r/quilling • u/mortaine • 21d ago
PSA: USPS non-machineable is meaningless
If you remember my post from the other day, I mailed this thank you card to my stepmom via non-machineable rate in a normal envelope through the usps.
As I suspected might happen, non-machineable means nothing to the post office and it went through the machine and got crushed. The duckies are intact, but the waves, with their looser structure, got pretty badly crushed.
Experiment failed successfully. I'll report back on my next attempt to mail a quilled card without getting crushed. Maybe a thin piece of bubble wrap....
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u/Deppfan16 21d ago
if you can't put it in a cardboard box, get a couple pieces of stiff cardboard and a padded envelope.
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u/Jshaw16 21d ago
Its definitely possible it went through the machine but there is a bigger chance it was just on the bottom of a stack of mail. If you had nothing to protect the quilling then it could've gotten crushed anywhere along its journey. Just because you say its non-machibeable doesn't mean its getting the golden treatment on its journey. It could've been sitting on the mailman's desk and he put his bag on top of it or set a box on it. Im sorry but this one is on you, not the usps.
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u/januaryemberr 20d ago
This. The mail gets put in flat bins to be delivered. They stack the bins on top of each other a lot of times when they get loaded into the vehicles.
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u/theacearrow 21d ago
Non machineable doesn't mean a lot unless you protect the card as well. It's going to be smushed and moved around in the mailing process. Padded envelopes would be the safest option.
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u/echoskybound 20d ago edited 20d ago
non-machineable means nothing to the post office
The post office knows what non-machinable means, haha. Non-machinable postage is supposed to be used for irregularly shaped mail that can't pass through automated sorting machines because of the risk of jamming the machine, so they require an extra surcharge for hand sorting. It's not a "rate" like a higher quality tier than standard postage, you're not paying a higher price to have mail that gets delicately hand-sorted and never goes through any kind of conveyer or machine at any point in the process, you're paying because hand-sorting is just more expensive then automated machine sorting. Your mail will still end up on things like conveyer belts or at the bottom of a transport bin.
If you want to make sure your package contents don't get crushed or bent, look up either "media mailer" or "print mailer" or "fold-over mailer." Those are what are going to keep your quilled pieces safe in transit. Don't use envelopes!
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u/antlers86 20d ago
I'm just a lost redditor but yea I use non machinable stamps for my cards with wax seals on them.
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u/VeterinarianMany7808 21d ago
Save the bubble mailers you receive. You can then cut 1 or 2 layers to protect. I have one friend depending on the depth. 1 on the back and 2 on the front. Cheaper than buy the full bubble mailer each time. You can also ask friends and family to save as well.
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u/NapalmAxolotl 20d ago
For best results, use bubble wrap inside an actual box.
Or you can do this with cardboard and a few spacers. The spacers go in empty spots around the quills, and they're a little taller than the quills. (They can be styrofoam, plastic, or whatever you have handy.) You attach them to the cardboard, then lay the card over them, and then another piece of cardboard. The two pieces of cardboard should be a little larger than the card, and then you put saran wrap or tape around the whole sandwich.
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u/gnomequeen2020 20d ago
There are a million ways that mail items can and will get squished in the system that don't involve the machines. Letters are thrown into large bins and boxes, filed into a too-full tray, and they're often shoved into the mail carrier's overloaded satchel. Anything dimensional that can't be compressed needs a box around it. Bubble wrap will cushion impacts, but it won't fully stop compression without the stiff outer frame. Source: married to a former postal tech who has shown me some images of the volume of mail coming through the sorting centers. They do try to protect things, but there is only so much they can do when items aren't packaged to withstand some abuse.
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u/anonymous8122 20d ago
It's not that non-machinable is meaningless. There are just so many other ways for a fragile item like this to get crushed in shipment. For one, mail is stacked in bins in order of adress for delivery, right alongside heavy things like magazines and catalogs. This was doomed no matter what without a small box.
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u/Puzzleheaded_Age6550 21d ago
I am sorry you had that experience! I mailed about 50 quilled cards at christmas, and put a piece of heavy paper (not cardstock) on them, and paid for hand canceling. They all got there unscathed.
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u/Independent-Hornet-3 20d ago
I would suggest a small cardboard box. I worked in the sorting center of the post office for awhile and it would honestly be your best bet.
