I have found the best place to get large volumes of stamps to be online auctions for stamp/coin collectors and estate sales. Often right at the end of the listings are the random boxes of unsorted and not valuable stamps that collectors are less interested in. I got a very large haul for a lot less than ebay or FB marketplace this way and have had hours of fun sorting and bundling them. Your ideas for collage and art with stamps are amazing, I have always loved the postal influence in your work.
I had something similar happen to me. I went to my first stamp and coin show and was looking at the things at a stamp table. After telling me where this and that category could be found on his table, he finally showed me a big box full of miscellaneous "junk." It was exactly what I wanted. I got a lifetime's worth of stamps for about $30.
I love all things postal - personal snail mail has always been a highlight for me from when as a child I would receive letters from my grandmother. I originally got started with cancelled postage stamps when I found large ziplock bags of them several times at thrift/second hand stores for really cheap. I sort mine by country, and my US stamps I sort by theme, such as Animals, Music, Flowers, Parks/Nature, People (further subdivided), Patriotic, Architecture, etc. I have some generic looking ones (lots of the people stamps) sorted by color. I actually bought those ziplock bags of used stamps long before I got interested in making mail art postcards, but now I have a wonderful supply of them - probably enough to last a lifetime. LOL. This was a very useful and inspirational video, Margarete. Thank you!
Hi! I have seen bags of postage stamps, US and World, at Hobby Lobby (US) for a modest price. I haven't purchased any there , but it is another option for easy acquisition. I enjoyed your video very much! I too love to sort, categorize, and collage with stamps. :) I really liked the idea of collaging and then using a punch. Those hearts looked like they were jumping off the page.
I want to experiment with using a punch more with my stamps. I was thinking I could use a small round punch and collage with a bunch of circles. So many ideas! I hope you'll experiment, too 👍.
About a year ago, my sons bought an appartement block that belonged to a lady who died a while ago, and in the basement was a whole room FILLED with albums and boxes of stamps, from ceiling to floor, on tables, on shelves, everywhere! There were so much that I couldn't take it all but I kept the albums and several boxes of stamps, and they were all bundled the exact same way yours were, tied together with tiny paper straps. I will never be able to use them all, but I'm trying real hard :)
I got the bug for collecting stamps to use in papercrafting a few years ago. Like you, I love looking at them and sorting them, so much so that I have trouble using them in projects unless I have multiples. They are truly works of art. I have the same story for my button collection. I don't use them as often, but I can't get rid of them. I could look at them everyday and not get tired of their hypnotic beauty. I found the great majority of my stamps and buttons at garage sales, estate sales and thrift stores. With estate sales, look for postings online for sales near you. They usually list postage stamp and button collections and even show pictures.
Ha! I know what you mean by looking and sorting but not using. I have a box of buttons that belonged to my grandmother and I can't bring myself to use them. I do love estate sales. I don't find them that often, though.
Enjoyed this a lot. I collected stamps as a hobby when I was in my young teens. I still look at stamps differently than most people I find one on an envelope that catches my eye I take it off and keep it. I also still buy blocks of new ones that I find intriguing. I think once one has a love of stamps it never really leaves. I especially love ones that look like little pieces of art. Currently I tend to buy from the post office or Etsy sellers. I do love to put unique stamps on any mailings I do. Some of my “friends” think it’s “nerdy” but that’s ok by me 😂😂😂I look at them as art.
I buy lots of stamps from the post office, too, both for personal, but also for the art swaps I host. I love it!! I love shopping for stamps and thinking of creative ways to use them 😉
I really enjoyed this video. Those little bundles of stamps are just the best, what a treasure! All of the collages that you showed are so awesome, you are an amazing artist. I love stamps ... well, I love anything mail related!! 😀💌📮When my niece asked if I could make something for her kids "100 days of school Museum project," I put on my thinking cap. Something of 100 things and not too difficult to mail. Of course, a poster of 100 stamps!! 😀Thanks so much for sharing.
Thank you Margarete. Always love seeing your beautiful work. I, too, love to sort and look at these individual pieces of tiny art. I have bags and bags of old stamps and, like you, use them on ATCs. But I love your idea of a postage stamp dedicated book. My biggest quandary was how to store them. . . by color, by image, by country? Haven't landed on one particular way. I also have a book like your sister-in-law gave you and that's handy to see some of them. I have mini little zip locks also that store some by color. Thanks again!
