@Jarana Yes I was too fast. I thought that we had already talked about that but than saw the Topic that @yudi mentioned.
I think the best Idea is to merge all 3 topics.
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Thanks @Bille for moving the topic to the right place!
I hadnāt seen this thread, so Iāll respond on the āritualā question
Iāve already set myself the goal of only writing on certain days (which are multiples of certain numbers like 4 and 5, but it would take too long to explain)
As the mailman comes at 7 am to empty the mailbox, I get up at 5 am, and I request an address. I read the presentation, I do some research on the municipality/region of the person to see if there are any links with Kaunas (city where I am now), then I choose my postcard and the stamps. I make a draft in French, then I translate the draft into English, making sure itās about 1000 characters, because I canāt write small enough to write more. Then I take a picture of the card (front and back, in case it gets lost, so that I can send the recipient the card they should have received). And I go out to mail the card. And when I look at the time, I see that it took me much longer than I thought.
But since the day is just beginning, itās not a problem 
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itās your hobby. you can spend as long on it as you want. most people will appreciate your long message.
i spend a lot of time on writing cards myself. mostly on the picking out the card and decorating it. i wouldnāt set a goal on when to write though. wouldnāt it be more fun to just take out your cards whenever you feel like it?
1000 characters? 
if i write in my tiniest i might be able to squeeze in 130.
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I write 1000 characters but after that I donāt have enough place to put any decoration
But itās always very nice to receive decorated postcards. I did not receive any postcard from the Netherlands yet, but it seems that there are a lot of people who are passionate about postcards/Postrossing come from the Netherlands, and thatās very nice.
I agree completely, but because of the cost of stamps, I have to set limits for myself, otherwise I will be ruined quickly 
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My writing ritualā¦
Well, first of all I turn on a radio play or music. Then I draw all the address Iām either able to draw or able to manage in the given time I have on that day. It can be 5 addresses or all 69 I can draw so far.
Then I start with the first profile and read it carefully. Sometimes immediately a certain cards comes to my mind. If possible I browse the collection of the person to avoid duplicates (but just if there arenāt 10,000s of albums). After that I upload the picture. Then I re-read the profile if this person likes decoration or not or if itās - for some reasons - better so send in envelope.
I always start with decorating the card. Then address and stamp(s). As part of the text I always start with the ID. Either I use ID stickers (e. g. from Papersisters) or I write by hand in a different colour. Meanwhile I found out what pen will be the best (I prefer fountain pens but sometimes the surface isnāt suitable for them) and I choose it. Then I start to write the text. What I write it depends on what is written on the profile, if we have matching interests or if there are any questions and so on.
Then I go on to the next address. After finishing all of the cards I check if I havenāt forgotten a stamp or - worse - the address (this has never happened in all of the years, but, who knows?).
How long does it take? It depends. From the first step (reading the profile for the first time) to the last (finish writing the last greetings) 15-20 minutes. If I draw an empty profile from a newbie or a fully written and interesting profile from an old-fashioned postcrosser. And of course if I write in my native language or not.
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It was wonderful to get your letter behind the postcard. I wish you could afford yourself the time 
Really process of gathering thoughts may take even few days 
before postcard is ready for putting things together and sending away.
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Wash my hands.
Open spotify.
Arrange my stickers and washi tape all togetherā¦
Take out my stampsā¦
Click recepient profile look upon their fav themeā¦
Select any card that related to the preferenceā¦
Writingā¦
Wallahā¦ After doneā¦ Ask myself to go out and post itā¦
Theraphy for me to get out from my mancave ahhahahaahā¦ 
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I have a sort of āpostcard cornerā next to my desk. I have one large box containing postcards sorted by subject: my town / province / country, other countries, artwork, funny, and miscellaneous. There are also some cases containing (1) postage stamps, (2) stickers, and (3) washi tapes. Finally, I also have a drawer devoted to rubber stamps with various designs, along with some coloured Archival Ink inkpads, and some pens ā mostly extra-fine Sharpies.
I often request several Postcrossing addresses at once, since I like to write multiple cards at the same time.