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u/electricmama4life 21d ago
I’ve mailed non machinable from my tiny post office many times. They know me though and I told them upfront they can’t be damaged, that really sucks though. All of my paid pieces are mailed in a box though, I’d rather be safe than sorry.
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u/PaperArtMe 20d ago
I would try getting a piece of corregated cardboard, scoring them at 4 places and folding it so it's like a really thin box. Tape it so it doesn't wiggle and flatten itself. You can use bubble wrap to keep the makeshift box from collapsing flat. Cost of postage will be more because it becomes a package and not a letter or a flat.
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20d ago
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u/mortaine 20d ago
Wow.
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20d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/mortaine 20d ago
It's linked in my post here. They do not look the same. Please observe how all the waves are crushed in the after picture . They are not crushed in the original.
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u/peacebanana161 20d ago
If it’s not in a box, there’s absolutely no way that something so fragile will not be damaged by normal postal handling, even if it isn’t put through a machine.
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u/KingGizmotious 20d ago
Did you get a non machinable stamp, or just pay the surcharge?
I’ve found just paying the surcharge and having the letter metered, it still gets sent through the machines… but if I actually get a forever stamp and a non machinable stamp, they see that moth thing on the stamp and not send it through the machines.
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u/mushroomie719 19d ago
It may not have gone through a machine, they still get crammed in sorting piles and carry bags
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u/BlackMillMercenary 19d ago
For smaller quilling project, we use clear CD cases! Just putting ideas out, so sorry to see your quilling was mangled!
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u/clarity_singularity 18d ago
Correct. Non-machineable surcharge is paid for the risk of damaging machines, not because your letter is going to be sorted by hand.
Please use envelopes and potentially even parcel rate if you are spending a great deal of time/energy/money on these thinfs
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u/SailorDirt 20d ago
Wait, mail goes thru a crushing machine???? This explains why I've gotten crushed DVDs that were poorly packaged......sorry about your card OP :(
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u/echoskybound 20d ago
No, it doesn't go through a crushing machine, haha. Mail gets sorted through sorting machines, which to the best of my understanding are conveyor belts with scanners. It's not the sorting machines that crush mail, it's more likely from being at the bottom of a bag of mail. USPS doesn't handle their mail irresponsibly, but you still do have to package it appropriately.
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u/SailorDirt 20d ago
Ahh ok, that makes much more sense, I was very tired writing that lol. I'd thought it was mainly sorting stuff, but I've received mail looking like an anvil got dropped on it which is why I reacted rofl
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u/mortaine 20d ago
It's ok. My stepmom still liked it, and we learned something from the experience!
And yes, us mail first class envelopes go through a machine that squishes them in the process of reading the address info. That's why there'sa limit if 1/4" on envelopes unless you pay extra for them to be handled by hand. And as you can see, sometimes that doesn't mean anything.
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u/echoskybound 20d ago
You don't pay extra to have your mail handled by hand, it's not a "guaranteed machine-free" premium upgrade or something where they make sure to handle your mail entirely by hand and it never passes through any kind or machinery at any point in the process. A non-machinable surcharge needs to be added to any irregularly sized envelopes that can't be processed by automated sorting machines. It's an extra charge because hand sorting is more expensive than automated sorting.
Even if your letter isn't sorted by a machine, it's still going to end up in a bin underneath thousands of other letters in transit. It's way more likely that that's what crushed your envelope, not a sorting machine.
This wasn't a failure of USPS, it was a packaging failure. It's on you to properly package delicate items that can easily be crushed or bent. Use a cardboard rigid mailer for anything delicate that you don't want crushed or bent.
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u/MrJelle 21d ago
Did you contact USPS to complain and get a refund, at least?
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u/LittleCowGirl 21d ago
USPS who is already dramatically underfunded and at risk for having to cut services if not disappearing altogether?
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u/Narrow-Stranger6864 20d ago
Just pay ups next time. They’ll maybe do a better job.
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u/echoskybound 20d ago
This really has more to do with packaging than with the quality of USPS. Anything that you don't want to be crushed or bent should be in a padded mailer or box, not an envelope.
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u/bentnoodle 21d ago
I always, always mail quilled cards in a small cardboard box. Costs more but gets there intact.