Last winter the children and I started a postage stamp collection. Over the summer we let ourselves slide on it so that we could enjoy other activities. Now that the winter blahs are settling in and the weather is not so nice, it’s time we get back into it. One of the first things you need to do is to soak your stamps.
Why do you need to soak your stamps? Well, really what you’re doing is steaming them off of the envelopes that had previously been on. Then you will be able to arrange them nicely in your collection.
Soaking stamps really is quite easy. We had loads to soak, but once we set up a system, it didn’t take toooo long. Of course, if you keep up with it on a regular basis it wouldn’t take any time at all.
Please note that you’ll be using boiling water so the children need to be supervised at all times.
Boil the kettle. And put a teabag or coffee into a mug.
Make yourself a hot drink and relax.
Now pour the hot water into a bowl.
Tear or cut the corner of the envelope off, being careful not to rip your stamps, but try to get as close as you can to the stamp.
Take your prepared corner envelope pieces and place them on the hot water, stamp side up.
Set a timer for five minutes and watch what happens to the postage stamps.
You may notice that some stamps will completely lift right off of the envelope within a minute or two. Others will need a little coaxing from you. You can use some tweezers to gently submerge the stamp into the water. And then later you can try to gently lift the stamp off of the envelope with the tweezers. Be careful, the water will still be hot, and you also want to take care not to tear the postage stamps.
I find if I stay nearby with my requisite cup of hot tea, and lift the stamps out of the water as soon as they’re ready, and then place another one onto the water right away, I can get a good system going and have a nice little pile done before I need to change the cooling water for fresh hot water again.
After you take your stamp out of the water, place it picture side up on a tray that has a layer of grease-proof/wax paper on it. Don’t press your stamps down as they can still stick to the paper, but not so badly as if you don’t use the paper . (Should a stamp stick, then pour a teaspoon of hot water over it to release it).
I find if I put the stamps picture side up they don’t curl nearly as much.
Leave the stamps there until they are completely dry. When we work in large batches I try to have 2 or 3 trays ready to go.
If your stamps curl up a little, place them in a heavy book (using grease-proof/wax paper to keep them sticking to the pages of the book.
Now you’re ready to start sorting (if you haven’t already done so) and placing your stamps into albums.
Have fun!
Ask your children what they think will happen to the stamps in the water? How long will it take? What would happen if cold water was used? Try it out. Compare times for different kinds of stamps (gummed vs. stickers) and from different countries.
This will work for both the old-style gummed stamps, as well as the newer sticker-style stamps, although the gummed-stamps work much better.
Andrea says
This looks fun! I inherited a stamp collection from my grandmother, and have been wanting to add to it. I am going to try stamp soaking with my daughter to add more to the collection!
Crystal McClean says
How lovely that would be to pass on a hobby through the generations! It would be special indeed. Have fun collecting 🙂
L. E. Mastilock says
Never thought of doing this. Is this how people who collect stamps have always done it? I thought the just cut it off the envelope. Love to learn new things
Crystal McClean says
Funnily enough, I used to just cut the corner of the envelope off. Then when the kids started collecting, they received information about soaking and displaying them. So that’s what we did, but then I found out some serious collectors do only cut the envelopes and don’t steam the stamps off. So now I’m not sure which way we’ll continue with in the future…
Anne Campbell says
Stamp collecting is a wonderful hobby for kids. My great uncle was a post master, and we are fortunate to have some stamps he collected many years ago. I’ve been saving stamps for my son–thanks for the tips on how to get them off the paper without damaging them. We are going to dive into this project soon!
Crystal McClean says
My next door neighbour growing up had worked in a post office and she helped me with a Girl Guide badge to learn about the postal system, postmarks, etc.
The stamps that your uncle has saved would be wonderful for your children to see!
Our local office doesn’t carry any ‘interesting’ stamps, so we’ll have to take walks to the next village again this year to see what they have in stock.
Sharisse says
This brought back sweet childhood memories for me! Before he passed away, my grandpa was an avid stamp collector—he even had an entire room in my grandparents’ house dedicated to it. He would show me his rarest and most valuable stamps when I visited as a little girl. He gave me my own collection of Disney stamps and stamps from around the world that I still treasure.
Crystal McClean says
Wow, that sounds like some collection! How fascinating! I’m sure you’ll have some wonderful stories to share with your children about their great-grandfather.
Seeing my own granddad work on a scrapbook of news articles and things that amused him when I was young later saw me doing the same thing when I was in Japan, and for my first couple of years over here. Passing on a little bit of history is a lovely thing.
Scarlet says
How cool! I used to do this with my grandmother. I found stamps fascinating! It is fun to collect together.
Crystal McClean says
What a great memory! I’m pleased that the children and I will be making memories together.