Announcing my 9th Annual Blog Swap: Postage People Revisited!

It´s time again for my Annual ATC Blog Swap! This year´s theme is Postage People Revisited, and I hope you´ll be inspired by it!

I´ve had a Postage People Blog Swap in 2008 already which has been a big success, and after all these years I thought we should have another one. If you don´t know what Postage People are, please have a look at the samples on my Pinterest Board here.

And there´s also a video on Postage People on my Youtube channel where you can watch me making a card and searching for the right images.

The idea is to mix postage stamps with collage images, stamped images, or even handdrawn images to create new creatures. The heads on the postage stamps can be human as well as animal heads.

I´ve seen some bad examples on the internet of heads not really fitting their bodies, so I ask you to do your best work and really try to find a perfect match! I often draw on the postage stamp to continue the outline of the shoulders. Use your imagination and tell us the story of your new character!

As always, you can use any technique you like - you can stamp, collage, draw, sew, or work digitally (if you use at least one tactile element). So if you join the swap, be aware of the fact that you won´t necessarily receive ATCs in the same technique that you used yourself.

Please sign up via personal email (just click on the link in the sidebar) and let me know your snail mail address. There´s no sign up date.

Then send 3 ATCs (each of them has to be 2,5 x 3,5 inches or 6,4 x 8,9 cm) to my address (that I´ll send you when I answer your email) so that I receive them before June 30, 2015.

There have been some issues with slow mail last year, so please do NOT use a padded or large envelope for your ATCs if you´re from overseas – if you do, the envelope will be held up in the customs for 3-8 weeks! Please do not send any extras for the recipients of your cards, no lovely small envelopes or little gifts please as I would have to pay the extra costs to send these to the recipients!

I will pay the return postage for all international players if you send a little something with your ATCs (trust me, there´s enough space in a business envelope to send along a few stamps, unmounted rubber stamps or ephemera).

If you´re from Germany, please include a return envelope with sufficient postage on it.

As always, you´ll find updates on my blog with links to all participants´ ATCs. So when you´ve finished your ATCs, please send me an email with the link to the place where you´ve posted them online, and I´ll add that link to my next update so that everyone can go to your blog or other website to have a look at your artwork. And we´ll have a Pinterest board again here as a swap gallery for all to visit and comment. Please don´t forget to comment on the other artists´ blogs if you like their cards – we all like a bit feedback, and this swap is all about connecting and getting to know other artists!

Please read the rules again before you decide to sign up and please read the newsletters that will be sent to you if you sign up. I´ve had many issues with people not following the rules last year, and I really have to be sure that you do.

 I´ll send out invitations to all previous participants, but this swap is open to all my blog visitors. Have fun creating!