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MAY: Naked Notebooks! #3 (mail art challenge)

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MAY: Naked Notebooks! #3 (mail art challenge)
Group:Zines, mail art & other cool stuff
Swap Coordinator:TangleCrafts (contact)
Swap categories: Mail Art 
Number of people in swap:8
Location:International
Type:Type 3: Package or craft
Last day to signup/drop:April 27, 2014
Date items must be sent by:May 12, 2014
Number of swap partners:2
Description:

~ Pic above shows a 'mail book', available from the Bad Books Etsy Store (probably a little bulkier than our swap notebooks will be. ~
~ Pic below shows the more compact Airmail Envelope Book by Miniature Rhino ~

Swap description: Naked notebooks!

I know I am not alone in my slight obsession with notebooks; so after quite a long break, I am reviving one of my favourite swaps. :) In the first 2 rounds, there was quite a lot of discussion about the practicalities of mailing notebooks in the swap comments, so I will copy & paste the bits which might be relevant in the comments below. Please feel free to add further questions/comments; but first - here's how it works:

  1. Begin with a notebook – you can either make this yourself (try this tutorial , or use an alternative design); or buy something plain, like the pocket Moleskine Cahier (Muji & Paperchase both sell similar notebooks). You can use a larger notebook, if you like, but it should not be smaller than 3.5" x 5" (minimum mailing size for USPS). For reference, the pocket moleskine cahier is 9.5 x 15cm (approx. 3.7" x 6.1").

  2. But the notebook will not be entirely naked, as you will 'dress' it (decorate or embellish) in some way before mailing – doodle a border, print image/s using a hand-carved stamp, collage it, just add some form of personalisation so that it is no longer like something you can buy in a store! (But just adding store-bought stickers doesn't count.)

  3. Write a brief note to your partner either on the first or last page of the notebook, or on the inside cover, so they know which swap it is for, and from whom (and anything else you would like to say).

  4. Address the notebook (something to consider when you are personalising it, in step 2!). How you choose to do this is up to you, but make sure the delivery & return address are clear & the postage is secure.

  5. Seal the notebook. Again, how you choose to do this is up to you (and something else to think about a) if you make your own notebook, and b) when you embellish it). Just make sure your partner can unseal the notebook without damaging it!

By the end of the swap, not only will we each have 2 handy new notebooks at our disposal, but they will probably be the coolest notebooks ever, having travelled naked through the mail, and acquired all sorts of extra stamps & markings in addition to our partners' customisation.

Swap requirements

  • 2 partners = 2 naked notebooks sent & 2 naked notebooks received.
  • Notebooks may be handmade or storebought; minimum notebook size 9 x 14cm, no maximum.
  • Notebooks should contain a minimum of 16 pages. These can be blank, ruled, or squared (etc) at sender's discretion.
  • Notebooks should be decorated, sealed & addressed – no envelopes allowed!
  • Write a brief note to your partner either on the first or last page of the notebook, or on the inside cover.
  • Scan or photograph both sides of your notebook after addressing & before mailing. Hopefully this will not be necessary, but in case any notebooks go missing in transit there will still be some evidence of your work.
  • (optional but advised:) Obtain proof of posting from Post Office (this is free in the UK, not sure about elsewhere).
  • If one of your notebooks fails to arrive within 1 month of date of sending, please ask your partner to provide the the photos of the notebook they sent, and the proof of posting. If they are able to provide this evidence, you must rate a 5 whether you have received the notebook or not (it is not fair to rate your partner down for a delivery problem which they cannot control).
  • Late swaps & low ratings will all be checked before assigning partners. Contact me if you think there might be a problem.

Discussion

TangleCrafts 03/25/2014 #

Comments copied from Naked Notebooks #1:

vblarney: Um, just a note to USA swappers: the post office isn't required to send anything that isn't in a box or envelope and it's up to them if they want to return it to you or just trash it. Something to keep in mind!

MissThundercat: I'm sure if you seal the notebook properly with enough postage stamps on it it should arrive to its destination.

TangleCrafts: I think it's worth taking a chance! Weighing & stamping notebooks at home might save some explanations at the Post Office. I'm not in the USA so I guess the zine I send out as a self-mailer doesn't count as an example (but has always been successfully delivered to U.S. addresses) but I think @fieldstudio31 has also had success mailing notebooks previously.

Perhaps if somebody has a notebook returned to them as undeliverable, the swapper could simply then enclose the notebook in an envelope & re-send to their partner, so that the partner still gets a notebook, and sees it has had at least some dealings with the P.O., however far it has or hasn't travelled!

I realise that naked mail can get lost in transit, that's why a requirement of the swap is to scan/photograph your notebook before mailing. But part of the fun of sending naked mail is just the wondering of whether it will arrive/survive or not! This week, I received a painted woodblock from the USA, so anything is possible!

BetsyPreston: I've sent all kinds of crazy stuff, much of it to soldiers in Iraq so it had to go over the postal counter with a customs form and be accepted by a postal worker, and I've never run into any regulation that says I couldn't send the stuff. I've done this at 10+ post offices, so I'd be very curious to see confirmation if it wasn't allowed (and then I would promptly ignore the regulation and wait for the post office to enforce it).

QUESTION: can I wrap the book in string or a band of paper or the like to keep it from flapping about like a wounded bird?

TangleCrafts: I'm planning to come up with a seal of some description for my notebook, @BetsyPreston , so yes, that's fine!