I try all different things and still haven't discovered a method I like 100%. It also depends on how often you are using stamps in your work. If it's not that often, then just having them in a Ziploc is fine.
Thanks for sharing your ideas. I have my old childhood stamp collection as well as my son’s Rupert Bear stamp album. I love looking through them and it always brings back memories.
You are a person after my own stamp-loving heart!❤ I started collecting as a kid and I continue to do so - mostly for the beauty of the stamps. Each one is like a miniature painting or work of art in itself. I love to look at them and to sort them. I cut up stamp catalogs all the time for collage, and I also buy inexpensive used stamps from Mystic stamp company. I keep separate stamps for collecting and for artwork. Your box of bundles is beautiful! Thank you for sharing your stamp art as well. You have inspired me to get creating. (I also save stamps from letters & cards. Of course, today’s stamps are stickers, but still beautiful and I still save them them for use in my scrapbooks and journals. I love Christmas and holiday stamps from each year, and I have also collected the love stamps and stamps of literary figures! There is so much to learn through stamps!❤
I've heard of Mystic Stamps! I need to check out their website. Thanks for the idea! I like holiday stamps too, and have a little tin box just for those 😉
I recently became interested in using stamps in my junk journals as a result of finding your channel and binge watching your videos. I have recently completed several projects inspired by you. This video inspires me too!!! Thank you so much for sharing your love of paper with us!!
Back when I was in an art group we did swaps and some of them were from other countries. They would pick out the prettiest stamps to mail the swap item. I have gotten some really pretty ones. And I have collected quite a few from mail that was sent to me. Also I ordered a pack from Etsy. I’m afraid thought I have been hoarding them. I have to make myself use them!
Yes! You definitely need to use some of those!! 😉 Maybe start with the not-so-pretty ones at first, just to gain some confidence using them? If not, go for it and pick the coolest ones to collage with!
Cool beans! I've been gluing postage stamps down into my en-masse journal as well as having state postcards in another section. The stamp page is almost full. Do you like postage people atc's -- atc's created with the stamp busts over catalog bodies? I have a few pinned-on Pinterest. Artsy girlfriends and hobby stores are where I find most of my stamps, although once, when my sister-in-law worked in a sorority headquarter mailroom as a temp, she was able to obtain sacks of postage stamps for me. I had to soak them though in warm water to retrieve the stamps torn from the envelopes. Do you know about these websites - John Johnson Collection of Printed Ephemera or Philgen (Philatelic-Genealogy)? Both websites have cool postcards in their collections, and I've contributed a couple of postcard images to the later website. We have a postcard show coming to our area in June by a company called Courthouse Square. Their website has show times and dates. I'm currently looking for state postcards for my en masse gluebook. Enjoyed your video! 🤓
Your little bundles are called 'bundleware' and they were often sold to people who made up mixed packets of stamps for sale. You can still buy them, though modern sellers tend to wrap them with paper strips instead of string. I am at the beginning of my collage/junk journal journey but got my first stamp album aged 5. I stopped collecting for many years but discovered my grandpa's boyhood collection from the 1920s in my mum's garage last year and have been a bit obsessed ever since! I love all the colours and the little history lessons they contain. I think I need to use your little books as inspiration to stop endlessly sorting and actually make some art!
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with just enjoying the stamps either!😊That’s so special to have opportunity to see things through the lens of your grandpa’s young life!
Hi! Loved the video. I picked up a gallon Ziploc bag of stamps at a thrift store for $5. Unfortunately there were no inverted Jenny's 😊 I plan on using them in my collage/art boxes. Thanks for your suggestions.
Loved this video! While traveling to different places and bases and countries ( prior military spouse)…..my mother wrote to me frequently……sending goody packages all the time from home……I diligently cut all the stamps from the packages and saved them. This was many years ago… Watching you share has me thinking it’s time to unpack my stamps and organize them for use in my journals and albums and projects! I also have a huge collection of pub mats…….these too will be interesting to take out and just have fun sorting and remembering….. New subscriber to your channel here for ideas and lots of inspiration 🤗🤗🤗
This may be a really long comment...the genre's name is ARTZIE STAMPS. This includes many forms of art which incorporates postage stamps. In 1993, I designed, created many Artzie Stamp collages. What I did was create traditional quilt patterns using cancelled stamps from around the world. I have some photos but they are in slides...who knew we would soon be carrying around our own cameras? Slides? I cant even find anyone to make prints from them.
