I know a lot of people recycle bubble mailers. I do myself when I can. That's the key phrase...when I can. As I've noticed, a lot of people don't treat the bubble mailers as if they will be recycled.

There are certain things that will make a bubble mailer less easily reused. Here are a few things that can really mess it up:

~Using thick black magic markers to address the label.

~Writing in large letters (making it difficult to cover with a label) The post office people aren't blind. They are used to reading addresses in printed type, so why make the letters so large they can read it from across the room?

~Excessive tape. Really all we need to do it make sure the thing doesn't open up. We don't need to make it waterproof.

~Writing large in the return address area. I always use the little return address labels. They easy to remove and I don't have to write.

~ Excessive staples. You'd be surprised how many times I get a package that it stapled all over the place...then taped over it. I would think all these staples would add to the weight!

If people keep in mind that bubble mailers will very likely be reused, they may just make it easier for the next person. I think this is especially important when using a new mailer. What a wait to just use it once.