Postcrossing Blog

Today we’re chatting with Teresa (aka Triplightly) from Utah, USA! Her postcard journey started with letters to friends when she was a child, and has grown into a whole postcard room, meetups, friends around the world, and even postcard-writing lessons for elementary school students. She also hosts fairy tea parties, which might be one of the most magical hobbies we’ve ever heard of!

How did you get started sending postcards? What is your earliest memory of them?

Growing up, I moved almost every year due to my father’s employment. Back “in the old days”, it was expensive to make a phone call to keep in touch, so I started writing letters to friends when I was 9 years old.

When I saw that postcards also included interesting and pretty pictures, I started writing those as well. It was exciting to send and receive mail and that feeling has continued to today.

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

While searching for new postcards on Amazon, I kept seeing the comment “these are great for Postcrossing”. It got me curious, so I researched it and joined that day!

What is your favorite part of the Postcrossing process?

I do get a thrill when I open my mailbox and see a card waiting for me, but my favorite part is connecting with people around the world — getting to learn about what matters to them and having a human connection. I now have many awesome pen friends around the world because of Postcrossing.

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

Once I started Postcrossing, my postcard numbers went from around two boxes of 100 to more than I can count. I store them in a big cupboard and file them either by category in containers or just store them all jumbled together.

When my son got a place of his own, we turned his room into “the postcard room”. 😂 It is always a bit of a mess because when I write I like to have everything in reach. Writing is no longer just pen and postcard. It is now stacks of postcards, stickers, pens of all shades, washi tape, etc., etc., etc.

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

Like most people, this is a tricky question to answer because I have “favorites” for different reasons. The day I received a Gotochi card was incredible! They are expensive to send and rare to receive, even more rare now that they are no longer produced, so I was elated to receive it. Postcrossers are very generous.

Do you have any other interesting hobbies or collections?

I like hosting and attending tea parties. Every summer for years, I would host a tea party in my garden for friends and family. Then I started caring for my disabled mother and no longer had the time to put such a grand event together. Thankfully, my friend Merida started hosting fairy tea parties at the summer solstice and she lets me help.

There is always a theme and wings are required — it is fantastic! My avatar photo is when I dressed as Cruella de Vil for the Disney Villain themed party last year.

My favorite though was when we had the party up in the forest in a mountain near my home. We hung lights from the trees and sat until dusk chatting, listening to the fairytale Merida writes for each party and feeling the magic around us. It was delightful when hikers would pass our little alcove and enter the lighted path and gaze in awe at a hidden fairy world. Everyone needs some magic in their lives and it doesn’t take much to create it.

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

My 11 year old niece has enjoyed receiving postcards so much that she has decided that she wants to be a “postcard designer” when she grows up. 😀 That tickles me!

Also, as an elementary librarian, each National Postcard Day, I give every student a postcard, teach them how to write an address and write a short note. I give the older students a stamp so they can mail it to a family member or to themselves. I encourage them to say positive things about themselves and then send the card to themselves.

I always send a postcard to myself when I am on vacation and give myself a pep talk or pat on the back. It feels fabulous and I want the students to feel that too. It is a delight to watch them get anxious about when the card will arrive and then get excited when they receive it. The students now look forward to the activity.

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

When I received a card from Cuba, I was over the moon because I know that is rare. It made me feel special, or as I like to say, la-de-dah.

Have you met any other members in real life?

I’ve been lucky to meet several people in our amazing postcard community. Each year we have a meetup in Utah, so it is great to meet local members.

One of my favorite meetups was when a Postcrossing friend of mine from Germany came to visit me and she met with us and we shared stories and experiences. She and I then spent a week together touring the incredible national parks here in Utah. It was an amazing adventure.

Last year I was able to go to the Netherlands and meet another Postcrossing friend, Neeltje. We feel close through correspondence, but it is even better to meet in real life — it solidifies the friendship. We toured Rotterdam, had tea in a windmill in Delft, laughed and talked — so wonderful.

I like the postcards, but I adore the people who write them.

Is there anything else that you are passionate about?

I truly care about the mental and physical health of children. Hobbies, activities and even home life have changed, and many children are not as active as in years past and overall health is declining.

