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Hello ya'all! Has anyone had problems mailing cards adorned with Hodgepodge hardware? I mailed one to my mom in the standard SU envelope, and it came to her a bit mangled with a damaged stamp on the envelope. I think it got chewed up in their machines. Any suggestions? Do I need to mark the envelopes with a "Hand stamp please" notation? I need to know because I'd really like to use some HH stuff on my Christmas cards this year.
I have been using the bubble envelopes. I think the post office guideline is 1/4" thick so hand stamping should work if it's 1/4" or less. But... I don't trust my cards to the post office so I go ahead and use the bubble envelopes if they have hardware on them. My BIL works there and he tells me stories... ;)
__________________ Debbie
I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end. - Margaret Thatcher
Great question. I've decided to mail a card to myself to test out my theory that the card will come through ok if I turn it inside out, meaning fold it over so that the inside of the card is on the outside....
Your card will only get hand cancelled if you pay 12 cents extra postage,
I do not believe that you have to pay extra for hand cancelling at the post office......i had all of my wedding invitations (150 of them) hand cancelled at no extra charge.
__________________ Hello, my name is Carol...and I am a stamp-a-holic
I just put a piece of inexpensive, crimped CS over the front of the card before I slip it in the envelope. It's less bulky than bubble wrap and it does the trick!
__________________ "Life is much too important to be taken seriously." Oscar Wilde Proud to be a member of Mo's Digital Pencil Challenge DT! My BlogMy Gallery
Your card will only get hand cancelled if you pay 12 cents extra postage,
The nonmachinable surcharge postage is only for items that will not fit through the sorting machines properly, like thick manila envelopes or square cards, and occasionally the clear envies but that seems to depend on the individual post office.
__________________ Rachel Proud SU! demo and Sci-Fi Geek!
My Stampin' Up! blog "I'm a time traveler -- I point and laugh at archaeologists." 10th Doctor, "Silence in the Library"
But Joan, wouldn't that confuse the card recipient? I'd think that only a seasoned stamper would understand.
Thanks for the postal info, gals. I'll have to look into those bubble envelopes. Drats!
mary rose
Well, I think it would only take a second for the recipient to figure out that the card is inside out, but I agree it is not the greatest presentation....
__________________ Dear Paperlicious is my blog...with a series on how I'm learning to improve my cardmaking by studying others.
I asked my mom about this as she and my dad both retired from the USPS. She said that they can hand stamp, but it still goes through the sorters (machines). Bubble wrap is one idea. I also have slid my card into cs or a portion of a file folder for some protection. If it is thicker than 1/4" then there is an additional charge. See this link for dimension requirements:
I do not believe that you have to pay extra for hand cancelling at the post office......i had all of my wedding invitations (150 of them) hand cancelled at no extra charge.
I think it may depend on your post office, whether they really stick to the rules. Mine said that it is ALWAYS 12 cents extra to hand cancel ANYTHING.
I've seen cardmaking kits that had bulky embellishments come with quarter pieces of cardstock to place over top of the card in the envelope. The pieces of cardstock came marked with a little design and a little comment that "This sheet of paper was sent to protect your card" or some such thingy. Sounds a lot cheaper and easier than bubble wrap envelopes to me, and it works just fine. You could even make it coordinate with your card, and if the recipient was a papercrafter they would probably re-use the insert in some way.
I just put a piece of inexpensive, crimped CS over the front of the card before I slip it in the envelope. It's less bulky than bubble wrap and it does the trick!
Personally I think this is the best idea I have ever heard! You can make the CS match your card and it'll serve a double purpose, it looks nice as well as protects your card! And it's FAR cheaper than those bubble envelopes.
? Re: Hodgepodge postal issue
