How to : Boxswap

Hi everyone! And my goodness what a horribly cold November we're having, I'm pretty sure my nipples could carve diamonds at this point, its THAT cold!

Now, if you're looking to do a boxswap with someone and you don't entirely know where to start, then you've come to the right place! I'm going to give you a very quick run down of the do's and don'ts of box swapping. 

I recently completed a box swap with an amazing (now) friend of mine, Lynell. We met each other on Twitter and we hit it off right away. I made a tweet asking if anyone out there would be interested in doing a boxswap, and Lynell answered my prayers!She's also an amazing beauty,fashion and lifestyle blogger,and you can find her blog  here!   With me living in Irealnd I was dying to find out where she lived, ' I live in Florida' she proclaimed! How cool is that?! Florida is my most favourite place in the world! I jumped at the chance and we began chatting about everything from our mutual love of Monty Python to makeup to exchanging pictures of our everyday lives! But I'm saving all that stuff for my next post! ;) So here are the do's and dont's of box swapping 

DO!

• Make sure you create a friendship/connection with the person whom you're doing the boxswap with. It's very important to know what the other person is like.
• Ask questions! Don't be afraid to ask your new friend new and exciting questions! It's all about learning after all!
• Make sure you make a list of all the things they might like. Be thoughtful, take hints!
• Take note of their allergies and dislikes! Make sure you remember as these are very vital bits of information.
• Remember to go down to your local post office/postal service and take weight into consideration. Depending on where you are in the world, it could be more expensive than you think.
• Also make sure what you can and cannot send over. Most postal services will not allow liquids to be sent in the mail, but all postal services are different.
• Make a spending limit. You can both agree on a price limit (Excluding p&p) which tends to make things easier, although most people overpass their price limit and that's OK ( I know I did)
• Add each other on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat,the whole lot! Make that real connection!
• Send pictures f your everyday life, your family, your house, what you do everyday, food and products that they maybe do not get in their country. Share your life and experiences with them, it's more important than you think
• Make everything look so pretty you could die. Yes I'm being serious, go that extra mile, wrapping and bows can make all the difference
• Write a handwritten letter, it doesn't matter ''how bad'' you think your writing is, its all about showing that person you are making the effort, and it's that person touch that makes the bond closer. 

DON'T!

• Force a friendship in order to boxswap! If that connection just isn't there, then move on and search for someone who gets your weird fart jokes.
• Push a high price limit. Just because you may be well off where money is concerned doesn't mean everyone else is, please be considerate.
• Send sharp objects... self explanatory really 
• Never ever send your bank details.
• Dive straight into sending the box, as I said before, get to know each other first. And if you feel the other person is being far too pushy...you know what to do.
• Loose contact, keep talking, and keep that spark alive, make time for that other person.
• Put loose items into the box, make sure you bubble wrap everything to ensure no breakage.
• Send organic materials i.e.. limbs, severed heads, disturbing content i.e Nickleback albums
• Send a bomb, or any explosives in general, no weapons of mass destruction, or weapons in general .... lol

You can also make a video upon arrival of your box for each other to show each other your genuine reactions and also to help others who are looking to do boxswaps themselves. 

I really hope this has helped you in your decision in weather or not to do a boxswap, its a great experience! And I would recommend it to anyone! 

Happy box swapping!!

TheParmaViolet