Santa Claus, Indiana, has been offering a picture postmark every year since 1983. Each year’s unique postmark is designed by a local high school art student as part of an annual contest.

“The holiday postmark has become one of the most popular in the nation over the past two decades,” said Santa Claus Postmaster Marian Balbach in a 2008 USPS press release. “Postal patrons world-wide request the picture postmark. Also, many customers traditionally drive hundreds of miles to personally obtain the cancellation on their holiday mail.”

In 2008, the Santa Claus post office expected half a million pieces of mail to come through the office between November 15 and December 20. During the rest of the year, the post office processes only about 13,000 pieces of mail per month.

To get a North Pole or Santa postmark on your envelope(s), simply address and stamp your envelope(s) as you normally would. Then put them all in a bigger envelope and send them to one of the following addresses:

North Pole Christmas Cancellation
Postmaster
5400 Mail Trail
Fairbanks, AK 99709-9999

Santa Postmark
Postmaster
Santa Claus Station
Santa Claus, IN 47579-9998

Make sure you send your envelopes early. The post office should receive them no later than December 15 to ensure delivery to your recipients by Christmas.

To find more pictorial postmarks during Christmas and throughout the year, and to get instructions for obtaining them, see the the “Philately” section of the Postal Bulletin.

(Sources: How to Get a Santa Postmark and North Pole and Other Postmarks.)

First, check out the unusual Christmas cards at Christmas Letter Tips.com. They’ve got some examples of photo cards that can actually double as Christmas letters, so you don’t even need to create a separate insert. (And you won’t need this site anymore!) You simply add your photos and text online, preview your design, place your order and wait for your cards to arrive. no more stuffing your Christmas letters inside!

At Hubpages, you can see a quick slideshow featuring eight “cool Christmas cards,” including round cards, trifold designs, and gatefold holiday cards. You’ll also get a quick description highlighting the features that makes these cards different from your everyday boxed card.

Squidoo offers more examples of unusual Christmas cards. Check out images of calendar cards, pop-up holiday cards, cards that can be used as tree ornaments, and other unusual designs you probably won’t find in your local office supply store. Another Squidoo page shows cool Christmas cards with personalized cartoon characters and holiday designs with multiple photos. You’ll also find information on creating your own personalized electronic card.

Happy holidays!