What is custom postage, and what's it for?
Custom postage consists of postage stamps that you create at one of several sites that offer this service. You upload a jpg or other graphics file, modify it with the tools provided, and then you can order stamps in a variety of denominations, from postcards to packages. These stamps are often called photostamps generically or PhotoStamps if from stamps.com.
Custom postage is available in the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, among English-speaking countries.
The stamps cost a good bit more than the things you buy at the post office, but people love them for their eye-catching qualities. I think of them as one of the many new digital art forms, growing directly out of the boom in digital photography.
I used to have a llama ranch, and this photostamp shows my favorite llama, Lil Bit.
Five Ways to Use Custom Postage
... but there are many more ways!
- Have a baby or child? Please relatives by sending them a note with photo stamps on it. Use for birth announcements, birthday parties, etc.
- How about your pets? A charming or humorous picture of your dog, cat, horse, goldfish, or whatever could be eye-catching.
- Done any travel lately, with camera in hand? Choose one of your best photos, that is, one that would show well at small size. It's actually surprising how well the details show!
- Promote your business, whether you are a performing artist, a realtor, an accountant, or anything else. Use your logo, or a photo of yourself!
- Getting married? Use custom postage for the invitations or the thank-you notes.
Custom postage websites
- About Custom Postage
- This site of mine has a lot of articles about how to create and use custom postage. It discusses ways people are using it for weddings, baby and kid photos on stamps, business uses, putting your pet on a photostamp, and much more.
- Stamps.com
- Stamps.com was the first company to create custom postage, or PhotoStamps, as they call them. From this link, you go to a place where you can upload an image and play around with a variety of settings, such as increasing or decreasing the size of your image relative to the stamp, changing the color of the border, and so on.
- Cafepress
- Cafepress is a terrific website for creating custom-made articles, from tshirts and other clothing to mugs to art prints. You can use your images there to create custom postage. Cafepress works in conjunction with stamps.com on the postage, though everything else is made by them.
This link takes you to the page where creating stamps is explained.
(There are a lot of other good pages about Cafepress and its many features right here on Squidoo.) - Zazzle
- Zazzle is a competitor to Cafepress, with some differences. They do their own custom postage, called Zazzlestamps, as well as t-shirts, mugs, etc. I have used Cafepress a lot but haven't tried Zazzle yet. People say that they do a very good job.
Another example of my custom postage
My father was a science fiction writer, and here's a photo stamp commemorating him, Cordwainer Smith. Articles about Custom Postage You Can Use on Your Site
I wrote these, and they come from ezinearticles.com, so are subject to their terms of service.
- Is Custom Postage Too Tacky for Weddings?
- Someone on a wedding forum worried about this, and I gave my thoughts in this article.
- Printing Your Own Postage: 6 Times When You Shouldn't
- Printing your own postage is becoming a lot more popular, due to its ease and convenience. But when is it a bad idea?
Business Owner? You can also print postage from your PC
Another quick and easy service
- Enhance Your Business with Unique Stamps | Custompostage.net
- Describes how and why it's done.
