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New Forever Stamps released
While people across the country celebrate the arrival of spring, the United States Postal Service appears to be doing the same. On March 20, the USPS released four brand-new Forever Stamps, and their subjects are the very essence of warm weather - flowers.
The new stamps feature close-up photographs of beautiful water lilies, and the USPS anticipates demand for these intriguing and special stamps will be high. While it usually prints 20-40 million stamps of a subject, the USPS chose to print half a billion of these unique pieces to accommodate consumer interest.
Forever stamps can be used to mail any envelope that weighs one ounce or less, even if the postal rate has increased since the stamps were initially purchased.
The story behind the stamps
​Water lilies are a famed flower with a long history, and they've been featured in art for hundreds of years. Some of the best-known images of these aquatic herbs are Claude Monet's impressionist paintings, which feature the lilies in a soft and realistic way. They thrive in both temperate and tropical environments, but only in fresh bodies of water.
The breathtaking photos were captured by Virginia-based photographer Cindy Dyer at Washington, D.C.'s Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens.
"It is truly a distinct honor to have an example of my passion appear on these Forever Stamps - a feeling I will savor forever," said Dyer in a USPS press release. "It was simply mind-boggling to learn the Postal Service printed 500 million of these stamps."
The four images that are featured on the stamps include pink, purple and white lilies. Dyer put a lot of though into capturing the perfect shots, utilizing all of the tools at her disposal to get some that showed off the natural beauty of the flowers.
"The USPS will print 500 million of these stamps, instead of the typical 20-40 million."
While the stamps include Dyer's photographs, they were designed by USPS Art Director Phil Jordan. The new Forever Stamps were dedicated at Cleveland's Garfield-Perry March Party Stamp Show and are now available for purchase on the USPS website or in Post Offices across the U.S. and can be purchased in a booklet format.
Businesses employing direct mail as a part of their marketing strategies don't just want eye-catching stamps and effective mailer designs. They also need to guarantee they're employing postal address verification tools to ensure their messages are getting to the right people.
