Tips for Mailing Birthday Cards On Time

Tips for Mailing Birthday Cards On Time

Last year one of my goals was to get birthday cards out in a more timely manner. These days everyone sends their wishes via Facebook, texts and emails so it’s even MORE exciting to get an actual birthday card in the mail. It’s just a bonus if it’s handmade!!

While not every birthday card went out on time last year, I did learn some things that helped. So let me share what helped me get more birthday cards mailed on time…

Tips for Mailing Birthday Cards On Time…

Get your birthdays in order. With the internet making it easy, we tend to keep in touch with a lot of people. Take a few minutes to get your birthdays in order. By that, I mean decide WHO you want to send birthday cards to this year and write down WHEN their birthdays are. You can make a list on your computer, write them on your calendar or organize your birthdays on a Perpetual Birthday Calendar that you can use year after year.

Prepare your envelopes. This is the big one that has really helped me this year. Towards the end of the month look ahead to see what birthday cards you will be sending out the NEXT month. Now grab some envelopes, add your return address labels and the birthday person’s name and address. That way you only have to sit down and find addresses ONCE!! I have an address file in Excel that I keep up-to-date with everyone’s addresses so I have them all in one place. (This also makes Christmas card sending easier!)

Now, look at your calendar, and in the top right corner where your postage stamp goes write down the date that you need to mail the birthday card. I put a date a few days before their birthday depending on how far away from me they live. If you have a lot of cards to mail you could make it easier by mailing them out once per week.

Have postage stamps ready. Don’t let postage stamps slow you down. Be sure you also have stamps on hand so you can avoid a last minute trip to the post office. I like the Forever Stamps that say “Celebrate”.

Now that you know who you want to send cards to and when, you need to make some birthday cards! There are some people you will want to make a super special card for, but there are times when you won’t have time to make a card in time. DON’T even think about running to the store to buy one!! You have all those papercrafting supplies, so use them. Take some time soon to make some One Sheet Wonder birthday cards so that you have some on hand for when you need them. This method is quick & easy so you can make a stack of cards fast.

Pick a place to store your birthday envelopes, cards, and stamps so that you will remember to mail them! All this preparation means nothing if you still forget to mail the cards. I have mine in an organizer right on my desk next to the computer I use every day. In the front is the next envelope I need to mail so that I can see the date that it needs to be mailed. All it takes is a quick glance daily to see if I need to send a card.

I hope that these tips help you to mail your birthday cards out on time. Spread some joy through handmade cards this year!

Happy Stamping!

Jessica