"House" postcards - Due July 13th

  Our next guest-host is Jan Hardt.

Jan has chosen "Houses" as the theme of her postcard swap.  Since she is the guest host you will be mailing all your items to her.  Her mailing address is:

Your challenge:

Create up to four postcards related to the theme "Houses."  Interpret the theme any way you wish.  You might make your postcard house-shaped (but remember to put $.71 postage on it.  Funky shapes are considered "non-machinable")

You can create in any style you want, using any media you want. Postcards will be mailed to partners "naked" (without an envelope) so don't put anything too crazy/lumpy on them.

ANY QUESTIONS:  email  JanHardt@mchsi.com

Don’t forget the new postage rate for postcards is $.35, and your card has to be no larger than 4"x6" to use a postcard stamp.  Please measure your cards.  Postcards may not be delivered if they don't have enough postage.  If your card is bigger than 4"x6" you'll need a "forever" stamp.

Have fun, and let me (Karen) know if you're interested in hosting a future swap.

Swap details:

• You may submit as many as four cards (you will get back the same number you send, each from a different artist) 

• Include a mailing label with your name and address for each card you create
  (I will attach them to the cards I mail back to you)

• Please attach the proper postage to your postcard (see below for postal guidelines).  If you don’t have any stamps and it’s difficult for you to get some, go ahead and send money instead.  You can stick cash in the envelope. (sorry, can't take paypal payments this time)

• if you're sending me more than one, please make sure you insert waxed paper or parchment in between the cards so they don't get stuck together in the envelope

• Write “MMSA Houses” on the back of your card to remind your recipient why they are receiving this wonderful work of art in the mail

• I highly suggest you write your return address on the back of the postcard (in case of postal delivery problems) and your email address so the recipient can thank you.   

• A note for your partner on the left side of the postcard is a nice touch.

• Leave the right side of the postcard blank (the part where the address goes)

Postage and Card Size
You are welcome to make any size postcard you want, but please pay attention to the following postal guidelines

• In order to use the postcard rate ($.35) your card cannot be bigger than 4 x 6 inches, and it must be thin and flexible.  A 4x6 card that is thick, lumpy or doesn't bend, needs more postage.  Keep in mind, if you have the old hummingbird, or apple or aloha stamps, you will need to add either a $.01 or $.02 or $.03 stamp to equal the current postcard rate.  

• If your card is a rectangle bigger than a postcard, but still flat and flexible, a regular "forever" ($.49 ) stamp is what you need. 

• If your card is an unusual shape (square, round, house shaped) or is flexible but has some lumpy embellishments it will probably cost you the "non machinable" rate of $.71

• If your card doesn't bend at all, the post office considers it a package and you should go get it weighed to figure out the proper postage.

You can find all the postal specifications (and a handy postage calculator) here:  http://postcalc.usps.gov/

Silver Muse - part 2

Silver is really hard to photograph.

It often disappears, or gives off a huge reflection.

These cards look pretty cool, but I bet they're way better in person...

Here are four from An:

Two from Christie:

Four from Dian:

One from Joanne:

Three from Laurie:

Four from Lois:

Four from Nancy:

Two from Patti:

Four from Sarah:

Silver Muse - part 1

Honi is excited to report that the Silver Muse postcards have started arriving in her mailbox.  It's working really well to have her photograph the cards and email me the images.  This guest-hosting thing might be a great solution to my limited ability to host things myself.

So here's the first batch of silver art....

Four from Care:

Three from Claudia:

Four from Ellen:

Four from Honi:

One from Patricia:

Two from Peggy:

 

Still plenty of time to get in on this swap.

You need to mail your cards to Honi by July 3rd.

Swap details are here.

"Silver Muse" postcards - Due July 3rd

Here we go – our first guest-hosted swap!

Huge Thanks to Honi for jumping in to host a swap.

(Remember: Since she is the guest host you will be mailing all our items to her, not to me.)

Honi chose the theme “Silver Muse” as a small way of honoring our dear friend Currie Silver.

Your challenge:

Create a postcard using the color silver.

Your design does not have to be ALL
silver, but please include at least one noticeable element of silver in the overall design.  

For example:
metallic ink, foil, paint, tape, paper, threads or fibers, etc.

Any medium and/or technique is welcome:  paint, ink, collage, combination, etc.