I use a spreadsheet to record the card number, date of assignment, date I actually sent the card (hopefully not too far apart!), and the date on which it was registered. I filter on the final column so that I can see at a glance which cards are still travelling ā or need to be written 
It helps me keep on top of any that are still outstanding.
Then I read the profile carefully to learn about the individualās interests. If possible, I also look at their wall to get a sense of their favourites. If they say their favourites are cards that they want to receive, I filter those to āCanadaā to see if I have any of them. Sometimes I do! In any case, the card-choosing comes next. If I canāt match something they definitely want, I try at least to find something similar. Itās a good feeling when I find something that I think the recipient will really enjoy.
Then I put the address and postage stamp(s) on the card. I also use a cute rubber stamp with a blank area for the Postcrossing ID, as this is a visually appealing way to draw the eye to that information. If the card has a lot of space, I may add some small stickers and/or washi tape for more visual interest. Finally, I write my message in what space remains ā or rather, I print it, since I know lots of people have problems reading cursive script. If the individual asks for something specific, Iāll write about that. Otherwise, I write about the postcard itself (why I chose it), or anything else that comes to mind. Then I photograph the front of the card, crop it to be site-ready, and upload it so the recipient doesnāt have to worry about doing it from their end.
Finally, I take the cards to the post office and pop them into the slot with a profound sense of satisfaction!
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It depends, but most of the time itās this:
Looking at the basic facts, who is she or he and what does s/he wants as a postcard.
Then I check what the personās favourites are and what s/he has got or sent so far.
Looking for the right card to send (this could take days sometimes).
Choosing stamps, washi tapes, stickers.
Writing the card, ID number first.
Decorating. Making a drawing of my little fox or wolf as a trademark (sent via savage mail)
Scanning the card, uploading the picture (not always, but most of the times)
Then giving it to my husband to put it into the mailbox somewhere on his way to work.
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Preparing the table for writing the cards
I clean out the kitchen table or the coffee table, bring the stamp folder, sticker box and pens with me. -
Taking the addresses, one at a time or all at once.
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Reading the profiles and choosing the cards, first a brief glance and all of them, then more in depth reading. After reading one profile, I go choose the cards from the 7 small boxes of cards.
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Choosing stamps and writing addresses
Depends on the lenght of the address, what country and what type of stamps I choose, which order I do it. -
Adding washitape, the ID and the date
I usually do this before writing the card. -
Writing the card
According to the personās wishes, profile and personality, and how Iām feeling at the moment! -
Adding stickers, and more washitape if needed!
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Scanning the cards
I always scan my cards, for myself, and for the receiver! -
Taking pictures of the text sides
I always take pictures of the cardsā text sides! Itās great to come back to them and read them again, especially if the receiver says they liked the stamps or answered some of my questions! -
Mailing cards, I try to do this so they leave the same day, but that isnāt very realistic as the mail leaves at 5PM. So I often just walk to the close by postbox and they leave the next day. Unless itās the weekend.
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I add my return address, air mail sticker if I have any, a sticker with my country code and some stickers/washi tape I have. I normally do about 10 of those at a time. Then whenever I get an address I just check their profile and pick one that I feel fits their profile and personality. I put the stamp/s on. I write the address in a black sharpie first and then the reference number. Then I use another pen to write the day date, temperature and season and my message. Sometimes I add a Merry Christmas sticker like the last month and now. If I see their bday is in the near future I add a birthday sticker instead. I write after I eat dinner and when Im watching tv. then I check everything is correct. I check again if I had another received so I can send 2 out and take a photo of it and upload. Then I pop it in my bag for the next day I go out.
Im currently waiting on like 10-12 to be received and one got lost 
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So, my ritual goes like this:
After requesting an address, I read the members profile a couple times and go through my bag of cards to find one that best suits their interests. I donāt have many, but I try.
The postcards that I purchase from the post office are prepaid and donāt require stamps. I donāt have any stickers and being a virgo, Iām a bit of a neat freak, so I need to work my way up to stickers.
I write the address on, checking every letter to confirm itās written out correctly. Followed by the ID and date.
