ZINESWAP IS BACK! In case you hadn’t heard of it in its previous iteration, here’s the idea: You send three to 10 of your zines to Zineswap and, in return, you receive a whole assortment of zines from other creators! All it takes is your original zines, some prepaid postage stamps, and a self-addressed envelope.
Founders and friends Gordo and Rob started Zineswap in a bedroom in the U.K. back in 2008. In fact, the organization still operates out of a bedroom and, 10 years later, the passion project continues and is thriving. Gordon says that through Zineswap, both he and Rob “keep our love for zines alive, and pass the love, with this non-profit labour of love free to all.” They’ve even made it into the Tate Britain museum, where they’ve hosted workshops on the medium and the project. There are tons of reasons why Zineswap is awesome, but it’s an especially great alternative for those who live in remote places, or who can’t make it to zine fairs or meetups with local zine communities.
Gordon is hopeful for spreading zine love globally. Currently, there’s no similar project in North America, but perhaps it’s about time for a cross-Canada zine swap, right? We’ll be keeping our eyes on the mail. In the meantime, you can read more on Zineswap at Zineswap.com