Postcrossing Blog

Today is the day the new Postcrossing-themed stamps from Poland make their debut! Here they are, looking lovely in the hands of Monika (aka MonikMary), who woke bright and early to send us these pictures:

Don’t they look brilliant? 😍 This morning, postcrossers from Poland, Italy, Iran, France, Germany, Lithuania, Russia, Belarus and Ukraine met at the main post office in Warsaw today to celebrate this happy occasion and send postcards with the new stamps.

Soon they should be making their way to many mailboxes around the world, and I confess we’re very impatient to see them!

While we wait for them to appear in our mailbox though, we got in touch with stamp designer Agata Tobolczyk to learn more about her inspiration and creative process.

This is not the first stamp (or the first Postcrossing stamp, even!) that you’ve designed. How did you get into the work of designing stamps?

My journey into stamp design started in 2009, and ever since, I’ve been fascinated by this small graphic form. What’s interesting is that, outside of stamps, I usually work with much larger formats — for instance, when I paint, the canvases are often over 200×200 cm! So there’s a real difference in working on something as small as a stamp, and I really enjoy that contrast. I’ve also had the chance to design stamps for Luxembourg and Slovenia, and in all of them, what really fascinates me is creating a whole visual world beyond just the individual stamp. I’m passionate about how stamps interact within a sheet or block, making the entire composition more than just a collection of separate elements – it becomes a piece of art in itself.

What inspired you to create this new design for the Postcrossing stamp?

The Postcrossing theme has a special place in my heart. For this year’s stamps, I wanted to emphasize the joy and energy that come from sending and receiving postcards. There’s something really magical about how these little cards can bring so much happiness and connect people across great distances. My goal was to capture that movement and excitement — almost like the postcards are jumping from one place to another with enthusiasm! I focused on playful imagery and vibrant colors to reflect that positive energy.

What steps were involved in your creative process?

In recent years, I don’t sketch much anymore — most of my creative process happens in my head. I’ve worked with the Postcrossing theme before, and while I may have some old sketches from years ago, I haven’t been able to locate them! The idea of a running postcard actually came up during my work on the 2016 Postcrossing stamp (the one with the suitcase/mailbox). When I receive a new project, a few ideas always come to mind, and the running postcard was an idea that I’d set aside back then. Since I had two stamps to design this time, I approached it differently — I wanted them to work as a pair. Naturally, the idea of a joyful mailbox, specifically a red Polish mailbox, came to mind for the second design. One stamp is for international postage, where the postcard is flying across the world, and the other, with a lower value, shows a happy Polish mailbox. Together, they tell a story of connection — both locally and globally.

Are you perhaps a letter/postcard writer yourself?

Unfortunately, I must disappoint some postcrossers here — I don’t write postcards or letters as often as I’d like these days. The fast-paced world and the ease of modern digital communication have taken over. But I absolutely love the concept of Postcrossing and think it’s a wonderful way for people to connect. There’s something so special about this slower, more thoughtful way of communicating, and I admire how it brings people together across the globe.

Thank you, Agata!

We hope one of these little pieces of art will soon make its way to every postcrosser’s mailbox out there, spreading smiles and brightening the day of those who receive them. Keep an eye out for postcards from Poland in the coming months!