The envelopes for the Liberate Your Art postcard swap are arriving in spades! I picked up the mail at my box after my Singapore trip and had a bag of mail. Yay for liberated art!
I’m not organized enough yet to tell you how many envelopes have arrived or anything like that. I’ve just started to “check in” the envelopes. I can share a couple of pretty envelopes with you, as a tantalizing swap tidbit.
Pretty flowers…
…and swirls are in the bunch.
I thought I would share what swap “check in” entails for each and every envelope…
1. Record where the envelope came from on my tally sheet for stat tracking
2. Open the envelope and verify it includes all items – 5 printed postcards with message, 6 stamps, 6 labels
3. Remove any extra items (such as postcards for me, notes, etc.)
4. If it’s an international envelope, match it up with swap payment via Paypal and send an email to confirm receipt
5. Rectify any simple problems (ex. missing a stamp? Add one from someone who sent extra) or set envelope aside if there are larger problems I can’t quickly resolve
6. Photograph one postcard for my later use
7. Replace the items for the swap into the envelope and place in the “ready to swap” box
I do all of this in advance to make swap day go more quickly. I’ve learned if I don’t “check in” the envelopes as they arrive, trying to sort through all of them and their various idiosyncrasies when it’s time to swap just adds hours to the swap day proceedings. I need everything to be correct and ready to swap on the big day.
It’s an interesting process to go through. It’s fun to open each envelope see what little surprises might be in store for me: The art on the envelopes, the hand written notes included. And of course, it’s amazing to see the art on the postcards themselves!
As much as I love unwrapping packages, I have discovered that while I love the thought put into the envelopes with the postcards carefully wrapped in tissue paper and tied up with string, I don’t love having to unwrap them times ten… twenty… or more. 🙂 So think about my “check in” process if you haven’t sent your swap envelope in yet, and avoid extra wrapping or packaging inside the envelope if you can. (And don’t feel guilty if you’ve already sent your envelope! Everything you sent was with the purpose of liberating your art in the best way possible – which is perfect.)
The most important thing? The art is arriving and the swap is happening! A few more weeks and all this art will be liberated back into the world. Isn’t that exciting?
Oh yes. Exciting! Hope you enjoyed Singapore!
I love all this, I wish I could come help!
Oops, wrapped mine in a sheet of paper Kat, no string though you’ll be pleased to know. Hope you’re feeling much better now.
No worries, no guilt on the wrapping! I just wanted to let people know what it’s like on the other end. 🙂
wow, this is quite the process – you’re a rock star!
You all are the rock stars – it’s your art!!
Wow wish I was there to help you…
Glad my envelope got there safely, thanks for letting me know! Valerie
Great to see the pretty envies! Mine went out today with a few little paper goodies for you, Kat! Hope you enjoy! This is very exciting! I even showed mine off at a workshop I attended earlier in the week. And yes, I gave all 34 in attendance your LYA site info! Wish I could be there to help with swap day! I can’t even imagine how you handle such volume!
thank you for hosting…
Aloha
Really interesting post – and how exciting to see a glimpse of my envelope!! Thanks so much for all your hard work, and for keeping us updated 🙂 Wish I lived close enough to come and help!
A massive amount of work for you Kat…tho’ it must be quite fun to see all the cards. Wouldn’t it be easier to just give each participant their swap partners? You could list the swappers, and each could send cards to the following five people. Just a thought.
The problem with just swapping addresses is that people drop out. Of those who are on the list, only 67-70% actually will participate based on the last two years numbers. This means if you send out 5 postcards, you might get 3 back on average. This way, all of the participants are guaranteed to get the full amount back (minus any mail mishaps) and I don’t have to be responsible for sharing any personal information. So it’s a little more work for me, but I think the participant experience is better.
Having been involved in different kinds of art swaps over the years I think your way of doing this Kat makes the most sense, even if it’s more time involved for you. As you said, sometimes swappers drop out and someone is left with nothing. And the way you do this makes it all so much more random that it’s all the more exciting for “not” knowing where the cards are coming from. xo
YOu’re amazing- thanks so much for all the work that you do!
I’M SO EXCITED 😀
You are right about the drop outs. It is very disappointing to send out the required numbers for a swap and only receive a few in return. But I guess that’s life.
This swap is different to any others I have played in and I enjoy it very much. I like that the cards come separately, so plenty of happy mail.
Thanks Kat xxx
Kat, I hope you know how much all of us appreciate your work in making this happen. This is my third year to participate and I can hardly wait for the cards to start coming in the mail. It’s something very special to look forward to.
PS – I mailed mine off to you today. 🙂
I am giddy with excitement!
I would love the excitement of mail arriving from all over the world, with gorgeous stamps or artfully decorated envelopes. Opening each one to find the treasures inside would be enjoyable. But doing that over and over? I can feel the fatigue!! Your process of well organized and I for one (and I feel quite certain I speak for everyone involved!) am grateful to you for doing this. xo
Extra exciting! I will send mine off today and be mindful of the process that you have to go through to get them all ready. What a great and selfless endeavor on your part. I appreciate all the time and hard work you are putting into this to make it an enjoyable swap of all of us arty strangers!
Many Blessings and fast fingers to you, Kat!
~Dawn
I wish I could help you! Thanks so much for your hard work. I posted my envelope a few days ago, fingers crossed it is on your desk x
wow, i can’t believe all the work you put into this. amazing! you should be getting mine tomorrow. i went to 2 post offices, and no postcard stamps (in NYC?? I thought we had everything here!). So anyway, I sent regular stamps in a very ugly, plain envelope with no fancy strings for you to have to make your way though. 🙂
mailed them out over a week ago, hope you got them,
Kitty