Postcrossing Blog

Come meet hope97 (aka Danielle), who lives in Morocco. She loves travelling and has been to over 60 countries… very impressive!

Here is what she had to say:

How did you come across Postcrossing? What got you hooked?

A friend introduced me to Postcrossing while we were working together in Japan. I’d been complaining about the lack of mail from people back home and she told me about the website. Once I received my first postcard, I was hooked. I also like the fact that I can take my Postcrossing account with me where ever I live. To date I’ve been an active user in Japan, the USA and Morocco. I love that I can just update my account and postcards will be waiting for me.

Do you have any other interesting hobbies?

If you consider traveling a hobby, then I would say yes, I do. I’ve been to over 60 countries in the last 15 years and I have no plans to stop anytime soon. I also collect random things during these travels – Christmas ornaments, magnets, squished pennies and nesting dolls.

What is it your favorite part of the Postcrossing process?

Receiving postcards!

Show us your mailbox, your mailman/mailwoman, your postoffice or the place where you post or keep your postcards!

Here’s me, posting my postcards:

Show and tell us about your favorite received postcard to date, and what makes it special.

My favorite postcard came from a user in Ukraine. She sent me a birthday postcard and along with the card there were two small nesting dolls. This one really made my day and combined two of my hobbies. This card highlights one thing I really like about Postcrossing – 9 times out of 10 users take the time to read your profile and will try their best to send you something that shows they’ve read the profile and they care about what they are sending to a virtual stranger.

Have you inspired anyone else to join Postcrossing or start collections of their own?

I hosted a table once at the yearly JETFest convention while I was in Japan. I am confident that a few people joined from that event. A few of my friends have also joined. I am always talking about the website to people when I travel because I think it’s a great way to feel connected to the world, especially when you live away from your home country.

I’ve also used Postcrossing for my English club while working in Japan. I am not sure if any of those students continued with it, but we had fun sending the cards during our club activities.

My participation with Postcrossing has allowed me to share the world with my students. I’ve also used the cards I’ve received to create a PYP unit on journeys and travel for a first grade classroom in Detroit. The students had a great time looking through my collection and then selecting a card to do research about that country. I currently share all the postcards I receive with my first graders here in Morocco. They get a kick out of all the different cards that I receive.

Have you been surprised by any place that you have received a postcard from or sent a postcard to?

I like it when I receive cards from places that I’ve never been too or that seem exotic to me like Mauritius, Kazakhstan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, etc… I am continually surprised by the number of users and countries on the site. I think it’s an amazing and wonderful thing that so many people participate.

You might have heard the name PostEurop before, most likely because they organise the yearly EUROPA stamps competition. What you perhaps don’t know is that their functions go well beyond this task: through their several forums and groups, PostEurop oversees the cooperation between 52 public postal services in the European continent, in a variety of topics such as social responsibility, best practices or quality of service.

Last week, PostEurop celebrated its 20th anniversary with a Plenary Assembly and several other events. Since Postcrossing is very active in Europe, PostEurop invited the attending delegations to take part in an exhibition about Postcrossing – by sharing what the project was like in their country.

Sixteen countries accepted the challenge and made a stand with general information and statistics, and shared some postcards sent and received. Other PostEurop countries that didn’t know about Postcrossing yet, had the opportunity to learn about the project. Here are some photos from the event:

Belgian postcrossers were also invited to come around and check out the stands, and despite the inconvenient schedule in the middle of the week, some did come! There was even a tiny post office where cards and stamps could be purchased and stamped with a special anniversary cancellation stamp.

Oh, by the way, the winners of this year’s EUROPA stamps competition were announced during the plenary: Finland and Turkey took home the big honours!

I must confess that I’m a bit of a fountain pen newbie. I love stationery, but I always found fountain pens slightly intimidating… as if reserved for professionals or seasoned writers – or perhaps presidents, signing important treaties!

