Bob S
European
Rainbow Bear
Posts: 2,052
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Post by Bob S on Nov 29, 2005 13:57:10 GMT -7
Stamp Collecting may be one of the long term hobbies: you start collecting stamps and it may never end. You start a collection and it grows and grows with the addition of new albums, tools, stamps, knowledge and side collections. I received my first collecting kit as a Christmas gift from my parents in the early 1950's and have been at it ever since. My parents were practical when it came to a Christmas gift. They would buy me one present but it was always something that would last and last almost forever. Since I started collecting Worlwide stamps I also began to split my hobby into collecting two specific countries, specific issues, topicals and back-of-the-book types.. A basic collecting kit can be bought at almost any hobby shop, stamp and coin dealer or as a last resort, on E-Bay. A stamp album by itself may have pictoral images of stamps or they may be blank pages. The one thing all albums have in common is that they are made for keeping your stamps safe (acid free pages). Albums can be very inexpensive or they can be costly. I have a Light House album from Germany for CEPT stamps and additional pages are very costly. The album, if purchased in America, would cost over $200. I purchased the album in Europe for about $1.98 at a store clearence sale (hindsight is always 20/20 or I would have bought 5 of them). Some album makers also offer blank covers and pages so that you can add your own Title and Page names. Stamps are mounted in the album by use of stamp hinges or specialised holders, both have their advantages. If you receive mail from overseas or run across envelopes from other parts of the world NEVER SEPERATE THE STAMPS FROM THEIR ENVELOPES. The envelopes are the "cover" for the stamps and if you seperate a stamp from it's cover you may reduce the value of a stamp considerably. Some people say that they only collect "mint" stamps because these always have a higher value than cancelled stamps. I can assure you that this is not always the case. Some stamps increase in value because they are cancelled. Many people like to specialise in different types of philately and even include those who collect counterfeits, bogus, propaganda and topical stamps. Stamp collecting can involve many different paths and it is only up to the collector to determine what they want. If anyone has a question Ill try to answer it, or someone else in the folder or frum may have an answer too. ;D
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nancy
European
Posts: 2,144
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Post by nancy on Nov 29, 2005 19:37:01 GMT -7
I received my first collecting kit as a Christmas gift from my parents in the early 1950's and have been at it ever since. Way back then (well, LATE 50s ;D) I also got interested in stamps, and sent away for a collection (back of the comic book ad). The stamps were wonderful - big triangles, colorful pictures, etc. Then my father said "These countries are not real!" Actually, I did not care, Ijust liked the graphics. But because they were not "real" I was forced to part with them ... Some of the envelopes are big mailers for oversized items ---does this rule still apply?
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Bob S
European
Rainbow Bear
Posts: 2,052
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Post by Bob S on Nov 29, 2005 22:02:26 GMT -7
Too bad you got rid of those stamps from the comic book order Nancy, today they might have been quite an item. Countries come and go, old countries die and are reborn under a different name; I.E. the former colonies of Great Britain, France Germany, Belgium etc. The rule of thumb on your question! You have three choices: Keep the stamps as they are, on the mailer. Trim the mailer so that Sender, Receiver, Cancelation and stamps remain intact. Soak the stamps off the mailer and mount them. Comic Book and Newspaper collectors use very large holders to preserve their collections and in this case they are also be used by the stamp collector. The rule still applies because those covers present a partial history of that stamp.
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nancy
European
Posts: 2,144
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Post by nancy on Nov 30, 2005 8:50:14 GMT -7
Too bad you got rid of those stamps from the comic book order Nancy, today they might have been quite an item. It wasn't me that got rid of them. When I left for grad school, and my parents moved out of the house I had grown up in, they threw everything away. oh, unhappy day! Out went my girl scout badges, stamp collection, greeting card album (and I KNOW those are worth something today), etc. Wish I had done it this way all along , but I will start now! Thanks for the good advice.
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Post by jimpres on Nov 30, 2005 9:27:26 GMT -7
Nancy,
How true. When I went into the military my parents threw out everything. Including some 1938 Disney cartoons on film. Plus an HO gauge train I had built.
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Bob S
European
Rainbow Bear
Posts: 2,052
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Post by Bob S on Nov 30, 2005 19:44:35 GMT -7
Jim and Nancy, I know what you mean. The same thing happened to me when I joined the Navy. I came home on my 1st leave and my stamp colection was gone along with several 33 RPM albums I had. I couldn't place the blame anywhere but I vowed to keep all those "silly" things that my children collected so that they would not suffer the same disappointment I did. I now have an attic stuffed with big plastic containers that has all the things they wanted to hang on to.