Each January I teach a “Take a SELFIE” lesson that was developed by a licensed psychologist and I have tweaked it a little for children. I make a special bookmark for each student and encourage them to share the information with their families. They are things that we can all benefit from:

• Sleep (we could all get more sleep)
• Engaging activity (non-digital creativity like drawing, building with Legos, baking, writing postcards)
• Light (physically and mentally we need sunlight)
• Fitness (get up and move)
• Interact (talking face-to-face rather than through a screen)
• Eat healthy (whole foods, and plenty of water)

Every time I teach this lesson, I am reminded that I could do better to take care of myself. I am especially excited when a child tells me that they rode their bike that day or that they made sure they drank extra water during the week. Even small changes help us be healthier and happier.

What’s one way that postcards have changed your life for the better?

It has helped me broaden my view of the world, to care about people in every place, near and far. Like The Postcardist (the host of my favorite podcast) says, “Postcards connect people”, and that is not only true, but more important than ever.

We need to see our similarities, learn from and value our differences, and be united. We all live on the same planet and need to take care of each other.

Alright — one last blog post about the new USPS Postcrossing stamps, and then we promise to return to our regular program! 🙂

We met so many wonderful people at the Boston 2026 World Expo a couple of weeks ago: postcrossers who came to the daily meetups, collectors, people who work for the postal services and plenty of friendly faces from the wider stamp world. One of those was Graham Beck, from the YouTube channel Exploring Stamps (and also the creator of the piXPost app), who was there with his partner Laura.

It was really nice to finally meet in person after years of watching his videos (and posting stuff on piXPost!). Graham was doing what he does best at the show: chatting with philatelists, filming interesting stamps and postal bits, and capturing the atmosphere of the event. And, despite a very busy schedule, Graham also took the time to include Postcrossing in his coverage — with some glimpses of the First Day of Issue ceremony and our meetup!

So, if you couldn’t make it to Boston (or if you were there and want to relive it for a minute), here’s the video:

Huge thanks to Graham and Laura for having us and for sharing Postcrossing with the world in this way! And to everyone who came to the meetups: thank you! You made the whole week feel extra special. 💙

Keep an eye on Graham’s channel Exploring Stamps for some great postal content, including a series of “show-and-tell” videos where attendees of the show share some really cool items!

USA postcrossers: the stamps are out! 🎉📮

The new USPS Postcrossing stamps are officially out in the world today, and we’re so happy and excited about them! These ridiculously cool triangles are about to make those postcard corners look extra sharp! 😍

If you’re in Boston, today is the big day: we’ll be at the First Day of Issue ceremony at the Boston 2026 World Expo, and we really hope to see lots of you at the dedication ceremony or at the Postcrossing meetup later. There are meetups happening all throughout the week of the show too, so even if you can’t make it today, you can still drop by on another day to say hi, sign postcards, and enjoy the atmosphere.

We asked the stamps’ illustrator, Jackson Gibbs, a few quick questions about how these stamps came together. His answers were short and sweet, giving us a peek into his process:

How did you go from first sketches to final art?

“I start with an egregious amount of coffee, while simultaneously surfing the web and scribbling in a sketchbook. I do this for a while, maybe days, until something clicks. Then I piece together illustrations like putting together a puzzle or following a recipe.”

Had you ever illustrated a stamp before? Was the small size a challenge?

“I have not. It is definitely a ‘bucket list’ project. The size worked in my favor. I love simplifying and saying the most, with the least.”

How did the collaboration work between you, Antonio Alcalá, and USPS?

“I just did the art, while Antonio did the heavy lifting and back and forth with USPS.”

Do you have a favourite stamp in the set?

“My favorite in the set has to be the Cowgirl and Horse. Being from the desert, that one hits closest to home.”

What’s your relationship with mail?

“I love the mail, and have sent countless postcards from my time traveling around the US in my truck. Although, I had no idea how large the mail community was until this project. It’s special.”

And are you ready to see these travel the world?

“I can’t wait to see the turnout!”