Don’t forget to use the new postage rate of $.35!

Have fun, and let me (Karen) know if you're interested in hosting a future swap.

Swap details:

• You may submit as many as four cards (you will get back the same number you send, each from a different artist) 

• Include a mailing label with your name and address for each card you create
  (I will attach them to the cards I mail back to you)

• Please attach the proper postage to your postcard (see below for postal guidelines).  If you don’t have any stamps and it’s difficult for you to get some, go ahead and send me money instead.  You can stick cash in the envelope. (sorry, can't take paypal payments this time)

 

• if you're sending me more than one, please make sure you insert waxed paper or parchment in between the cards so they don't get stuck together in the envelope

• Write “MMSA Silver” on the back of your card to remind your recipient why they are receiving this wonderful work of art in the mail

• I highly suggest you write your return address on the back of the postcard (in case of postal delivery problems) and your email address so the recipient can thank you.   

• A note for your partner on the left side of the postcard is a nice touch.

• Leave the right side of the postcard blank (the part where the address goes)

Postage and Card Size
You are welcome to make any size postcard you want, but please pay attention to the following postal guidelines

• In order to use the postcard rate ($.35) your card cannot be bigger than 4 x 6 inches, and it must be thin and flexible.  A 4x6 card that is thick, lumpy or doesn't bend, needs more postage.  Keep in mind, if you have the old hummingbird, or apple or aloha stamps, you will need to add either a $.01 or $.02 or $.03 stamp to equal the current postcard rate.  

• If your card is a rectangle bigger than a postcard, but still flat and flexible, a regular "forever" ($.49 ) stamp is what you need. 

• If your card is an unusual shape (square, round) or is flexible but has some lumpy embellishments it will probably cost you the "non machinable" rate of $.71

• If your card doesn't bend at all, the post office considers it a package and you should go get it weighed to figure out the proper postage.

You can find all the postal specifications (and a handy postage calculator) here:  http://postcalc.usps.gov/

Mail your cards no later than July 3rd (I don’t need to receive them by the 3^rd, they need to be postmarked by the 3rd.)

Guest host experiment

Hey everybody.

You may have noticed I haven't been posting any new swaps.....

Since I don't know if or when I'll be up for hosting again, and I know how much everyone enjoys swapping, I'm going to try an experiment - GUEST HOSTS!

Our inaugural guinea pig is the the brave and lovely Honi C.

Here's how it's going to work.

Honi picks the theme of the swap, and I post it here.

You mail your art to HONI, not to me.

She's going to photograph them all and email me the files so I can post them here as usual.

She will do all the physical swapping and mailing of the cards.

I'm hoping to have Honi's swap up tomorrow.

If any of you have ever considered hosting a swap here's a way to get your feet wet and see if you enjoy it.

I'll be writing a blog post in the near future showing all the tips and tricks I've learned over the years, and how I keep everything organized.

Since I'm not quite ready to relinquish or share admin rights to the blog, the only way to keep showing pictures of everyone's work is for the host to email me the images.  That's the easiest and least time consuming part for me anyway, so I think this will work for now.

Everyone will need to pay close attention to the address you'll be sending your stuff to so they don't end up at my house by mistake.

To simplify things for the host, we won't be able to take paypal payments for postage.  You'll have to attach US postage or include US cash in the envelope.  My apologies in advance if this excludes international swappers for a while.

Send me an email or leave a comment if you think you'd like to act as a guest host.  I promise I'll be available to answer your questions and coach you along.

Meanwhile, watch for Honi's swap!

New postage rate for post cards

Did you know that it now costs $.35 to send a postcard instead of $.34?

It's true.  The increase went into effect a few days ago.

Here are the cool new postcard stamps:

If, like me, you still have a whole bunch hummingbird stamps...

 You're going to need to go out and buy some Tiffany Lamp stamps to go with them.

Or  bobcat stamps if you prefer...

If you're way behind on your mailing and still have some of those apple stamps hanging around, you'll need to add a Navajo necklace:

 

and if you have a vast collection of unused postage and want to get rid of the Aloha stamps, you'll need to add a coffeepot....

Since I can't remember what the postcard stamps looked like prior to the Aloha stamps, this math lesson is over.

Go get yourself some combination of $.35 and you'll be good to go.