Wednesday, January 18, 2006

 

Post cards,ATCs and Journal quilts

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I cut and pasted the following info from Postmark'd Art http://www.postmarkdart.com/faq.html
after a few emails to Franki,
as I thought it may help those of you who are thinking of coming to play with pinup and others in an upcoming swap.
Please remember that any postage details mentioned pertain to the USA .
I have NOT checked with Ozpost,
although maybe Joschaefer can help out with info.


Frequently Asked Questions

Q:Are they really made of fabric? And can you really mail them without an envelope?

A Yes! They are small pieces of quilted art. Some are fairly stiff, while others are flexible. They must be no larger than 4" x 6" and no thicker than 1/8" in order to be mailed. The postage must be hand cancelled, and they require a 37-cent stamp instead of the regular postcard rate.

Q: Is the address side paper or fabric?
A:In most cases, the address side is fabric, usually fused to a non-woven stabilizer such as Decor Bond. A few of the artists use heavy card stock (paper) for the address side.

Q:If you use fabric on the address side, won't the stamps fall off?

A: We’ve found that if you use the self-stick stamps and rub them firmly onto the card before mailing, they stick just fine.

Q:What kind of pen do you use to write on the address side?

A: The best pen is one with pigment ink, such as a Pigma brand felt-tip or the permanent gel roller pens sold for scrapbooking. Sharpies work as well, but after some period of time the ink will begin to spread, leaving an unattractive brown halo around the letters.

Q: How do you make them? Is there batting inside?

A: Construction techniques varied, but most of the cards were made this way: Decorative fabric, thin cotton batting and muslin backing were sandwiched, quilted, and embellished, then trimmed to size. A separate muslin, sometimes fused to stabilizer, was added to the back of the quilt to form the address side. The edges were bound with fabric, zigzag, satin stitch or decorative stitch.

Q:What about embellishments? Can I use anything on them?

A: We stuck to flat embellishments. Sequins, stitching, couched yarn, very small seed beads, and even feathers went through the mail with no problems.

I hope this helps those of you wondering "where" to start.
Now,go play !
Comments:
Hi Maureen,
I am fascinated to see these CQ mail art postcards. Never thought of mail art being done with patchwork or quilting, but as I don't do that anyway, I guess it would never have occured to me. Last year, one of my blog friends in the USA stitched a simply gorgeous mail art envelope in cross stitch for me. And yes, it arrived safely in Australia completely intact and unmarked, without having been encased in plastic or other protective covering.
 
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