I really enjoyed this video. I just purchased stamps from Amazon and can't wait to get my hands on them! I also like to make own stamps. I believe the program I used was from Red Castle ... a rubber stamp company. My pc is down right but I can the link I will definitely share with you.
I collect them (the hobby is called philately), but I don't use them for journals. They are categorized by country and to some extent age, in both mint and used condition. I don't think I would do what you do because there are some decent facsimiles of stamps and would rather use those and keep the real ones for my collection. The mint stamps hold their value unused in the collecting world.
I have gather quite a few stamps over the last few years as I just love to use them in my collages... Picking just the right colour or its picture on the stamps I just love that... My friend in the Netherlands found a box on a Craigs List site and she has given me some of those as well as what I get on various mailed ephemera. I love them... I lost my uncle a few years ago and he was a stamp collector, I'm hoping I can persuade my aunt to part with them 🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻😁😁💖
I'm really enjoying your postage stamp videos but prefer the ones without any music -just saying. I have always collected stamps but as my father was a stamp dealer I was taught to use mounts rather than glue. The idea of just glueing them in feels strange but as I have so many duplicates - why not! Also I love the way you deconstruct envelopes.
Sounds like a great idea of experimenting with the duplicates. You can allow yourself to try things you normally wouldn't do with your "good" stamps. Who knows, maybe you'll have more fun doing experimental things than your regular stamps. 👍🏻
Sometimes at estate sales where the person was a collector. My mother in law collected stamps for years, not organized or in books, when she passed I found 2 large zip lock bags full of stamps she had saved for years. Most were separate a lot were just torn from envelope with machine canceled marks and all. It was a great find.
It's fun to make your own stamps with "clear stamps". My husband's grandpa was a stamp collector. When he died, my husband inherited his collection. We've never gone through them. Perhaps we should.
I am new both to collecting and using them for paperart, but I found 4 albums "third" hands and are using them in my paperwork now. I am so thankful for finding your channel and your live for stamps, and are looking for more out there....here in Denmark we hardly use poststamps for sending letters anymore and we even hardly sends letters anymore - everything is electronic Love your atr...
Fabulous,. I too love stamps always buying random bags of mixed old stamps........did also buy a stamp catalogue which the library was selling for few pounds fab as identical but thin......also lots people making them again, going to do .....lastly my daughter's mother-in-law has collected 1st edition of UK stamps for many many yrs she has stacks of cataligues/files holding them. they are beautiful.... I did ask if she trusted me with them 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 have great day 🥰
Love those small books. I used to collect stamps since I was a young child. Still have most of them but not in the books I used to put them in, too bulky. Couldn't part with the stamps, this is a great idea, especially the fact that they have themes and are the size of pasports. I could start with my very old ones that I've had since I was 12 and we moved to Germany for three years. (Only 64 years ago.)
Cool video! TFS! Prompted me to look in my attic-(I know worst place ever) for stamps I had -I ended up with a big plastic bin of stamps! I collected as a child because we lived in the country & wasn’t much to do really 🤔 my kids dabbled in it for awhile & what I have from all of that Some are stuck with hinges to collector books -obviously not archival -so I def will be using a lot of these In collages now-I did enjoy looking through a lot of them -I’m anxious to see collector albums look nowadays? Since I can’t believe they still use hinges -gonna make a trip to Hobby Lobby soon! I really love looking at all the diff designs & colors!
2 sources of stamps: 1. craft/art supply thrift stores- there are a bunch around the US and 2. Buy Nothing/Freecycle sites or email groups. I received an envelope of mostly South American stamps this way.
Fascinating video. Love your ideas. I inherited my dad’s big box of stamps, which includes many first issue stamps on envelopes. Any ideas on what to do with those? Tear out the stamp? It’s a bit overwhelming!
I’m new to collage art so I just ordered a small batch of stamps from Etsy. Your journals are so inspiring. I can’t wait to get started adding them to mine 😃
Fantastic video! Love the great ideas. I recently got someof my late father-in-law’s non valuable stamps, but have felt vaguely sacrilegious in desperately wanting to incorporate them into my art... they are not valuable just pretty! Thank you again! Have subscribed and look forward to working my way through your channel.
Fascinating as always and, oh my gawd, those little notebooks!!! I have lots of unused stamps left over from when the postage rates kept changing years ago, I'll have to start using them in collage. Thanks for more inspiration to keep me gluing!