I reread the profile to find an interest or two that the member has that I can mention amongst my message. I try to write a long message, sometimes itās hard.
Then I photograph and upload the image of the postcard. I do one last check to confirm Iāve done everything then itās into my posting bag. I sell online, so Iām at the post office every second or third day.
Thatās pretty much it.
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My rituals change from time to time, but the last time I sent cards it went like this:
Requesting address
Getting up to get a postcard out of the box for that userās wishlist
Going back to the desk, writing the postcard, putting a stamp on it and getting back up to put it in my mail bag.
Going back to my desk and requesting another addressā¦
and so on, until the 5th postcard where I decided to get the boxes and the mailbag to my desk so I wouldnāt get up that often. Hehe.
At the end I went to check my emails and put all the postcrossing messages on read.
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Itās funny that so many of us have a ritual; I didnāt think I did until I started reading this thread and realized that, yeah, I really do things in mostly the same order every time.
- Request address; I tend to only request one at a time, but thatās mainly because I have a fairly young account, and my queue tends not to have more than one or two open slots at any given time.
- Read the profile and take a mental inventory of my postcards and stamps to see if I can think of anything offhand that matches up with what the recipient has requested. Failing that, I review other parts of the profile and consider other mentioned hobbies, professions, and similar.
- Set myself up at a little snack table in the living room; I generally write cards at night, while the family and I are watching TV or a movie.
- Rifle through postcard boxes and find something that I think would be pleasing.
- Write the date (using day/month/year if non-US, month/day/year if US
). - Write the message; I try to relate to shared interests, experiences, and such.
- Write ID number at least once.
- Select stamp or stamps, depending on requests and whether or not I have stamps that relate to something in the profile.
- Print address; I have 1.5" square labels, and sometimes have to do some by-hand layout, depending on the size of the address. As my handwriting isnāt the best and isnāt small, I prefer printing the addresses to (1) make sure itās clear to the postal people, and (2) give me more room for stamps and possible embellishments.
- If thereās space and Iām inspired, find a sticker or rubber stamp image that I think would appeal or amuse.
- Take a picture of both sides of the card ā one for uploading, one for personal records.
- Upload picture.
- Put the card in our outbox, to hopefully make its way to a mailbox or post office the following day.
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Hi there!
I donāt have a particular ritual when it comes to official Postcrossing postcards. I usually draw the address(es) on the day off/at the weekend or in the evening after work. Of course, it also depends on whether there are free slots 
If I draw the addresses on a Sunday, Iāll put them in the mailbox on Monday - provided itās not a holiday, the mailboxes arenāt emptied here! At least in our area, the opposite is not known to me.
I also always write the date on the card(s) when I draw the addresses.
If I write the cards during the week, I put them in the mailbox the next day.
In the beginning I even wrote the cards during my lunch break, but I donāt have that habit anymore.
I request the address(es), read the profile(s), look for a card that fits as best as possible and write a few lines.
Finally, I write the address and stick the stamps (and the AirMail sticker on the international postcards) on the card(s).
I honestly have to admit that Iām not the type of person who writes a lot when it comes to the official Postcrossing postcards 
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I am new with very few open slots, so once I know the recipient I look at their profile to select a card (I donāt have a lot of stamps at present, so not an issue for choice). I suppose my āritualā would be that I immediately write the ID# in green along the left edge of the postcard. Writing the card is usually done later that day, after thinking a bit about a message.
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As for me:
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Wait for a available slot eagerly.
Sorry I am new here too, so I only have 8 slots. Take today as an example, my first traveling card only traveled for 36 days, so I am wandering in the forum nowš„². (In fact, I still have an available slot now. But I always keep an slot available, in case of a suddenly chance to mail a card, like traveling to a new place) -
Ask for an address.
I usually ask addresses at school, because I keep most of my stamps, postcards and pens here. And I am used to write things at school. -
Read the profile.
I always copy the profile and paste it into a translator. Then I can read it more easily. When I meet some confusing translated words, I will go back to the original page and make them out. -
Take out my postcards and stamps, looking for the best card and stamps to the receiver.
