DIY Postcards

Kia Ora!

Good postcards are hard to come by. Postcard racks are filled too often with bad graphic design, lame fonts, or photos that aren't representative of my travels. After almost 5 months in New Zealand, I still haven't seen a kiwi bird.

What's my solution? Make my own!

I ordered photo-safe postcard backs from The2Buds, then I got some photos printed at Mak's Photo Lab in Christchurch. I'm glad I chose a local shop with a good reputation, because my photos came out crisp with true colors, and I was able to select white borders and a matte finish. White borders give photos a crisp, professional look, and a matte finish is always best, in my opinion, but especially when making postcards. Nobody wants a postcard to arrive with grubby fingerprints all over it.

The postcard backs I bought are thick enough to give good support, with strong adhesive on the backs. My photos were a hair longer on one edge and shorter on the other, so I trimmed off the edge of the postcard back that hung over.

I made this batch of cards clean & simple, but I started thinking I could add my own text and have them printed the same way. Then I threw these together: one simple, and one inspired by vintage travel postcards, both using my photos.

So... who wants a postcard from New Zealand? Leave a comment below. If you want a particular photo from my flickr photostream, post a link in your comment.