I've been scheming ways to meet and connect with my neighbors, and somehow recreate the community energy we loved so much in Jersey City, from the moment my husband and I moved in to our house in the suburbs in June 2020. Of course, this was incredibly challenging during that time of quarantine and social distancing. It took a while for me to take action in a more purposeful way outside of just a warm hello from across the street to neighbors walking their dog.

Fast forward to mid-winter 2022: In a moment of desperation I posted on a neighborhood Facebook group introducing my husband and I and expressing an interest in connecting with other locals and fellow urban transplants. I received an overwhelmingly positive response from dozens and dozens of neighbors of all ages and backgrounds who were also craving community and connection. It felt silly and vulnerable to put myself (and Harrison! Sorry honey, haha.) out there in such a personal way but it ended up being one of the best impulse decisions I've made.

I could tell you in detail about the myriad ways I've brought together neighbors from all over town, lured us out of our single-family dwellings and 6 foot privacy fence bubbles to gather and engage. However, our attention spans are short these days, and I'm more of a visual storyteller so the long paragraphs will end here.

Continue scrolling to check out the playful invitations that are weaving together a blossoming community.

Farley Coffee Club
Everyone has such busy schedules but there's almost always time for a morning cup of joe. We hosted an open kitchen for a couple hours, inviting neighbors to stop by on their morning walk, errands run, or daycare drop off and provided a variety of brews, bagels (from Babba's, of course), schmears, and homemade french toast casserole from my mom's recipe box.

Annual Block Party
We are so fortunate to have moved onto a street with warm and kind neighbors. Our neighbor across the street has been organizing an annual block party in August for years and I've loved supporting her since we joined the neighborhood.

Swap Meet
I've never attended a clothing swap meet before but I was inspired by spring cleaning and a rad plant swap hosted by Kanibal in Jersey City that I attended years ago. We had a great afternoon of good weather and mini fashion shows with everyone's new finds.

Semi-Regular Happy Hours
The first events I hosted after the desperate Facebook post. We had 30+ people at most of them! It was so amazing watching all of these strangers come together and get to know each other, all because I embarrassed myself online. Huge thank you to Stage House Tavern in downtown Scotch Plains for always extending their happy hour specials later in the evening just for our group.

"...she quite liked this, the jokes and the merriment, and the way that you could see actual friendships springing up around the room, like green shoots."

Jojo Moyes

PS: Paperless Post has been my go-to resource for sharing custom designed party invitations for ten years now. I've especially been loving the Flyer option for these larger community events.