Shutter Sisters

vive la snail mail!

By

Dear Shutter Sisters,

Shortly after I posted here about wanting to get back into the habit of writing letters and using photography to facilitate that, I got a Facebook message from Mika, a member of the Shutter Sisters community, about something she was participating in called The 100 Postcard Project.  According to the website, it’s “a grassroots initiative to revive the art of personalized, material human connection through the writing of postcards and letters. Collaborators on this project aim to write 100 postcards or letters in 100 days, between May 22 and August 29, 2010, artistically rendered or otherwise.”  I got excited that other people were interested in snail mail, too!  And then a week or so later, a friend of the family began sending us  postcards.  I started sensing a revolution brewing…

I received my gorgeous photo/postcard from Mika last week, and it was such a lovely feeling to receive something with my name handwritten on it, knowing that it was meant just for me, not a mass message to an email list or a blogpost for an anonymous audience.  It made me wish that more people could experience this for themselves.  Then this week, when I read Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s Mission of the week–to pair up her readers as pen-less pals (e.g. the digital version of pen pals), it clicked…Snail Mail Shutter Pals for Shutter Sisters!

So here’s how this will work.  If you would like to start exchanging a photo and/or letter/postcard/note with another Shutter Sister, leave a comment below with a functioning email address [in the email field of the comment form, not necessarily in the comment body itself].  Within the next week or so, I will play matchmaker and pair you up via email to exchange mailing addresses.  You will then send your Shutter Pal a photo and a short (or long) note about that photo and what it means to you, what it says about you, or whatever else you want to write about.  Or, if sending a photo is too much pressure, just a note or postcard will be great too.  And to help you along, I am giving away a packet of Photojojo’s mailable photo frames to two commentors.  They’ll instantly turn any 4×6 photo into a postcard!  Leave a comment by Monday night 10pm CDT to be entered to win.

Isn’t this the perfect way to say Hello to each other?  Who’s with me now?  Viva la snail mail!

Peace and Love,

Sarah-Ji

P.S. If you’re daunted by the idea of letterwriting, start out by simply writing a note on the back of a photo, like a postcard, or sending an actual postcard.  I think of postcards as the Twitter of the epistolary form, and that makes it much less intimidating.

P.P.S. If anyone wants to send me Postcards From Italy, feel free to do so!

Comments

  7. I’m a huge fan of snail mail. My sister and I live in different countries and it’s our preffered way of keeping in touch. There’s nothing better than receiving a hand written note in the mailbox.

    Count me in.

  9. Please add me! I would love to be a part of this, and I think it will be more motivation to get those postcards made that I have been wanting to all this time!

  14. i love writing letters. i start every day by writing to someone. i make postcards or alter others or write long letters. it is a morning meditation for me. i love going to the p.o. and imagining my letters arriving. it is a beautiful connection, so i would LOVE to participate in this endeavor. what a terrific idea….and the giveaway is great too! thanks for offering this!

  17. This is a great idea – wouldn’t it be great if the Post Office saw an increase in mail volume – they wouldn’t know what to do! Computers have caused a drop in volume – maybe these online communities can cause an increase!

  19. what i forgot to add earlier is that snail became my New Years resolution a couple of years ago and I loved it and sent a card/letter every week to someone I care about.

  22. Yes, please. I am starting a year of changes, right here in the middle of the year – perfect timing!.

  23. Hey! Do you accept people from Brazil?

    If so I’d love to take part =D

    -Ju

  32. Absolutely count me in. Can’t wait. I used to write letters all the time, I still have some of the saved correspondence from when I was in college. And i remember just loving seeing real mail in my box. Let’s do it again!

  34. I took part in the photo exchange arranged by Shutter Sisters a couple years ago but I hardly ever received a photo in exchange from my assigned ‘partner’. I would NOT be willing to do a <i>photo</i> exchange but I would do a postcard exchange. I would hope whoever is assigned to me would fulfill their commitment, however. I just don’t know how you get people to reciprocate.

  40. This… is… a … beautiful idea! I would love to be a part of it!
    And who knows, I could possibly deliver a fellow shutter sister’s (besides my own) postcard being a rural mail carrier 🙂

    Count me in, please!

  44. I would like to participate in the "Snail Mail Shutter Pals for Shutter Sisters". I think this would be fun.

  46. I’d LOVE to participate! My children are in a 50 states postcard swap. They look forward to getting a new postcard every week from a different state in the U.S. In this age of instant access it’s nice to take it slow and be rewarded for patience.

  51. Count me in! I’m on a personal mission to revitalize the joy of letter writing. It’s my favorite form of non-face-to-face communication.

    SO EXCITED!!!

  54. Sending letters and postcards is definitely a lost art. I was going through a drawer in my officer about a week ago and found a pile of greeting cards just sitting there. I pulled one out and sent it to my BFF just because.

    I think this is a wonderful project and I can’t wait to participate!

  61. FUN!!!! I am letting go of high speed at the end of the month and was planning on sharpening my pencils and writing some letters to keep in touch but I will so miss the daily check in on shutter sisters and flickr — this is perfect and wonderful timing for me! Great idea!!!

  62. I’ve started exchanging letters with a friend on the opposite coast and it is so soul-feeding to get something other than bills in the mail. Count me in.

  74. This sounds like so much fun!! I’m usually very shy, but I think this would be a great way to reach out to someone else. And I agree with everyone…Receiving mail is such a great feeling! Count me in! =]
    -Denise

  76. Count me in! I’ve always loved getting mail and the idea of an inspirational surprise in the mailbox is irresistable!

  94. This sounds so interesting and I would love to be a part of it. I don’t print every image I work on (ha! who does???) but if I decide to print an image I always do several small test prints before the final large print and I have tried to recycle the better test prints as thank you cards, birthday greetings, etc. Postcards could be another way to use them!

  106. i love snail mail! i’ve been writing letters ever since i was 7, so snail mail will always have a special place in my heart. i would love to take part in this lovely project!

  125. It has been so long since I have regularly sent snail mail that I am actually nervous about this:)…would love to participate even if I am a procrastinator:)

  132. I love snail mail! I’ve had a pen pal in Australia since I was 18 – and we still write letters, although not as often as we used to!

  135. I would love to participate in this! I had a pen pal for many years and sadly we have lost touch. I owuld love to find a new one:)

  145. Send postcards was on my summer to do bullitin board.
    So far, we sent some to a sick grandparent.
    Would love to participate!

  156. I would love to take part. I call snail mail my "happy mail". I love it when happy mail shows up in my mail box.

  157. LOVE this idea! I resumed letter writing last year and it’s such a lost art. Please add me to the list!

  158. Oh…what a lovely idea. I loved having pen pals as a child (teen). So much fun to check the mail. I know it’s too late for sign ups but I just wanted to post how much I love this idea:)

  163. Hi! I got your email, read it on my phone and then accidently deleted it. Can you resend? I absolutely want to take part in this project, if it’s not too late.
    Thanks!!!

  165. Is it too late to sign up? Sounds fun. And I’m living in Italy too, so I can send you that postcard. 🙂

  166. I would love to join, my family and I currently live in Singapore. I love snail mail – this is such a lovely idea 🙂

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  173. I have been wanting to start or be a part of a snail mail revolution! Is it too late to join?

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  175. I saw this blog post on another blog. I think this would be interesting to try. I wouldn't mind be apart of the snail mail if it's still going.