Going Postal

Going Postal

April 14th, 2011 @ 11:33 am by Mrs. Pain au Chocolat
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Our invitation suite was created with money-saving features in mind. One of those features is using postcards for both the wedding and rehearsal-dinner RSVPs. Did you know it’s cheaper to mail a 4 x 6 postcard (28 cents) than a first-class letter (44 cents)? That saves us 16 cents on every mailed piece, or about $16. Yes, I’d like to save money. Please!

Going Postal : wedding invitations wilmington Stamps stamps_

Herbs: the new 29-cent stamp (via USPS)

Knowing that a rate increase is coming smack-dab in the middle of our RSVP return period, we planned to purchase the new 29-cent stamps. The last thing I need is all of the RSVPs marked insufficient postage and returned to sender. However, the stamps do not go on sale until April 7th, about two weeks after I wanted to mail the invitations.

Obviously, we had a decision to make.

Option 1: Wait to mail invitations until 4/7/11 when 29-cent stamp is released.

Option 2: Piece together a hodgepodge of stamps to get exact postage and mail now.

Going Postal : wedding invitations wilmington Stamps 01 stamps_01

Polar Bear (no longer available on USPS)

Going Postal : wedding invitations wilmington Stamps 02 stamps_02

Navajo Necklace (via USPS)

(The aforementioned hodgepodge. The only coordinating thing about these two stamps is the color.)

Our post office has a sense of humor. Once they found out we were mailing our wedding invitations, the ribbing began.

Postal worker: If you want to mail it now, you can use the polar bear and a one-cent stamp.

Miss PaC: No thanks. The polar bear doesn’t exactly say “wedding!”

Postal worker: What, you don’t like the polar bear? What’s wrong with the polar bear??

Miss PaC: Nope. It doesn’t go with the turquoise necklace.

Postal worker (to Mr. PaC): She didn’t give you much of a choice, did she? No hesitation at all.

Because we too have a sense of humor…

American Clock (via USPS)

…these stamps are going on our RSVPs. Why? Because they’re clocks. And it’s a (not so) subtle hint to return those puppies ASAP. I’m curious as to whether any of our guests will spot the joke.

Time’s a tickin’.

What type of postage will your invites have: custom stamps, a hodgepodge, or some other equally amusing alternative?

Tags: invitations, wilmington |

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31 Responses to “Going Postal”

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Member

bRooklynRocks (message) 3,769 posts, Honey bee

Ugh. I already stamped my RSVP postcards (yay for savings) when I realized that my return date was in May when the stamps would not be effective. I had to go and buy the 1 cent stamps to add to them. Thank God I saw a thread on the bee that made me realize that yes, I was sending them before April 17th but no, the RSVPs won’t be back BY April 17th! I love your subtle reminder

4/14/11 @ 11:43 am (reply)

Member

jbz (message) 54 posts, Worker bee

I went to a stamp colletor shop and asked to see “face value” stamps. He had a huge selection of 29cent stamps, i think they used to be the standard rate. Got some cute vintage flowery ones. Also got a variety of stamps for the front of the envelopes so there’s not just one stamp. Again, all at face value. And supported a small local shop. Win, win.

4/14/11 @ 11:43 am (reply)

Member

eyegirl (message) 42 posts, Newbee

Love the clocks!! Too funny!!

4/14/11 @ 11:44 am (reply)

Member

olivemylove (message) 6 posts, Newbee

I had the exact same problem! I had to use the polar bear for my rsvp cards. For my invites I had to use a dolphin! They didn’t have the butterfly, that would have been a little better. But instead I was stuck with a polar bear and a dolphin for my invites…come on usps!

4/14/11 @ 11:52 am (reply)

Member

mightywombat (message) 3,345 posts, Sugar bee

The clocks are awesome.
I was soooo thrilled when I was checking out the USPS website two weeks ago to see that they were releasing an actual pretty postcard stamp. I thought I’d have to use the polar bear on my RSVP cards like I did on my STDs. I ordered them in advance so they’d be sent to me ASAP. I got them Monday, and my invites will go out tomorrow.

When I told my FI how stoked I was, he looked at me like I’d lost my mind, lol.

4/14/11 @ 11:52 am (reply)

Bee

Miss Hyena (message) 1,882 posts, Buzzing bee

Ha! I like the clocks and their oh-so-subtle message!

4/14/11 @ 11:53 am (reply)

Bee

Miss Lox (message) 1,128 posts, Bumble bee

Oh dear little polar bear… you were so fun on my STDs (*snicker*). I love the clock idea too.