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Post by gardenmoma on Dec 29, 2005 8:58:00 GMT -7
Like those of you already posting in this topic, I received a stamp collecting kit in the 50's. I also started a post card collection. Fortunately, these never did get thrown away...although lots of other stuff did And...my husband also collected stamps in his salad days ;D so when our son decided to collect stamps we allowed him to add to our collective collections. I now have all of these stamps in various conditions including paper bags of those not processed My middle daughter started collecting post cards and added to my collection...so now I have twice as many on the top shelf of a closet ;D Interestingly enough, she dated a boy who brought her vintage postcards instead of flowers or candy...so these are part of the collection. I still collect, but only stamps having to do with plants or other of my side interests eg the British Royal Family (in a very small way) or the (US) Oregon Trail. Some first day covers and some commemoratives are framed and on the wall of one bedroom.
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nancy
European
Posts: 2,144
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Post by nancy on Dec 29, 2005 14:53:12 GMT -7
Both my husband and I collect stamps. For the past 10-15 years, all acquisitions have gone into a drawer called the "stamp accumulation" ... (it's not a "collection" until it's organized ..)
I also collect postcards, at least those are all in one place but I would like to get them into binders so they would be easier to look at.
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Post by gardenmoma on Jan 2, 2006 8:28:29 GMT -7
As far as I know the stamps I ordered from ads in the back of comic books are still with the accumulated collection...I need to take time and see what else is in that collection.
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Bob S
European
Rainbow Bear
Posts: 2,052
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Post by Bob S on Jan 30, 2006 22:08:00 GMT -7
;D gardenmoma, I finally have a chance to reply. It sounds as if you have nice Topical Collections going; (Plants) and (Royal Family). You can make up your own album and place the stamps in any order you want; I.E. Flowers, plants, shrubs, trees, ferns etc etc. I use Showgard stamp mounts when I place a stamp in an album. The Showgards protect not only the stamp but also the album pages. The stamps of Czechoslovakia are notrious for using a large amount of gum that can be activitaded by air humidity alone.
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Post by kaima on Jan 30, 2006 23:27:54 GMT -7
Ah, the horror of going in the military and coming home to find all your worldly posessions in 3 cardboard boxes! I was another one who was cleaned out when I was overseas. I still have some of the stamps but was never serious about them - I like them for the beauty and variety. I do have a few colonies and other "mythical" countries, but my heart is int eh beauty of the coins.
Kai
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Post by gardenmoma on Jan 31, 2006 10:29:09 GMT -7
Bob, Really nice to see you back What are Showgard stamp mounts? Where can they be found? Thanks!
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Bob S
European
Rainbow Bear
Posts: 2,052
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Post by Bob S on Jan 31, 2006 22:45:13 GMT -7
Bob, Really nice to see you back What are Showgard stamp mounts? Where can they be found? Thanks! Showgards are one type of mounting for stamps. They are strips of plasticine (?spelling?) type of mounting for a stamp. They resemble the plastic strips that are used on folders in a file except the Showgards are flat with one side being flat-black. Showgards are made in a variety of heights to accomodate the different sizes of stamps. These mounts come in strips and have to be cut to fit the different widths that occur with stamps. The one place to buy Showgards are in a stamp dealers shop and they are an expensive mount for stamps. Showgard is a brand name and there are other products that are available. I started with Showgards and stuck with this brand for a while now; habits are hard to break. Many of the albums that are sold in Europe already have the mounts in them and this may explain their high cost over there. I think that some of the high-end Scott albums sold here in America may have these mounts in their albums also. One thing about the Scott albums is that a stamp catalog number for each stamp is printed with their illustrated albums. If you plan on making a topical collection then go for the White Ace Albums. These have a nice hard cover and blank pages so that you can arrange the stamps the way you want them. If there is a Coin and Stamp dealer with a shop near where you live than you can get a lot of help and advice there. Many of the tools I use in stamp collecting are made in Germany and the quality of the tool is reflected in craftsmanship as well as price. I think Showgards are also made in Germany and they have their own catalog. Just be aware that this type of mount is expensive and waste is not an option. P.S. Thanks for the welcome back
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