Before you know it, you will have more postcards than you know what to do with! I took a few pictures I was particularly proud of and had Vistaprint make postcards out of them. Pretty economical on a bulk postcard basis. As usual, Amazon is always a good place to pick up 100 bulk cards at a time. Enjoy!
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I love illustrated cards the most, so I buy many of those and thus sent out many of those as well. However, I do try to have some picture and tourism postcards for people who like those, as well. I also buy some cards of themes people seem to generally like (Cats, Black and white, etc.), but most cards I buy, I buy because I like them and would love to send it to someone who will like it just as I do.
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I try to find a card that matches the interests of the profile I have drawn. Before COVID-19 and in the non-lockdown time, if I didnāt have the perfect card, I would go downtown (we have two good postcard shops in Frankfurt am Main) and try to find one. Currently, the recipients will have to take the best match in my stack that I can make. I did recently stock up on various motif areas online as I was starting to get out of cardsā¦ I also ensure that I use nice commemorative stamps, unless someones says theyāre not interested in stamps or prefer definitive stamps (yes, I had that once). German Post offers a lot of commemorative stamps online, as far as I know United States Postal Service does as well.
I use Overnightprints for my self-designed postcards, so far only meetup cards. They have branches in many countries, including France: https://www.overnightprints.fr/ Quality and price are nice, you can create your own designed back side. Just make sure to choose writeable paper for the back (ink doesnāt stick well to their standard glossy back paper), which does not cost extra, and the front side does look considerably better if you choose glossy coating, but that does cost a bit extra.
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I have found out after Postcrossing for almost a year, I have a nice selection of cards I have acquired over the year to send out. I get requests for cards from my town or area, our town is quite small, so I have made up my own ālocalā Cards from a picture i submitted to Vistaprint, and had made into postcards, leaving the back blank for my message back to people. This has worked out quite well. I am happy with the high quality picture, and had our state slogan and location printed on the front. Everyone is happy, and having a quantity made up, they are very reasonably priced as well and I always have a nice card to send out.
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I send cards from my country, not specifically my hometown. I found a photographer who makes great, unique postcards that are nothing like the usual city view cards. There is still a variety so I can choose the correct one for each receiver - animals, views, towns, local traditions, food, maps, paintings, old photos, etc., but each of them is unique for the cuntry where I live in some way.
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I send the following postcards:
- Touristy postcards (which I buy at local tourist attractions)
- Postcards from boxed sets
- Postcards not from my country (which I bought in the past from the countries I visited)
- Ad cards (only if it fits the theme and if the Postcrosser is okay to receive them)
- Handmade cards (only if it fits the theme and if the Postcrosser is okay to receive them)
I am more careful with the last two, since some Postcrossers do not welcome them.
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I try to match something on the recipientās profile so I end up sending a variety of postcards. The only type of postcard I havenāt sent out are handmade ones, and thatās only because Iām not very artistic.
I mostly send touristic or historical cards of my city/country on postcrossing.com sends but for direct swaps i buy more interesting cards like museums art printed postcards or illustrations
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A year after I started, I visited an antique store that was selling off everything. I offered $130 for all of their postcards (over 2,000, 75% antique, real photo postcards, and every old stationary). A friend of mine who creates postcards on Beaver Island, Michigan gave me over 500. Also, every time I visit a national park, tourist place etc. Iād feel like a hoarder, but it takes up so little of space. Iāll never be able to send all of these out!
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I guess for your area, any generic Wisconsin card or a city view of Milwaukee or even Chicago would do, too. 
Iāve really struggled to buy view cards this year given itās not safe to go anywhere and certainly not essential. Instead, Iāve got a number of postcard boxes. Iāve got cats, dogs, Harry Potter, Doctor Who, space, Women in Science, portraits, pin ups, and Iāve also got a few thousand PHQ cards on various themes. Itās a lot of cards. It also means that I can never fulfil the most popular wish: view cards of my area.
But, it does not matter. My cards are still good and people are happy to receive them. None of us can demand certain types of cards. Send what you like and others will like it too.
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I usually confirm my card recipient preferences by reading their profile. I will send cards that I own or cards that may be sold in the store (online or offline). So far, I have prepared card stock that many postcrossers generally like, such as landscapes, mountains, beaches, lighthouses, cards with pictures of my country, infographics, and so on. Then I bought cute cards such as illustrations, animals (cats, birds, etc), cartoons, calligraphy, odd shapes. I donāt make my own cards because Iām not a crafty person. Maybe one day I will try to make it
I have a pretty good stock of various cards that I send out according to what the recipient likes. Some of them are from different parts of the USA that I buy when Iām passing through, others are unusual art cards that I picked up in local museums or libraries. I sometimes stop in at the United Nations building to get some postcards and stamps there, but itās been closed since the covid shutdown (believe it or not, people didnāt seem to appreciate the cards I sent from there as much as I thought they would, so I guess itās no big loss). Iām experimenting with designing my own cards with photos Iāve taken around the city. New York has lots of dirt cheap postcards to buy at souvenir shops, but theyāre all the same (Times Square, Brooklyn Bridge, Statue of Liberty, etc), so I want to share my experiences, seeing the bridges half covered in fog, āgolden hourā as the sun goes down behind the skyscrapers, odd architectural details of old buildings (Iām obsessed with sky bridges) or snow covering a residential street. For those who prefer the tourist cards, I keep a stash for them, as well. One thing I donāt have are pop culture cards, so anyone asking for Disney, Star Wars, Harry Potter or GOT are outta luck.
I only send postcards that represent my country in some way - views, traditions, food, animals, old photos, etc. I prefer not to send anything Iāve preferred from abroad, especially off a place like Amazon or AliExpress. I found two great photographers who make high quality postcards, not the usual multi-view ones that are sold everywhere.
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Usually one of three kinds, 1. Local 2. Collectible ie. usually a special release from a post office local or international, 3. Colouring Cards
When I joined postcrossing in november I went hunting around my house and found dozens of postcards of all sorts hiding forgotten between my other stuff
So far they match pretty well with what people are requesting on their profiles, despite being an ecclectic bunch (or maybe because of it).
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Iām new too (hello!) and fine the requests a bit stressful. I donāt like the idea that Iāll be posting something that someone will be disappointed to receive 
My postcard stash is mainly from art exhibitions and places I have been, so I donāt have lots of the things people like, and with Covid there are no shops open for me to buy them, so hopefully people are understanding about that.
For me I donāt care at all what the picture is, Iām interested in what people have to say. Iām waiting for my first two and Iām really excited!
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Hello and welcome!
Donāt think of them as requests, think of them as ideas. Youāre sending something to a person, so theyāre trying to give you ideas of what might appeal to them. But all you need to do is send a postcard, any postcard. And Iāve certainly been surprised by cards I didnāt know I wanted until they arrived!
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Hello,
A newbie here (just received my 2nd postcardš)
What kind of postcards are generally seen as āacceptableā on post crossing?
Am I only allowed to send postcards that are from, or related to, my country?
For example, since I am from the United States, would it be āunacceptableā for me to send postcards of Van Gogh paintings, or postcards of the Eiffel Tower? (Assuming Iām really passionate about those things/places)
Iām rather nervous - I would hate for someone to receive my postcard and think āWhat was this person thinking?ā
Words of advice would be appreciated,
Olivia
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You can send whatever you like.
Some people have suggestions on their profiles of what they like to receive, so if you have ones that match maybe you can send them one.
But at the end of the day as long as youāve sent a postcard, with the right postage and written a nice message, thatās what it is all about
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