OMG! It's Naked Mail! - USA only

Awesome idea! But how DO you mail something naked?? And what sort of things can they be? Can it be any shape? Size? There must be some rules at the post office, no? I need help from seasoned mailers on this one! :)

Same here, a little more info please? This sounds really fun but if I am going to do it I want to do it right.

Last week I put a label on a jar of peanut butter, addressed it to my college age granddaughter and put it in the mail. I also sent her a box of crackers with a label on it. I know I could put these in boxes but this is a lot more fun. At Christmas I mailed plastic place mats with just the address on the back. I've also mailed bowls, drinking glasses, pitchers and a lot more. The postal clerks laugh and I enjoy making their day, and if one refuses you, try another post office or another clerk. I don't mail glass items that might break or other things that would easily break. Try it, it is fun.

We received a customer's business question on a paper plate before?

This is SO much fun. Last year, I participated in a naked mail swap here on SB. It was totally awesome! I sent my partner a pair of flip-flops! And I got a teapot that traveled cross-country to me. Yes, a teapot -- that I still use! :)

The postal clerks and I had a ball on the going out and on what came to me.

Tsireldi: All you have to have is an address label that can be read and the proper postage.

This sounds so amazing! If my post office didn't despise my guts (they don't like it when I have alot of packages to mail out - ???) then I would totally participate!

What's the dollar amount you suggest? I'd hate to send out something cheap and get back a teapot (that would definitely cost more!)

I'm not joing the swap but here at the office where I work, just last week, two of the attorneys got a child's bright yellow kick ball with advertisement on it. The mail carrier said he had 5 more on his route to other attorney's offices the same day. It was definitely eye-catching and fun all at the same time. I think the postage on the balls were like $2.00 US each. The advertiser's message was on one side of the ball and our firm address and postage was on the other.

The mail carrier could't help but laugh as he handed us our mail then bounced to ball to us too! It may help to have a mail carrier with a great sense of humor!

Just a thought!

A friend of mine decorated a cowboy boot and sent it naked through the mail. Arrived perfectly fine.

@carol the dollar amount is one dollar, get your iten at the dollar store! that way everyone gets something with the same $ value! @mejuliaand @artistic, thanks for your input! @BVMtnMom I got a stamped up paper plate once, and a paper plate

Spread the word about the swap, I'd like to get a lot of players! I'm already glad to have this many! Thnaks for joining!

ok ok ok Ill do it susi

On a mail art website there is a picture of a piece of toast that was mailed! A real piece of toast!

The key is that you really have to make sure you put the right postage on it--it will take the special handling/hand canceling/odd-shape item surcharges, so take it to the post office to be sure or it could get returned!

Cyn

I have to be a part of this!!! I am laughing at the possibilities!!!! Great idea!!! April

Wow I had no idea you could mail such things! Toast, for goodness sake! And these things arrived in good condition, not damaged? Frankly I'm amazed how even simple postcards sometimes arrive so torn and dirty they look like they went through a hurricane... I'm imagining all sorts of wacky possibilities here...what if it's fuzzy or spiky, could it still go? Do they just stick the postage anywhere on the item? There's always such a huge line at the postoffice, I just know I'll get yelled at as a trouble maker... Still, how fun!

I got mine and ready to go. I am mailing 2 items to my swap partner to make sure at least one get's there and if they both do then I might just get a heart.

I have heard ani-mail from AFV, but Naked mail is just as good.

I know a lady online who once mailed a toilet plunger!!!!

I'm going to be watching, and most likely joining, this one!

When I was more active at Nervousness (a few years back), we had a large plastic lobster that was sent from person to person as naked mail in recognition of a special thank you for a RAOK, etc. It was eventually named the Nomadic Lobster of Gratitude and made its way several times across the country.

safest way to be OK on postage - just do the package rate... that covers all the special handling costs.

I'm totally going to join, this sounds like so much fun but I will need to keep it on my watch list till I send out other swaps this weekend.

I've done this before :) It's absolutely hilarious to see the looks on peoples' faces at the post office.

I once read about someone mailing a coconut.

I wanted to do that one last year, but had to drop. I'm so glad there is another, what fun. I think there is a web site with all sorts of stories.

sorry - had to drop - we are having some issues with our landlord.....

Are you all ready??? I have my mail ready and it's going out today... it'll arrive tomorrow because it's only going across town, darn! I wanted it to go far away! But my partner will have fun with this!

Mine is labeled and ready to ship.

The PO made me mad today, now I can get back at them.

Sent mine off today - the postal clerk asked "Can you really mail something like that?" I said, "Sure!" "Well, this is a first for me," she laughed. Then she weighed it, put the postage on, and it's on its merry way.

I looked around yesterday and found so many fun prospects, but wanted to wait until I got my partner and read her profile to send.

I like the idea of sending two things someone posted in the comments, I think I'm going to do that too, just in case.

OK it's in the mail.

I sent mine. I went to a postal substation and the usual worker wasnt' there. When I put it down in front of her she looked at it funny and said "you're going to mail it just like this?" I was on my cell phone so just nodded. "You don't want to put it in a box or anything?" I shook my head. She put on the postage.

As soon as I was finished talking I tracked her down and explained, she loved the idea and I gave her swap-bot's website. lol.

Naked mail is coming to my partner. The postal clerks were tickled.