Funny this, last night I soaked a bunch of stamps off a parcel, have not done that since a teenager doing this with my mother. I get some stamps at a local market and possibly have a look at a goodwill place? After watching one of your videos yesterday I am definitely going to start using stamps in my collage art 😀 I have a small bag of cat stamps I got from a stamp and coin dealer at a local market and the others I soaked last night. I will go through the envelopes I have been saving to make those envelope books with and spray the stamp with water then leave it soak off and grow my collection from there 😂 That is such an interesting find with those stamps. oh, and the 'Canis Familiaris' is 'common dog' basically.
I saw stacks of stamps and bunches of plastic bags full of stamps at an estate sale the other day., but didn't get any. I had seen you had a new video on using stamps and wanted to check that out. Also wanted to revisit what i had done with my stamps years ago (haven't done much lately as I've been spending much time in caretaking our old dog who has now passed}. Hope to find some stamps today at the 75% off day of the estate sale now that I have also reviewed my box and listened to your video. I'm excited again! Thanks for your serendipitous post and as always your delightful work.
Good luck on getting a hold of those!! Even if they're not beautiful stamps, I'm sure you can find a way to use them. Did you know you can also turn them over and rubber stamp on the back side?!! 😉
My vote is for you to use them in your art. They're your stamps and if it makes you happy to use them in your creations, then that is the best way to honor those stamps 🙂
I sometimes buy digital kits on Etsy. One of my purchases was a page postage stamps with a specific theme. After purchasing ( and downloading) the digital kit I can print as many copies as I want. Just another source of images
I don't mean to be a naysayer but I can't help wondering how many rare and valuable stamps may have been cut up and/or pasted into collages. It seems like many of the people posting here have had stamp collections but artists who have not could very well be punching little heart shapes out of stamps worth hundreds of dollars.
Yes, I suppose that's possible, but highly unlikely. If you're a philatelist you probably have a general idea how many nonvaluable stamps there are out there. Also, "value" is in the eye of the beholder, I believe. I can value stamps that have no monetary value because they are beautiful to me, but might cast aside one that someone else would pay money for.
Another great video. I received a bundle of large cancelled stamps. I had no idea what I would do with them. Now I am going to interpret some of your ideas into my style and incorporate them into my collage books. I love all types of paper. The only problem I encounter is finding the time to watch videos, which are so inspiring and then work on my projects. So little time😊………
I used to work for a fairly large international company and my friend opened the mail. I asked her to save any interesting stamps for me with only a vague idea what I was going to do with them. if you have access to something similar it's a great way to get some free interesting stamps.
I have used postage stamps in collage for several years but I also buy vintage unused stamps to send holiday cards in the mail. It makes the envelope like a mini collage when you need several stamps that add up to a first class letter rate.
Have you ever thought of ordering from Aliexpress? I always see loose stamps for sale on their site. What do you think about me ordering stamps from them? They are super cheap.
I collect all the stamps that come on the envelopes of Christmas cards and when I have enough I make them into a Masterboard which I then scan and print. These make great designs for Christmas cards, much better than just throwing the stamps away with the envelopes. Thanks for showing us how you use them. Angela x
I love using stamps in my collages, ever since I saw yours. I was fortunate to win Australia stamps on Julie's chanel. 2 times. I share some of them with my Great grandson, who collects stamps. 🖌🎨 (art and junk journals with Julie)
I love stamps! So nice to meet another creative stamp lover. I have a friend that works in an office who saves the stamps from envelopes. I like to use them in card making by layering and framing them so they look like tiny masterpieces. I also love the sorting and store them in big glass jars. Loved your many ideas! Thanks for sharing!❣️
I love stamps. Collected them on and off when I was a kid and not such a kid. I am fascinated by the stories they tell (topic) as well as the sheer art and production skills. Not much to add to stamp sources except occasionally find an album at the local thrift store. (Hit and miss). Another thing I do with particularly interesting stamps is photocopy them and enlarge them x200 or whatnot. Really fun way to get a different scale. Love the passports booklets you showed. Why do I suddenly need one??? 🤣🤣🤣 thank you so much for sharing.
Great video! I too, LOVE using stamps in my work! I use them often in my Junk Journals, collages, and in many of the ephemera pieces that I make. I buy stamps from several fellow sellers on Etsy, but I have also bought stamps at yard sales, and antiques shops. And of course, I cut off the stamps from my mail, too! I keep a jar on my counter for those modern stamps that I cut off when I review my mail. Stamps are just so fun to use! 😃
I bought my first big bag of stamps through FB Marketplace. Since then I have picked up boxes of stamps at yard sales, flea markets and even a silent auction. My average cost is usually around $5.
