HOW DO YOU CREATE AN ENVELOPE WHICH WILL GET YOUR PERSONAL MAIL TO YOUR DESTINATION AS FAST AS POSSIBLE?

We're so used to email these days, that, sometimes, when we need to send something by snail mail, it makes us think - how do we do that again?

The Easiest Way

The easiest way is to stick the envelope in your manual feed on your computer printer and have the software address the envelope. Sometimes, it doesn't work quite right but most of the time, it's perfectly acceptable.

It's easy in Word. You go to Tools, Letters and Labels, choose letter. Type the name and address of the person you are sending the mail to in the top box and in the bottom box you type your own name and address or you can access this information from your address book by clicking the little book icon at the top near the delivery address. If you have your own address in your address book, then you can do the same for the return address. Delivery address means the person you are sending the mail to and return address means your own address.

You place the envelope in the manual feed of your printer and hit Print. It's done. NOTE: you'll have to figure out how your printer prints envelopes by referring to your printer manual. Not all printers print the same way. Some printers require that the top of the envelope be facing upward and others require the face of the envelope to be downward. Also, you need to determine which side the bottom of the closing flap needs to be on in order to have the address print right. What's right? If the face of the envelope is facing you and your turn the envelop to the backside, the flap should be facing downward, not upward.

Personalizing

When you get something in the mail which is handwritten, doesn't it feel more personal? Yes. And there's something special about getting something handwritten.

If you are going to handwrite your envelope, then follow the pattern your computer uses to print envelopes. It goes something like this:

First, make sure that the bottom of the flap at the back of the envelope for sealing the envelope is facing downward and not upward. Then, on the front of the envelope, in the top left hand corner, you write your name and address - name on the first line, street address and apartment number on the second line, the city and state or province plus the postal or zip code on the third line and, if you are sending the mail to another country, make sure you include the name of your own country on the 4 line.

In the top right hand corner, you stick the stamp, lining up the stamp with the sides of the envelope so the stamp sits square in the corner.

You estimate a position about halfway from the left-hand edge of the envelope and about 1/3 way down from the top of the envelope. There you start with the name of the person to whom you are sending the mail as your first line, their street and apartment address on the second line, the name of the city, province or state, postal code or zip on the 3rd line and, if you are sending this mail outside your own country, put the destination country where it is to go.

Of course, try to write as neatly as possible especially the postal or zip codes - your mail will be processed a lot faster if your writing is legible!

Addressing Other Types of Envelopes

There are business styles too. Generally, though, these are created on a computer and printed on a business size envelope on a printer. Typed or printed labels are the accepted business method.

However, if you were wanting to handwrite the envelope because you wanted to personalize a card, then you would do 2 additional things,

1. Put the title of the person in their Company on the first line: Joanne Smith, President
2. Add the company name below that line
3. Continue with the remainder of the address as above.

Quite often today, descriptives such as Mr., Ms., Mrs., etc. are not used - just the name of the person and their title in the Company.

Bigger Envelopes

For bigger envelopes, you can address bigger envelopes same way as above horizontally with the closing flap on the left. What do I mean by horizontally? I mean that you address the envelope with the closing flap on the left rather than at the top.

Certainly, you can address the bigger envelopes vertically, however, it's not quite as attractive nor easy to read that way.

I hope this helps you.

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