Mail-in

A small shop, not a warehouse.

Mail prints, albums, 35mm slides, and negatives from anywhere in the lower 48. Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico are quoted one box at a time. International shipping is not offered. Your box is photographed and counted the day it arrives, and it is the only order on the bench while it is being worked.

Minimum

$75

Before shipping. Shoebox Starter at $95 qualifies. Per-item prices match local work.

Getting it here

Ship it yourself with tracking, or ask for a prepaid USPS label: $15 for a small box (about one shoebox, up to 5 lb) or $25 for a larger one.

Coming home

We pay to ship the originals back, with tracking. Optional return insurance is $5 up to $100 declared value, $10 up to $250, or $20 up to $500. Base return postage stays on us.

Ship to

216 N 4th St, La Cygne, KS 66040

After you pay, write your order number on the outside of the box and on the printed checklist. How long it takes. Care and shipping.

A sample shoebox by mail

Shoebox Starter ($95) + prepaid outbound label ($15) = $110. Return postage is on us. Insurance is extra if you want it.

You ship it to us (you pay outbound). We ship originals back (we pay return).

Ship to 216 N 4th St, La Cygne, KS 66040. When the box arrives, you get photos of the open box and an item count. If that count is higher than what you paid for, you approve the difference before more work. If you decline after the count, a $15 inventory fee covers the unpacking and repacking. We still pay to ship the originals back.

How to pack

1
Use a sturdy corrugated shipping box. A shoebox can ride inside it, not as the shipping box.
2
Put prints in zip-top bags, about 100 to 300 per bag. Rubber bands damage photos.
3
You bag the prints before mail-in or drop-off. Put each album’s prints in its own plastic zip bag, with a note inside: album name, a date if you want one, and any other notes. We leave those bags as you packed them and do not reorganize them. Digital file folders stay separate for free for up to 5 albums. Each album or folder after that is $2.
4
Keep slides in their boxes or carousel trays. Tape the lid or wrap the tray so nothing falls out. No loose slides.
5
Leave negatives in their sleeves. Do not cut them apart.
6
Wrap each album in bubble wrap or a towel and lay it flat.
7
Fill every gap so nothing shifts when you shake the box gently.
8
Inside: your name, phone, email, return address, and a rough count. Keep a photo of that note.
9
Outside: ship to 216 N 4th St, La Cygne, KS 66040. Write your order number on the outside of the box. Do not write “photos” or “valuable”.
10
Photograph what you packed before you seal it.
11
Ship Monday through Wednesday so the box is not sitting over a weekend.

Please leave these at home

If losing it would break your heart, do not mail it uninsured. Better yet, do not mail it at all — drop it off locally or ask a relative to carry it.

The only photo of someone, or a wedding album with no copies, unless it is insured — and even then, a handoff is kinder. Insurance pays money. It cannot replace a picture.
Framed photos and anything behind glass. Glass breaks. Frames are local only.
Tintypes, daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, glass plates, and anything else on glass.
Nitrate film, or film that smells like vinegar.
Moldy, wet, or bug-damaged items.
Movie reels, VHS, camcorder tapes, and audio cassettes. Those are not offered. Please do not send them.
Cash, documents, jewelry, or anything that was not on your note.

Pay, then mail Get a mail-in quote