Got it, Susi! Love it!

Yay! This was so much fun, and there was so much interest, I think I might have a naked mail 2 swap! It was fun sending something naked. I have to tell you that at first my clerk questioned it, (he was new, and unsure), he showed it another clerk, who said that they get crazy things all the time, to just put on the parcel weight postage, and send it off. It was great!

sending mine out tomorrow.

I finally got mine sent. I had several clerks at 3 different PO say they could not accept my package. After printing off parts of USPS mail manual, and showing it to the clerk, I fianlly got to send it.

This was so much fun, I can't wait to do it again!

I see a lot of No Sends on the list, let's get these sent off!

My husband is taking ours to the post office as we speak - but the COOL thing is I got mine today!!! It was a plastic banana....I fell over laughing at the sight of it in my mailbox...LOL...My husband is afraid our post office won't take what I am sending so he took the banana as proof that you can mail strange things....

I love my banana! :D

Oh, and thank you again to @ouroboros for my banana :D

I love this dialog that's continued after the swap began! I sent mine out today, wanted to sooner but was sick over the weekend and Mon. My postal clerk couldn't believe there wasn't anything "in" mine. Nope, there is no "in" to it. It is what it is, and it is random. Not quite plastic banana random, but pretty random nevertheless.

The post office hesitated a bit to mail ours until my husband whipped out the plastic banana in his back pocket and said "But the MAINE post office mailed this!" The whole post office laughed so hard, the aquiesced and mailed ours....lol....I LOVE IT [and yes, I am mortified that my husband walked into our PO with a plastic banana in the back pocket of his levi's, sigh :D]

I hope you are feeling better ellie! I can't wait to hear what your partner thinks of random! Mine was pretty random too....silly $ store stuff...now we are sending something to my MIL just to make her laugh.

But no one is getting my banana! :D

Went to mail two naked things today, but the PO only accepted one of them! Said the 'non standard shape' will get caught in the machine... And there I was thinking that a non standard shape was the point, hehe! I will give it another shot. Say, do you think wrapping some clear tape around the parts that stick out would be cheating in the naked department? Well, at least one item is on its way! I hope it doesn't get destroyed by whatever they do to our mail in the process :) !

i sent out two items just in case one didn't make it or it got damaged. i can't wait to see what my partner thinks of them. my po never gives me any trouble with anything i mail. i have a reputation already for sending and receiving weird stuff. they like seeing the different things coming and going.

I'm bummed.....my partner hasn't logged in for a week and hasn't clicked on 'sent' yet. I may not be getting any 'naked mail' :-(

I sent mine out last week and look forward to hearing from my partner. It's plastic and the same color as a banana.......but mine goes quack.

SkippyMom, I got mine today and my postman got a total kick out of it! We had a package, too, so he had to come to the door and he was telling me he'd never seen anything like it in the mail and LOVED the "NakedMail" sticker on it, lol - I think he was almost as excited as me! ;)

Just realized I forgot to say what it was! SkippyMom sent me a silver tray!

Just FYI, everyone, if you have a scale, you can weight it at home, check the cost of postage on the PO website and just buy the stamps - then you can drop it in a box and no clerk can tell you no =)

I am so glad you got a kick out of it Jambalie - it was so much fun to do. I forgotton I wrote Naked Mail on it..lol..like you wouldn't know what swap it was, right? :) BlueDragonfly - let me know if you don't get anything - I'll send you something! :D

**I had forgotten [spelling/grammar edit]

No reply if mine has been received adn it should have been by now. Mailed on the 4th. let me go e-mail my partner

I have to let you what I sent my OMG recipient! It was a red plastic bucket with a nylon handle. I taped the handle down with clear packing tape, stuck the mailing label on one side and wrote with a big black permanent chisel marker the words "DO NOT KICK"! My post guy didn't right away notice the words. He was very puzzled and asked me, "Don't they sell these in Virginia?" I told him I didn't know and he said it was one of the strangest things he had mailed. We need to do more of these swaps, if only to rock his world!!!

Just received a flower vase and place mat!!! LOVE it!!! I wish I could have seen my mail lady putting them in my mailbox!!!

hhmmm my partner received mine but hasn't posted a rating me yet, hopefully she will log in soon and help keep my ratings up.

ya'll don't forget it is very important to rate your partner.

Well, I mailed a cute little rubber ducky on the 6th and it has not reached it's destination. I am mailing a secong 'naked' item today with the hope that this one will get to my partner. Maybe the ducky was too cute and someone decided to keep it along the way???

I had a good laugh when I opened my mail box, a cute blue rubber piggy bank. Thanks Twobluecrows!!

Got my duck in the mail. The postmaster thought it was cute and told the lady that pick's up the mail to make sure I got it. Our postmaster is anal, so it is fun to watch him have to deal with this.

I got both of mine today. It was fantastic. I had a crappy day, and really didn't want to go to the post office to check my box, but did anyway for whatever reason. I open the box, and my naked mail fell out! It fell out! I picked it up and was like what in the heck is this, and read the back and just busted out laughing. Thanks so much

Haven't heard if mine were received by Crazyscrapper yet.

Goatfeathers I about laughed my behind off!!!!!! "Don't KICK" that is SO FUNNY! oh....[wiping tears of laughter] I wish I had thought of that.

Anyone else sign up for the new one? This is TOO much fun!