The Wonderful World of Postcrossing Meetups

Postcrossing meetups, a snail mail enthusiast’s wonderland. They offer an exciting experience and an opportunity to meet fellow postcrossers. Yet, if you’ve never been to one or are just finding out about them, all the back-and-forth coordination may seem a bit overwhelming. And if you’re like me, you probably have a ton of questions before you venture out to one. But don’t worry, we’ll help break it all down and get you on your way.

For the purpose of this article, we will break down the two main types of meetups organized by the Postmark Posse. This doesn’t mean there aren’t other folks organizing events in varying formats or that this is intended to serve as a rubric on how meetups should be run. Rather, it’s a summary of observations from past events intended to help demystify them. Let’s dig in!

Themed Meetups

This is the first type of meetup I came across through the Postcrossing.com forums. I refer to these as themed meetups because they tend to revolve around a particular theme—such as a special event, a unique location, or something common to the organizing group. A commemorative postcard is usually designed and printed for the event, which is then reserved and distributed among the attendees.

The Postcard 

As I mentioned, themed meetups usually have a commemorative card design. The design relates to the theme and may include a date and location to mark the special occasion. When the meetup is first announced, prospective attendees can sign up to attend the event and reserve a certain quantity of cards.

It’s important to note, however, that attendees aren’t required to purchase any meetup cards to attend. While these cards are great items to commemorate the event, the most important part of meetups is the people behind the cards—the postcrossing community. This is a great opportunity to meet and share with fellow postcrossers.

What to Bring

Another tradition of postcrossing meetups is signing each other’s postcards. Regular attendees sometimes create custom rubber stamps with their username handles or an image they identify with to sign the back of other people’s cards. But don’t worry, a simple pen will get you very far at these meetups. If you just want to sign a few cards, write some postcards to send, and share stories, you’re set for a good time! Crafty folks will also bring along some of their favorite decorating materials. From washi tape and stickers to calligraphy pens and special stamp inks, there are no limitations to what you can bring along to give your cards some special flair.

Activities

It’s common for there to be giveaway tables at these meetups—a place where folks can leave a few cards or Postcrossing-related items to share with other attendees. It’s not required to leave or take any items, but it always seems to spark some nice conversations.

In order to help break the ice, some meetup hosts also set up other activities, such as raffles or games – something to get us moving around and get comfortable with each other.

Informal Meetups

With all of that said, next we introduce another type of meetup, informal meetups.

Having gone to a few themed meetups, I realized that sometimes I didn’t get to talk to many people. Either I was caught up in stamping cards, or just deep in conversation with a few people. Also, having hosted a meetup, I realized the amount of work and effort it took to organize them with greater frequency.

We wanted to find a way to have more meetups, but also allow a greater opportunity to connect with people. Some of the longer-term connections that I made with fellow postcrossers happened after meetups. Either continuing a conversation once everything had settled down, or even sharing a meal afterwards. These were times when we got to exchange our snail mail adventures and build a deeper sense of camaraderie.

Coffee with the Posse

In an effort to replicate that setting, we established Coffee with the Posse. An informal meetup where we simplified everything. There was no postcard to be designed. No cards that had to be stamped. And since potential attendance would be smaller, the venues were much more flexible – like a coffee shop!

No expectations, just open-ended meetups to get together and catch up on anything. Whether it was postcards you needed to write, to going on stationery runs together, the possibilities were endless. Each host picks a venue, and maybe adds a few details on what could take place as an activity. 

So whether you want to dive right into a themed meetup, or prefer the smaller scale of an informal meetup, I hope that this summary at least helps demystify postcrossing meetups enough to encourage you to attend one and not feel overwhelmed. In any case, always feel free to ask any questions. I promise, postcrossers are a welcoming community always eager to help. This extended family has always treated me well, and I hope it does the same for you. We hope to see you at a meetup soon!