Stamp collecting, or philately as it is also known, is a very popular hobby. Stamp collectors take their stamps from letters, or they buy them in specialized shops. Another solution is to do stamp exchange with other collectors. They are usually very fond of very old stamps, which most of the times have a good value in money as well. But their beauty exceeds the financial perks.

What Do You Need To Start Stamp Collecting

Starting a stamp collection is easy. All you need is a stamp album and special mounting tapes, which are named hinges. You’ll also need a pair of tweezers to grab the stamps, because you don’t want to leave your fingerprints all over them. You can start your stamp collection with stamps from your daily mail. You can easily remove the stamps from the letters if you soak them in warm water and pull them off gently. After that, use some absorbent paper to dry the stamps and place them inside a big, heavy book, so they flatten. Beware, if the stamp is not completely dry, it may adhere to the book pages, so you’d better put it between some non adherent foils.

Commemoratives are very nice to be added to a stamp collection. These are stamps issued on various commemorative occasions, such as 100 years from celebrating the independence, and they are to be found on the market for a very limited time. Take advantage and buy them, as you may sell them at higher price later on.

Besides, they have very interesting artwork, and are really nice to watch.

A good hint to get some really cool stamps for your collection is to find a few penpals from other countries. The more letters you receive, the more stamps you’ll have the chance to collect.

Stamp collecting is really fun and educational. However, if you don’t see it as a suitable hobby, you can always find ideas elsewhere, for example in books and movies: just buy Legend of Zelda and you’ll see what I mean.