(I usually keep my hands clean at school, so I seldom go to wash my hands one more time.) I tried my best to choose the best one to the receiver, but if I canāt make it, I will just choose a card the receiver wonāt dislike. -
Stick the stamps on the card firstly to avoid taking up the written space.
And my cards are too small for my big written letters, so I donāt have space for stickers or Washi tapes. -
Write the address.
I know that it will make it easy to get dirty, but I really enjoy the process of writing the addresses. I have no idea why. -
Write āDear Someoneā and other words.
Then I will often dirty the card by my hair or my right handā¦ I try to wait for the ink to dry and write another sentence only after that. But I am so impatientā¦ I enjoy writing cards a lot, but I often find myself finished with writing suddenly. If I make the card untidy unfortunately, I will use āModification tapeā to save itā¦ In the end, I will add my name downside and the date&weather upside. The last step is to write Post ID. But I often āalmostā forget itā¦
I usually write two copies of the Post ID.The color of ink is different from the ink of main text. -
Then I leave the card alone, waiting for the ink to dry.
When I am free, I put it into the mailbox of my school. (Another reason for writing cards at school is that there is a mailbox 20 meters from my classroomš¤Ŗ.) If I write a card at home, I have to go across half of my city to find the nearest pillar box, or just keep it until I go to school and mail it.
And because that I mail cards at school, I donāt take photos of them. I like to see what will they look like when they arrive in the destination, too. But I donāt ask for uploading the photos if the receivers didnāt upload.
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My writing ritual is:
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Make tea first. Always. Without exception, tea first, than everything else.
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Have my desk filled with my blank postcards, pens, stickers and washi tape. Wash my hands.
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Draw a address, followed by reading the whole profile. If I have cards for the asked topic (one or more), I stack them to the right. I also check the whole favourite, maybe I have the asked postcard.
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I start to decorate the whole postcard with stickers and washi tape. I use the washi tape to separate my writing space from the address field. ^^ Without using this method, my writing looks like a upside-down staircase. Also add the ID.
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Starting writing my location with the current date, (weather icon and temperature only if asked). Next I write āHello [name of recipient]ā and everything the person want to know about me or my city or country. I also write about similar hobbys I have in common with the recipient. Also things I did in the past or plan to do in the future. Sometimes I share words they havenāt a english translation, nor can translate into english. But I explain what the words mean and why we use it. Add my signature.
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Writing down the recipient address.
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I check the postcard, add maybe more stickers and washi tape if I have the space.
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Scan the postcard from both sides digital, go to our kiosk with post office, buy a postage stamp, stick them to the postcard and throw them to the letter box outside the kiosk.
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I sit in front of the computer and click out a few addresses together.
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I open up each card number (SG-XXXXXX) in a different page and start reading the profiles of recipients.
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I get the card ready and prepare to write. My first choice of ink is Noodlerās Bad Blue Heron - if the card doesnāt take this ink well, I use Anti-Fascist Blue. Both are waterproof and fountain pen inks.
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I write the ID on the top left of the card. Then I proceed with the message
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After I finish the message, I place the stamp on the top right corner. Then I find empty space for the remainder stickers: an airmail one, and a sticker of my profile picture.
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I write the address of the recipient. Below the country I rewrite the ID in case the first gets smudged.
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I find some more space and place a small wax seal of my initial.
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I then mail the card when I next leave the house
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Heya Everyone!
I was wondering what the process of writing a postcard looks like for other people on here!
For me, I first read through the profile of the receiving person and then take a piece of paper to write down everything I would like to have written on the postcard later on (In case I want to add or delete some things).
After that I pick the postcard Iād like to send them.
Iām still new to Postcrossing and donāt have many postcards to choose from yet,
but I guess when I have more postcards in the future Iāll probably pick the card first before doing anything else!
However, after I picked the card I then transfer what Iāve written on the paper onto the postcard and occasionally add some doodles along the way.
And at the end I add a cute sticker and the stamp. Done~
What does the process for you guys looks like? Similar or completely different? Do you have a routine or usually just go at it at random?
Or maybe you have certain habits you do when writing the postcard like drinking tea along with it?
Iām very curious!
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