4/14/11 @ 12:04 pm (reply)

Member

KatNewby (message) 344 posts, Helper bee

I had no idea that it was cheaper to mail a post card than an enveloped letter! Thanks for letting me know that! I love the stamps you chose :] I’m sure someone will pick up on your sense of humor.

4/14/11 @ 12:12 pm (reply)

Bee

Mrs. Meerkat (message) 3,216 posts, Sugar bee

Those polar bear ones when out on our wedding invitation that had a palm tree printed on the envelope. It was true irony.

4/14/11 @ 12:32 pm (reply)

10.

Bee

Miss Pain au Chocolat (message) 1,698 posts, Bumble bee

@bRooklynRocks: Glad you spotted it on the boards in time! I bookmarked the news article when I saw it so I would NOT forget.
@jbz: I may be a dork but that sounds like a fun time. Kid in a candy, erhm stamp store!
@olivemylove: We went to two different post offices to get the stamps we needed. Something about paying shipping for stamps just seemed wrong, otherwise we’d have ordered online.
@mightywombat: Hey, I know that look!
@eyegirl & @Miss Hyena: A few of our guests have picked up on the clocks and called/emailed to say they were in on the joke.
@Miss Lox: Tick tock, tick tock. Most of our guests have been super about returning them; we got half back the first two weeks.
@KatNewby: Happy to have helped (and save you a little money).
@Mrs. Meerkat: hahahahaha, that is fantastic

4/14/11 @ 12:43 pm (reply)

11.

Member

Crown (message) 548 posts, Busy bee

Isn’t there a capability to create personalized postage stamps (for an added cost, I know)? I mean, if the look of the stamps are that important, it makes sense to spend the difference on getting exactly what you want.

4/14/11 @ 12:53 pm (reply)

12.

Bee

Miss Pain au Chocolat (message) 1,698 posts, Bumble bee

@Crown: Yes, there are a few places that offer custom postage. Zazzle.com comes to mind. However, $20 extra for custom postage is not something I will spend money on. The USPS had fine alternatives; it just took a little digging.

4/14/11 @ 12:56 pm (reply)

13.

Member

evorce (message) 74 posts, Worker bee

Postage is a real unexpected expense.. I think more people should think of that when they pick out the shape/thickness of their invites. And with a hundred invites you are right it can really add up. I had to pay $35 extra because I had tied a piece of dried lavender to my invites.. can’t really say that was worth it, but hey I didn’t know. If people have even a sample of the invites they want, it might be a good idea to take it to the post office and ask how much it will be to mail, because that is good to know in advance, not the day you need to send them.

4/14/11 @ 1:13 pm (reply)

14.

Member

evorce (message) 74 posts, Worker bee

4/14/11 @ 1:13 pm (reply)

15.

Bee

Miss Pain au Chocolat (message) 1,698 posts, Bumble bee

@evorce: Great advice! We kept the thickness and shapes as standard as possible because of this. And had the post office weigh each type of envelope because I knew the heavier of the two would need more than 44 cents.

4/14/11 @ 1:17 pm (reply)

16.

Bee

Miss Tartlet (message) 3,207 posts, Sugar bee

I had a minor panic attack when I heard about the postage rate increases for 2011! I love the subliminal message the clock stamps send. Tick tock, people!

4/14/11 @ 1:30 pm (reply)

17.

Member

ranchorelaxobride (message) 68 posts, Worker bee

OMG the clocks! You are hilarious.

4/14/11 @ 1:34 pm (reply)

18.

Bee

Miss Seal (message) 1,179 posts, Bumble bee

I think the clock stamps are cute! You are such a genius, PaC—though some guests may not consciously get the subtle hint, their subconscious minds will be all, “Oh wow, I better get this out on time!” You are so sly.

4/14/11 @ 2:08 pm (reply)

19.

Member

hitchedinhawaii (message) 140 posts, Blushing bee

When I went to buy stamps, the post office I first went to told me that the price was going up so I should get the 29 cent stamps - they sold me the cute wildflower ones that day (This was last week Monday). Then I went to another post office and explained that I needed more of the “New” stamps and after sweet talking them, they let me buy them too - but then mentioned that they couldn’t be used until after this week.

Which caused me to FREAK OUT because I had already sent out half my invitations and knew there were early RSVPers in the bunch.

Then I got an RSVP in the mail wildflower stamp and all. Perhaps its all the aloha vibes in Hawaii.

4/14/11 @ 2:08 pm (reply)

20.