Same, Jackson, same! 😄

We hope everyone in the USA is celebrating with us, by sending a few postcards with these shiny new stamps. Millions of them were printed by USPS, so it’s a matter of time until everyone in Postcrossing makes a “bingo” by receiving all four of them on their incoming postcards!

Here are some photos of the stamp dedication ceremony and meetup in Boston, all by USPS photographer Daniel Afzal:

Antonio Alcalá is one of four US Postal Service art directors tasked with designing US postage stamps — including the new Postcrossing stamps coming out later this month! 😍 For 35 years, his Virginia-based studio, Studio A, has also designed books, exhibits, and more—winning local, national, and international awards for design excellence.

Sometime ago, Antonio answered some of Clarisse’s (aka CStar9) questions about USPS stamp design, shared his thoughts on the important role of stamps in society, and described his first official postcard exchange as a postcrosser!

You’ve described stamps as “one of the few ways that our country officially brands itself.” I agree! What’s it like to be in the kitchen where the soup is made?

Being in the kitchen is exciting and exhilarating, but also complex and challenging. We may work on a single “recipe” for years and not be able to discuss any of the process except with our USPS colleagues.

And yes, stamps are a kind of brand. A brand is the outward projection of a company or organization’s personality: What do they represent? What do they want to project in terms of values?

In the case of the United States, we use the flag and our currency to communicate the ideals we want people, regardless of where they are, to associate with our country. Stamps work similarly. They are official, US-approved images that go everywhere in the nation to announce, “These are the people and subjects we feel represent the best of America.”

The stamps get produced in the tens of millions and people see them almost every day. There aren’t many other pieces of design with that kind of reach.

What are some of the unique challenges of stamp design? Have working through any of these peculiarities influenced Studio A’s larger body of design work (books, exhibits, etc.)?

There are many challenges unique to the stamp design experience. Ironically, the biggest challenge is working with such a small format. Creatives are used to working at a much larger scale, and the transition to stamp dimensions can sometimes be rocky (too much detail, colors that start to blend together, compositions that feel cramped, etc.).

The biggest lessons that have influenced my other work have to do with legal issues like copyright law, rights and permissions, etc.

You came to the stamp design world unexpectedly (and late in life), after designing exhibits for the National Postal Museum. If you could go back and chat with your younger self as a History major at Yale, what would you tell him?

I would tell him to continue doing what he was doing because it will get me where I am today!

If, however, I was to change the path somehow, I would tell the student it is more-than-okay to study the arts in college. The world needs more creative thinkers.

How long does stamp design take? What is the average timespan that elapses between Citizens’ Advisory Committee approval of an idea and the official stamp release date?

On average, stamps take two to three years, from assignment to issuance.

Some stamps are designed as singletons, sometimes a set is a pane of 4, and sometimes there are twenty designs in one set. How are those decisions made, about numbers?

We issue what we think the subject demands.

Generally, we try to limit the number of stamps in an issuance because it can get expensive for collectors who want to make sure they have one of each stamp.

I recently finished an assignment that started with four designs. Later, it evolved to ten stamps.

Sometime the subject is complex and requires the ability to show variation. Additional stamps can also make the sheet feel more compelling.

What does research look like for you?

Research can be a deep dive, going down a rabbit hole-like experience, or it may be fairly light. It may involve reading published books and magazine articles, or having conversations with consultants who are experts in the subject. USPS also contracts with a firm who helps me locate appropriate materials based on my requests.

When I’m looking for artists to partner with, it might involve looking through Instagram or online portfolios searching for what I feel is a good match for the assignment.

What is your own relationship to snail-mail, and how has that evolved over time? Anything you want to say to Postcrossers?

I love snail-mail! I like writing and receiving letters and cards, although I seem to have less time to do it these days. I still pay most of my bills the old-fashioned way (by mail). It’s always a thrill to put one of my stamp designs on an envelope before slipping it in the mailbox.

I once registered for Postcrossing. My card went to China (and took a long time to get there and be registered), and I received a card from the Netherlands. It’s so fun! Unfortunately, I no longer have the time to be an active participant.

