How to Collect Stamps

Collecting stamps is a hobby that interests kids and adults alike all over the world. You can begin a stamp collection easily enough; just start collecting interesting and unusual stamps that you find. When you start out, you may want to begin by spending as little money as possible, just enough to get your feet wet and begin to build a collection.

When you first decide to start collecting stamps you may find that you have nothing to start with. If this is the case you can buy a pack of stamps from a hobby shop or a stamp collector to get you started. For a small price, usually around $6.00, you'll get an assortment of stamps from different countries. This is a great way to determine what types of stamps appeal to you and what area you might like to focus on.

Another good source of stamps is on the Internet using eBay. You'll often be able to purchase large amounts of stamps for a very low price. You'll want to have as wide a variety of stamps as possible so that you can see a good selection of stamps from various countries. Once you've purchased a large batch of stamps you'll need to have a way to organize them so you can determine what direction you want to go with your stamp collection.

When you buy or get stamps from an original source most of the stamps will still be on the paper on which they were mailed. Once the paper backing is removed, the stamp becomes fragile and can easily be damaged. Hence it is important to be careful in the way that you move around the stamps. Therefore it is important to sort out your stamps that you purchased according to country before taking off the paper backing.

Taking the paper off stamps can be tedious so make sure that you take your time and don't do any damage to the stamps. Don't just attempt to pull the stamp off the paper since this can result in the ripping of the stamp. Use a pair of small scissors to trim the paper as close to the stamp as you possibly can.

To take off the paper backing from the nicely trimmed stamp take clean water in a bowl. Place the stamp with the paper backing into the water and let it soak for some time. Take care that the stamp side is facing up. You can now try to carefully remove the paper backing from the stamp.

Once you've removed the stamps from the paper you need to allow them to dry out. You want to take care when drying the stamps so that they dry slowly and gently - this reduces the folds and wrinkles that may occur on the stamp. Lay the stamps of a layer of paper toweling, making sure that none of the stamps touch or overlap. Gently lay a paper towel on top of the stamps and lightly press (be very gentle) to remove the excess water from the stamps.

Once the stamps are dry you can flatten them by laying them in between the pages of a large book, or you can buy a special drying book that is available at most hobby stores or stamp collecting stores. Once the stamps have been dried and flattened, you'll be ready to sort them into categories within your stamp collecting books.

Article Source: http://publisherscloninghouse.com

Fiona Whealer is the webmaster for FW Stamps, the #1 source on the internet for information about stamps. For questions or comments about this article visit: www.fwstamps.com/articles
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