What you need.
To start, all you need is any coloured pencils, a white pencil, a sharpener and a fine black pen. If you are printing the download rather than colouring a card we send you, smooth white card of 160 to 200 gsm gives the best result, and a stamp gets it into the post once it is done.
New Zealand first, then a handful of other countries.
Tell us where you are and we will guide you where to see these creatures and where to find supplies.
We are asking each place before we name it here. Email [email protected] with your area and we will point you to the nearest.
In New Zealand
Stamps
Your post office sells stamps, and if you are on a rural delivery route the driver will sell you stamps at the gate. A postcard inside New Zealand goes for one stamp at the postcard rate. Sending one overseas, it goes as a medium letter, so ask at the counter.
Pencils to begin
Any stationer or art supply shop nearby will have a starter set of coloured pencils, a white pencil and a sharpener.
Pencils to grow into
An art supply shop will carry artist grade coloured pencils and watercolour pencils, along with fine black pens, white pencils and sharpeners. Several New Zealand art shops sell online and post nationwide if there is none near you.
Card for home printing
Smooth white card of 160 to 200 gsm suits most home inkjet printers. Go heavier only if your printer is rated for it.
No printer at home
A copy shop or print centre will print black line art on 200 gsm card for well under a dollar a sheet.
Textured paper that fits a home printer
Look for a textured 200 gsm A4 pad made for printing, sold by most stationers and art shops. Test one sheet before you commit a whole pad to it.
Where to see them
Use the picker near the top of this page to find where to see these birds near you.
Elsewhere
United States
A card this size goes at the postcard rate if it is thin enough, otherwise the ordinary letter rate applies. Buy stamps at your post office, its official website, or at most grocery stores and pharmacies. The post boxes are blue. An art supply shop nearby will carry pencils. For printing, 65 lb cover or 110 lb index cardstock both work well.
United Kingdom
Postcards go at the letter rate, first or second class. Buy stamps at the post office, its official website, or at supermarkets and newsagents. The post boxes are red. An art shop nearby will carry pencils, and printer card of 160 to 200 gsm is easy to find.
Australia
A postcard counts as a small letter. Buy stamps from a post office or its official website. Buying stamps elsewhere risks counterfeits. The post boxes are red. An art supply shop will carry pencils, and 200 gsm board suits printing.
Canada
Sending it as a postcard or a standard letter both work, from a post office or its online store. The post boxes are red. An art supply shop will carry pencils, and 65 lb cover or 110 lb index card both work for printing.
Ireland
The national letter or postcard rate applies. Buy stamps at a post office, at its official website, or as a digital stamp in its app. The post boxes are green.
Germany
The Postkarte rate applies. Buy stamps at a post office, at its official website, or as a mobile stamp in its app. The post boxes are yellow. An art supply shop will carry pencils, and A4 card of 160 to 200 g/m² suits home printing.
We are asking each place before we name it here. None of these arrangements earn us anything, we just want the introduction to be right.
Last checked September 2026.