A Creative Invitation: Join the DIY Postcard Swap
I wish someone would invite me to a creative retreat, that would be so lovely! Because I myself feel I need some inspiration and new input. I envision a workshop with cinnamon buns and lots of patterned papers to dig through on the table. Maybe with a few vases filled with red and pink tulips sprinkled throughout the crafting room, and the smell of freshly brewed coffee in the air…
I think we’d make a mixed media mess – together!
I could be there, inspiring you all to create a whole pile of DIY postcards, because I always enjoy doing that and create a series of artful postcards that makes me smile.
But since I did not get that creative invitation, I am here to invite YOU to a “creative retreat” at your own house, in your own pace. It’s just an online swap, but let’s think of it as a creative retreat from the world, shall we? I love the idea of all of us together, but apart. Creating happy mail!
We will create ten handmade postcards, small art pieces that we can send out to people who also need a little pick-me-up in the mail. Because, don’t we all? Aren’t we all just craving creative moments, connection and a chance to share what we are making right now? Isn’t that why we keep coming back to instagram even though it pulls us in more than we’d like these days? We want to show up, to be seen, to get a chance to share something of our selves.
In any case, if you feel a craving like that, maybe the DIY Postcard Swap is for you? Right now I can’t do a retreat or workshop, so you will have to encourage yourself to set up a table and make your art, but if you sign up for the DIY Postcard Swap it will be like we’re all there, creating together but online. I offer you others to connect with, a deadline to stick to – and a beautiful activity of making 10 DIY Postcards this month! And then loads and loads of happy mail of course, to keep the ball rolling.
Read about the Swap and sign up for iHanna’s Swap here:
Note: When you sign up for the DIY Postcard Swap you have the opportunity to also buy a digital copy of my awesome book DIY Postcard Ideas (a bit cheaper than in the shop), that I wrote when the swap turned 10 years old!
I will send it to you via email, and it can take a few days but I will do my best to get it to you ASAP! It’s filled with color photos and ideas of mixed media that you could try out, as well as some back story to swapping online, ATCs and how I got started with hosting the DIY Postcard swap. I hope you’ll consider adding it to your library.
If you don’t want to commit to joining the swap this time, I will host it again this fall (after summer) and you can join then. Sign up for my Newsletter to be notified when that round starts.
If you are eager to read more, the book is also available in the Studio iHanna Shop – along with notebooks, journals and other digital downloads that I hope you’ll check out. Your support means the world to me.
Create ten or twenty DIY Postcards
When you sign up for the swap you are expected to create ten handmade postcards and be ready to send them out when the swap closes. New this year is that you can sign up and commit to making 20 DIY Postcards directly, and you will be sent two different address lists. This means you will, hopefully, receiving 20 handmade postcards in the mail all through June. I think that sounds delightful, and I can already tell several of you agree and have chosen this option.
I am looking forward to seeing what you make, on your blogs and maybe even on instagram. Use the hashtag #ihannaspostcardswap – and I will hopefully see it, as will all interested. Like, comment and share what others are making in the swap – to make the swap and our artistic adventure more visible!
Invite your friends and family, this will be such fun. Ask me anything in the comments below, or let me know what your DIY Postcard plan is this year!
Enjoy some previous blog posts for inspiration:
PS: The Newsletter has already been sent out with this invitation, so quite a few has already signed up, which is awesome. Yay! This will be truly spectacular. Last day to join is June 1st. 2024, don’t miss out!
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Just joined!!
Thanks, glad to have you join again!
I always look forward to your Spring Swap, Hanna! Thanks so much for hosting it again! It’s always so much fun!
Thanks Arielle, and happy spring. Hope everything is good with you and yours.
Hiya Hanna!
I am super excited to join your Spring postcard swap-it is my very first postcard swap!
Hi Ann Marie, thank you for signing up for the very first time. I hope you have fun creating ten handmade originals to send out into the world!
Hi Hanna,
I’m all signed up and ready to go, I’ve made 20 postcards!
Thanks Patty, so happy to know that your creativity is still thriving!
Yay! This swap is always so fun. I think this is my 5th swap with you. Getting a homemade postcard from somewhere in the world is something so simple, yet so inspiring, reassuring and fun. Ok, I’m off to start thinking about my postcard makes!!
Yes, that is true, thanks Peggy. The simplicity and the wonderfulness of a handmade postcard is one of my favorite things too.
Just signed up—this will be my third in a row, and sixth (or seventh?) time. I already have some WIP percolating to finish up next weekend—excited for happy mail!
I signed up! First-timer! Can’t wait.
Not sure who was more excited when the postcards started arriving this past winter – me or my husband. Ha! It was my first swap, looking forward to my second go around. Thanks again for all the work you do to make this a great experience.
All signed up, yay!!
my diy postcards for spring 2024 are ready to mail tomorrow, having received addresses today!
strategies to create postcards and ready to mail as soon as addresses arrive in the inbox:
*create 10 diy postcards prior to registering to participate.
*when between projects or having a creative lull, creative 10 diy postcards. they will be ready for the next diy postcard swap.
*a project might have leftover paint or scraps. use the leftovers to create as many diy postcards as materials allow.
Dear Hannah, You asked for people to let you know when we send out our cards and a little about our process. Mine is pretty simple. Because I had hip replacement scheduled for April 23, I wanted to have all my cards done in advance, so I made them in March and April. (Recovery from surgery was easier than I expected, but it was still nice to have them ready.) When you send out the list, I copy and paste the addresses in a label file I keep from the previous year, print out the labels, and put them on cards. Then I write a brief note to each recipient, stamp them and mail them. (I keep a supply of US “forever” postcard stamps and international stamps on hand.) I put the international cards in clear sleeves to protect them. I received the list yesterday and all my cards have been mailed. I’ve been doing your swap since 2014, and I really enjoy it.
Hi Hanna,
Thank you so much for this postcard swap. This is my first time participating–I’ve truly enjoyed it! I am only beginning to try to release my inner artist (and I’m at the beginning also of trying not to listen so much to my inner critic!) and I’m just experimenting and learning about different art materials. My process was slow and also rewarding. I learned a bit about art and I learned about myself.
I mailed out all of my postcards today.
Thanks again.
Just sent all my cards out. I got my first one — from Carrie today! Yay! This was so fun!
Hello! You asked folks to comment when we send our postcards & my 10 went out in the mail yesterday on 6/6. I had a great time making mine with all sorts of supplies & ephemera I have been wanting to play with. This is such a fun swap! Thanks for organizing it.
Hello Hanna! In your email with addresses for the swap you asked to know about process and materials used to make postcards. I used watercolor paper and painted a loose background with lots of color. Then, I used a stencil to take away some color and add a pattern. Added additional textures with a rubberstamp and acrylic paint. Lastly added an index label with “inspire”. Such fun and can’t wait for happy mail to arrive. Thanks for hosting!
Hej Hanna! I mailed my postcards on June 10 and as of today I’ve received 4, yay! This year I used a big sheet of watercolor paper for 9 of them—made a master board of acrylic paint and markmaking, then divided it up and finished with some metallic gold ink and some creativity quotes from a maker on Etsy. Card #10 was a collage WIP that I finished.
I received 10 amazing cards, what a talented group! I sent out my 10 and have heard back from 5 of the recipients.
Materials I used were: stencils, colored pencils, washi tape, stickers, bingo markers, sheet music, spirograph, curved ruler, stamps, and collage pieces. This was so much fun, thank you Hanna! I’ll definitely sign up again next time.