As for Postcrossers, THANK YOU! You are engaging in a fantastic activity that helps bring people from around the world together. Please keep up your creative mailings!

What excited you most about bringing Postcrossing onto a U.S. stamp issue, and what did you want the set to communicate?

I knew Postcrossing as an international phenomena, and the US stamp program did not yet have a stamp specific to that activity. Announcing this fun, mailing activity to the country via a stamp was an amazing opportunity. The stamps are meant to be distinctive, lightly humorous, and colorful stamps communicating no matter where you are or what you do, getting and sending mail is a joy!

These stamps are triangular, which is a rare format for USPS! How did that shape influence the creative direction or composition?

Early in the development process I thought this might be a good opportunity (good subject/receptive audience) to create a stamp with a non-traditional shape. Our Global Forever stamp is usually a circle, so creating one as a triangle seemed like a fun alternative. Because I decided on this approach before hiring an illustrator, Jackson Gibbs had to work with the unusual shape from his first sketches. He got it right away and did an amazing job adapting the four “stories” to the unconventional shape.

For people that might not know, what does “art director” mean in practice for a stamp issue like this? What parts did you shepherd from start to finish?

Each of the USPS commemorative stamps is assigned to an art director. Most often, that starts with the topic and occasionally some background information. How the assignment is approached, however, is left up to the art director. In this case, I looked at what other countries around the world have published as a Postcrossing stamp. I also talked with people who are philatelists AND Postcrossing enthusiasts to get their perspectives. I then developed ideas about what I hoped to communicate and the general tone of the stamps. At this point, I also decided to try the stamps in a triangular format.

My next step was looking for an illustrator to collaborate with on the assignment. After looking at numerous options, I asked to work with Jackson Gibbs. I envisoned his playful, colorful illustrations appealing to a wide range of people from young to old. Jackson provided preliminary sketches and from those I decided on the four primary subjects. The next step was for me to determine the typography, and to identify the small changes that need to be made on each stamp until everything looked just right. The other part of my job is to communicate with USPS and the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee the progress of the job, making updates based on their suggestions, and then presenting the final set of stamps. Finally, I prepare all the materials for our pre-press team, who turns them into files for the printers.

Our huge thanks to Clarisse for putting together such thoughtful questions, and to Antonio for taking the time off his busy schedule to answer them!

And now… a little celebration! 🎉 To mark the upcoming USPS Postcrossing stamp issue, we’re giving away 10 postcards franked with these new triangular Postcrossing stamps. If you’d like to enter, just leave a comment below and tell us: which of the four stamp designs is your favourite, and why? We’ll pick 10 winners at random and send them a postcard from the First Day of Issue ceremony. Good luck! 💌

It’s happening!! The new US Postcrossing stamps are now available for pre-order (with some fun extras too!), ahead of their official issue date on May 26.

We’ve been making “heart eyes” 😍 at these little triangles for weeks, and we can’t wait to start seeing them on postcards traveling all over the world. If you’d like to be ready for launch day, now is a good time to place an order!

Besides the stamp issue itself, USPS has also created a few collector-friendly items:

• Postcrossing Stamps: the stamps themselves! They come in a set of 8, so you get 2 of each design.
• Postcrossing Maxicards: set of 4 different maxicards, with stamps included so that you can mail them.
• Postcrossing First Day Covers: set of 4 envelopes.
• Postcrossing Digital Color Postmarks: set of 4 envelopes.
• Postcrossing Stamp Portfolio: includes a sheet of 8 stamps, a cancellation postcard and a collectible folio.
• Matted Stamps: features a square of 4 stamps, matted and ready to frame.

Sadly, USPS only ships within the United States… but hopefully people in other countries can find someone there willing to arrange a swap with them, if they are interested in some of these. ☺️

Happy pre-ordering! If you’re in the US and would like to celebrate this stamp issue with other postcrossers, there will be meetups happening around the launch date — including a very big one at the Boston 2026 World Expo on May 26. You can find the details (and other meetups being organized) on the events calendar.

Also, next week we’ll be publishing an interview on the blog with Antonio Alcalá, the USPS art director for this stamp issue, with some fun behind-the-scenes details. Stay tuned!