But some months ago I discovered cheap disposable fountain pens and thought… I can try that! Turns out, I ended up falling in love with the way the ink pooled and dried on the paper, giving it shading and character. These days, a fountain pen is never far.

So when Postcrossing advertiser Kaweco offered to send us a couple of pens from their stationery line some months ago, I jumped at the opportunity to upgrade my little collection!

Kaweco was founded in 1883 in Heidelberg, Germany and comes from a long tradition of writing instruments. The brand is well known and loved all around the world, and their motto, License to write, is just enticing – as are their timeless designs.

Take the Kaweco Sport, for instance (top one in the photo above). After some research, I found out that the iconic design behind the Sport series has its roots in the Bauhaus movement from the early 1900s. The straight and sharp lines don’t let the pen roll on the table, conveying a practical feeling – form and function united. Mine is made of slick aluminium and feels solid yet surprisingly light. It’s already gaining a bit of a wear and tear from travelling around on my bag, giving it a bit of a softer, polished look.

The other fountain pen I received was the Kaweco Liliput. How can one resist such tiny little thing, I ask you? It’s less than 10cm long when closed! However, when the cap is posted, the pen is long enough to write comfortably.

The nibs are beautifully ornate and include the Kaweco logo (as do the caps), giving them a luxurious finishing. And how is the writing you ask? Smooth, effortlessly and… pretty, for a lack of a better adjective. If you’re planning to write postcards with it, please use a water-resistant ink!

But Kaweco is not just fountain pens! The company also uses some of their designs to make ballpoint pens and mechanical pencils, which look just as sleek. All of their pens and pencils are available on most specialized online pen shops – or through one of their physical retailers.

What about you? Do you have any special pens or writing instruments that you prefer? Do share your tips and advice – I’m still learning, and I’d love to know more! :)

Oh happy day! Today, four new Postcrossing stamps have officially entered circulation in Finland, and are now being sold in post offices as well as Posti’s online shop. Here’s how they look:

It’s really nice to finally hold a stamp so eagerly awaited in our hands! Plus they look so cheerful! We can’t wait for the next Finnish postcard to arrive on our mailbox! :)

PS – Posti’s shop is available in Finnish and English (check the link on the top right corner), and they also have a cute First Day Cover available!

Today we bring you the story of a stationery maker from another era… you’ve probably seen her designs in vintage cards floating around on Ebay – today we bring you the story behind them! :)

Ellen Hattie Clapsaddle was an American illustrator and the most prolific postcard and greeting card artist of her time. She was born in 1865 in South Columbia, New York, about 200 miles from New York City. From an early age she displayed great artistic ability. Encouraged by her parents and teachers to develop her skills, she eventually pursued a career in art. After finishing her studies at Cooper Union Institute for the Advancement of Science and Art, a well-renowned and competitive college for artists, she returned to South Columbia and began giving art lessons out of her home.

While earning a living, she also painted in her free time, creating landscapes and commissioned portraits of families in Richfield Springs. She began to submit her work to publishers in NYC and quickly became known for her illustrations that were used in advertising, calendars, paper fans, and greeting cards, where she gained her most success. Eventually, her artwork was turned into single-faced cards that could be kept as souvenirs or used as postcards. She began to design her illustrations particularly for these increasingly popular cards.

In 1906, the Wolf Company hired her at a time where very few women artists were hired as illustrators. Clapsaddle initially produced her postcards under Wolf’s name and in time became their sole postcard designer. The golden age of these postcards ranged from 1898 to 1915, and Clapsaddle is attributed to creating over 3,000 designs during this time.

Her images express an innocence and joie de vivre that is very childlike in nature. The main themes of her cards are centered on holidays. Her Halloween cards are the most highly prized by collectors; the Christmas cards usually feature children, but sometimes include transportation designs of automobiles and airplanes of that time period; Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s, and Fourth of July themes were also frequently incorporated in her illustrations.

Check out some classic Ellen Clapsaddle cards here!

PS – PostEurop’s Europa Stamp competition ends this week – don’t forget to vote for your favourite stamp! :)