife waving from far on top of the Golden Gate Bridge.

This is a web site about Royce, his art and his spirit. We focus a lot on California because that's where most of his work has been done. We're also looking for nifty historical anecdotes, genuine human interest stories and a sense of pilgrimage, always a sense of pilgrimage. ( Check out Press Release posts for news and commentary.)

This is our particular universe. We're glad you stopped by!

Please take a moment to read Royce's biography to see where his concern for social issues has led him in encouraging young people and small business.

Please look through his notecards and original works to see his illustrations of the California bridges tourists write home about, the back roads locals love to discover and the churches neighbors attend.

And be sure to read the commentary on back of the cards. Royce likes to give you a feeling for the day he painted. He shares the colors he used like cobalt blue and terre verte, the way the sun was shining just right, the way he enjoyed his vacation day.

My job is to add some history, memoir and perspective. We hope you'll subscribe to our newsletter, tell your friends and visit periodically to see what's new.

 

Boxed Sets of Cards

Three Hour Drive from San Francisco – off the beaten track

California Bridges – from the Golden Gate to Sutter’s Mill

California Summers – very hot, very cool

Lighthouses Along the California Coast – Point Bonita, Point Pinos

San Francisco Bay Area and Beyond – Bridges, barns and more

Lord, We Are ABLE – training in the arts, black and white photos of San Francisco

The Tuxedo Series – dramatic black and white photos of San Francisco

Neighborhood Churches – where we worship, where we live

We Shall Overcome - a tribute to human rights leaders

International Memories - Milan, Munich and Florence

 

*Proceeds from sale of the "Tuxedo Series" and "Lord We Are ABLE" go to The Salvation Army.

 

Facebook and Twitter ultimately appear to prove their newsgathering mettle -- but will the day come when no one ever again sends a personal note written to a friend by hand?

Will the Post Office cancel Saturday delivery? Will the San Francisco Chronicle, New York Times and important neighborhood newspapers like the Noe Valley Voice just fade out of our lives? Will civil discourse give way to increasingly polarized cable news 24/7?

Call it principle. Call it old-fashioned. But we think there are a few cultural traditions it would be nice to keep.

Maybe we could do without Saturday mail delivery of catalogs and bills. And we must admit we really do enjoy Huffington Post and blogs like TIME GOES BY. But for news, hard news, this household depends primarily on professional newsprint which arrives at the front door before sunrise.

For thank you notes, we like them handwritten and personal.

California Collectors’ Series blank note cards are designed for people who prefer a specific card to write a personal note to a friend or business associate, put a special issue stamp on the envelope and walk it to a mailbox along with other snails!

Quietly. In the sunshine with California poppies in bloom, birds chirping and no cell phones ringing ....

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