Bucket: This sounds excellent - but I'm definitely nervous about figuring out how to seal the book! I'm going to give this a try today and if it works out, I'll join.

As far as postal mail in the US - I once mailed a pop bottle full of items - and I wouldn't exactly call that a box or envelope!

TangleCrafts: You could just wrap the notebook around in criss-crossed string, like a 'traditional' parcel - it doesn't take much, just to stop the notebook opening & the pages flapping about... But there are so many options, if you think creatively :-)

MissThundercat: I also wondered how to close the books, but I found the easy solutions of fun masking tape to close it. let's hope it's gonna make it to their destinations unopened :)

TangleCrafts 03/25/2014 #

Comments copied from Naked Notebooks #2:

AmyMarie: I do know that in the USA, they prefer no strings/twine/etc. on packages as the string can get caught in the machinery (the miles of conveyor belts and such) and cause problems.

TangleCrafts: Thanks, AmyMarie - all tips are welcome! :)

FarStarr: I'm seconding AmyMarie's comment about the string. It is the one thing that I have had the P Off reject. You can sew things shut, but no danglies or loose strings.

FarStarr: This is an example of some notebooks that were successfully mailed. Robyn's notebooks

TangleCrafts: Not to mention all the zines from the mail art round robin you've been hosting in the group forum, Mandy! I'm so happy that it looks like they will all make it home safely. :)

Onyx: I spent some time reading the postal regulations this morning, and it was very interesting.

Lesson Learned for this Swap: do not make your notebook more than one inch thick.

Also, blanket statements like vblarney's do not apply. The postal regulations are never that simple. If her statement is true, that means they would have to accept everything that is in a box or envelope and they will never do that either. They often accept unwrapped things, and reject boxed things. The devil is in the details.

These days one of the most important details for the USPS is "where did this package come from?" So taking it in to mail it instead of mailing it from your own personal mailbox is a good idea. Even if you stand there and affix your stamps yourself, best to get "window worker" approval.

FarStarr: I'm curious, @Onyx why do you say no more than an inch thick?

Due to the rigidity, they are going to have to ship using package rates vs. envelope rates anyway. I don't see how the thickness matters.

hollycm6: You can seal your notebook shut with that decorated Japanese masking tape (washi) It's fun and seals well, but generally will easily pull off (If nothing else, it can be cut at the seams of the notebook)

MissThundercat: yes!! another round! i'm totally up for it and this will count towards my mailart 365 project this year ;) Like @hollycm6 said, the washi tape works perfectly well! i used it last time around as well.

BetsyPreston: Oooo, my books are made and I'm super excited to put them in the mail. I made 4 books, and test mailed two of them. So far, so good!

AmyMarie: Note: one of the notebooks I sent was returned to me today. I will attempt another send.

TangleCrafts 03/25/2014 #

Additional comments for Round 3!

@AmyMarie - do you remember if your returned notebook made it to its destination on second attempt?

One thing I should have mentioned at some point within all the previous conversations is that (certainly in the UK) staples on the outside of your notebook should be avoided. Just the 'spine' of a staple (eg binding your notebook) is fine, but if the reverse/folded 'legs' of the staple are on the surface, the Post Office here will refuse to accept for mailing. This has only come up for me in the context of a postcard previously, but thought I would throw it out there, anyway.

Does anyone else who participated in a previous round (or has sent notebooks through the mail previously) have any more comments or tips to share, based on experience?

TangleCrafts 03/25/2014 #

P.S. Don't forget the I want more Partners! thread in the group forum, if you are looking to swap more than 2 naked notebooks. :)

AmyMarie 03/25/2014 #

Yes, the returned notebook made its destination on the second attempt. It turns out that a post office worker somewhere along the journey saw the postage stamp edges were loose and used scotch tape to secure them. Then a postal worker at the destination post office saw the tape over the postage and sent it back with the idea the postage wasn't affixed properly (no tape should be over postage since they cannot be cancelled and possibly can be reused fraudulently). Quite frustrating, time consuming, and added expense - but that is part of mail art. It also shows individual postal workers interpret and handle things differently.

TangleCrafts 03/25/2014 #

Still, I'm glad it arrived eventually... :)

Angenita 04/ 5/2014 #

I have a question about point 2, dressing the notebook: should this be only on the cover of the book or also on the inside or is this senders choiche to do in and outside? Or definitly not on the inside?

Probably I'm thinking to much :)

TangleCrafts 04/ 6/2014 #

It's only the outside cover that needs to be mail-artified to fulfill swap requirements, but feel free to add any extra bits of decoration as the mood takes you! :)

Angenita 04/ 9/2014 #

Thank you for a very clear answer!

PrairieKittin 04/21/2014 #

9 cm = 3.54 inches
14 cm = 5.51 inches

TangleCrafts 04/22/2014 #

3.5" x 5" is the minimum allowed size envelope for mailing by USPS (similar but slightly different restrictions will apply for items posted in different countries). I'll amend the swap description to minimum notebook size of 3.5" x 5", seeing as it would be difficult for anybody to send smaller, anyway!

TangleCrafts 04/22/2014 #

P.S. I double-checked the dimensions of the pocket Moleskine cahier & it's actually slightly larger than I had stated previously in the swap description, so I have amended that, also!

Moominbrooke 04/26/2014 #

I especially love swaps that link to tutorials. :0) Thanks!

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