Last Updated on September 2, 2024
What Is an Open When Letter?
An ‘Open When’ letter, also known as ‘Open Me When’ letter, refers to a letter that you give or mail to someone, which comes with a date of when they should open and read the letter. The date is typically printed on the front of the letter.
However, many open when letters nowadays are more situation-specific than date-specific. In other words, the recipient is expected to open and read the letter when they’re undergoing a particular situation in their life.
For instance, you can address an open when letter to your sweetheart asking them to open the letter whenever they’re feeling sad, bored, or lonely. This ensures that the recipient opens the letter only when they need it the most.
If opened on the specified date or under the stated circumstances, an open when letter can go a long way in taking care of the recipient’s mental and emotional needs.
Open when letters can also make excellent gift ideas, especially if given in bulk. They’re also ideal for people in long-distance relationships or as going away presents.
In this post, we highlight some of the coolest and most creative open letter ideas to get you started, but first things first.
Tips for Writing an Open When Letter
1. Understand The Perfect Candidate For Open When Letters
Before writing an open when letter, it’s important to begin by establishing whether the intended recipient is a perfect candidate for these kinds of letters.
While you can send an open when letter to anyone, these letters are mostly suitable for recipients with whom you’re in a romantic relationship. It generally makes more sense to send an open when letter to your fiancé than your parents.
Other potential candidates for open when letters include people who are in long-distance relationships. These can range from military personal deployed overseas to college sweethearts learning in different universities and even pen pals.
Open when letters are also suitable for people who live, work, study, or travel off-grid. The letters can offer them the same emotional support or communicate a message you’d have otherwise relayed via telephone or email. These letters may also be suitable for children that study in boarding schools or abroad, as well as for people on missionary services.
Most importantly, an open when letter should be sent to someone who can actually be patient enough to open the letter only on the specified date or under the stated circumstances. That means you can’t possibly send an open when letter to a teenager as their curiosity could get the better of them and have them open the letter on receipt. You can also not send an open when letter to people that suffer from anxiety disorders. The mere thought of keeping the letter till a future date could aggravate their condition.
2. Lay Down Some Rules Before Writing Open When Letters
It’s natural to expect the recipient of your open when letter to follow the ‘open when’ note on the envelope. However, it’s still important to reiterate the importance of doing so.
You can do that by sending them a list of all the rules you intend them to follow throughout the duration you’ll be sending open when letters to them. Some of those rules include:
• Open only as stated
• Avoid peeking inside the envelope at all costs
• Always let me know whenever you open a letter
• Save every letter forever
Also, include a sentence asking them to acknowledge that they’ll abide by these rules. If all looks good, you can write and mail them the first batch of letters.
3. Put Pen To Paper
The format for writing an open when letter is nearly similar to that of writing a regular letter.
First, you’ll need to come up with a suitable topic. For instance, you could decide to write a letter to open when the recipient is sick, happy, bereaved, etc. We shall highlight these ideas later on.
Once you have the topic, proceed to the body of the letter. Common knowledge dictates that the content should be aligned with the topic. And don’t just be vague. Be sure to offer actionable tips that the recipient can actually implement to make them feel better. In the case of sickness, you could include a few tips on how to tolerate sickness and what they can do to facilitate their recovery.
After writing the letter, sign it off the same way you’d sign a regular mail. You can add your name, initials, or signature.
Next, enclose the letter in an envelope. Finally, seal the envelope and add brief instructions on the front regarding when the letter should be opened.
To spice things up, you can consider accompanying the letter with a gift. Examples of gifts include small souvenirs like a necklace, a photo, or even dollar bills. However, it would be best if you enclosed this gift inside the same envelop you’re mailing the letter in. Mailing the gift in a separate parcel might clue the recipient in on the content of the letter.
The following are other tips when writing open when letters:
i. Make it timeless
An open when letter may be opened years from the date you wrote it. Therefore, it’s important to avoid making reference to current events unless it’s an event that both of you can relate to.
You can also achieve timelessness in an open when letter by avoiding seasonal words and phrases. Examples include clichés and slang words.
ii. Handwrite it
It’s okay to type out an open when letter when you’re pressed for time. However, nothing compares to the magic of handwritten letters.
The recipient will appreciate the fact that you actually took some time out of your normal schedule to write the letters manually.
30 Open When Letter Ideas
1. Open when you receive this
2. Open on (specify date)
3. Open on your birthday
4. Open on your graduation
5. Open on the eve of your wedding
6. Open on Christmas
7. Open on New Year’s Eve
8. Open on our wedding anniversary
9. Open when you’re happy
10. Open when you’re sad
11. Open when you need a good laugh
12. Open when you need some pep talk
13. Open when you’ve had a bad day at work
14. Open when you need a confidence boost
15. Open when you miss me
16. Open when you’re sick
17. Open when you’re bereaved
18. Open when you need to know how much I love you
19. Open when you need to know that I’m thinking about you
20. Open when you’re traveling alone
21. Open when you want to reminisce about the good, old times
22. Open when you’re angry
23. Open when you’re lonely and bored
24. Open when you need some money
25. Open when you can’t fall asleep
26. Open when you’re homesick
27. Open when you’re feeling romantic
28. Open when you’ve accomplished something exciting
29. Open when we’ve had a fight
30. Open when we’ve said goodbye
Conclusion
There goes our list of the most unique ‘open when’ letter ideas. As a parting shot, always remember to express your feelings and intentions sincerely in any open when letter that you write to your partner. Avoid lying to make them feel better about themselves. And like any letter you’d dedicate to a treasured friend or partner, keep the tone polite, empathetic, and reassuring.