Margarete, you do some really interesting, creative videos, and I too love postage stamps. They are all just miniscule little pieces of art, with ziggy edges! I usually use them in my collage journals and I adore the variety of colors. LOVED your little bundles of stamps at the end here, with string wrapped around them. I saw something like that years back, and had totally forgotten where or why, but LOVE it! Your kids both sound like adorable, little gems. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Thank you.
I was surprised and happy to see the bundles of very old Danish postage stamps. I'm in a strange way glad that you take so good care of them. I collected postal stamps as a child and also as a grown up. Now I use them to embellish my junk journal. I prefere postage stamps with numbers. I like how you use yours and the small books. I sometimes find it difficult to use my stamps because I have been collected them for some many years and know so much about them. Thanks for sharing 😊
LOVE postage stamps too!! This was really fun seeing how you use & create art w/ them...beautiful!! Another idea...Hobby Lobby craft store sells various bundles of stamps too.
I use real stamps and fake stamps in my collaging. I bought an old tin several years ago and found lots of old stamps inside. I've used most of them up and have to buy some more. Thanks for the suggestions.
I'm fascinated by postage stamps! I've saved them all my life. I went to stamp auctions 20 years ago and have huge boxes of stamps lol. The majority of them have little or no value. I need to start using them in my art. I really enjoy your videos! Love the ideas you've shared here. Going to make a small book like yours! Thanks so much for the inspiration!
Hello Margarete, Postcrossing is a wonderful community if you want to sent/ received postcards and stamps all around the world ! Thanks a lot for your wonderful ideas to create - Mélody
Are they on generally every day correspondence envelopes, or perhaps they are First Day Covers? If the latter, don't remove the stamps! If this terminology isn't clear, Google for more info.
That's ok. You can collage right on the envelope. I love to do that. Did you see the photos I posted yesterday? Check these out: ru-vid.com/show-UC6JtZTTfKrzxKjlFnP2HEygcommunity
👍👍Great information! Thanks for the tips. Cool story of the adorable bundles. I'm nuts for stamps myself and have collected them all my life. I've only used a couple in collages but plan to use more as I learn to collage.
Thanks for sharing how you use stamps in your art. I always like the way they look, but I haven’t tried it yet. I recently attended the local library book sale & I was able to score a few pages of stamps from them. Now, I have inspiration to use them!
I have a stamp album all sorted by color but I keep forgetting to use them!! I love them and it is probably my way of hoarding them, lol! I love watching you use them in your collage art and you are inspiring me to use them way more than I do normally. I had just found your channel through my sister and I am so happy I did!!! Thank you for all your helpful videos!! ❤️❤️
I love postage stamps and I do adore using them in collage and collaged greeting cards. I currently own about 140 of them. I hope to purchase a variety of colors to choose from because I particularly enjoy placing just the right shade to go with my projects. Your collection is amazing! Love the idea of the displayed bundles! How fun❣️
Like you I would have displayed the little bundles…I love them. I bought a baggie of stamps from eBay several years ago and when my mom past 7 years ago I discovered that she had saved every greeting card with the envelopes so I have those stamps as well. Now my husband looks for different stamps on our incoming mail. Love to used them in collage.
This was very helpful. I'm just starting to acquire Stanislaus for my art and I must confess, they are a jumbled mess. I plan to rectify this very soon. I am learning to appreciate the beauty of the stamp as part of my art, and I find that quite satisfying. I'm curious, Margarete, did you ever have the 70 little bundles assessed to see if there was any value to them, where they might have come from, why someone would do such a thing in the first place? Were each bundle all the same color, type, year? There is such a story to be told here! Even if it was fiction based on how you came about them. So very fascinating! What a treasure!💗
Hi Robyn. I looked up the stamps (2 versions) and both are Dutch, issued from the 1870s to 1903. They are definitives, which means they were "regular issue for an extended period of time" and a mass quantity were produced, since they were used for everyday mailings. Still, I have no idea why someone would create those bundles. Must have been a stamp enthusiast!! 💜 😉
I have my Mother’s collection of stamps. Should I use them in collage or only those that are obviously popular? I do not know enough to recognize value in stamps.
@@MargareteMiller thank you for your comments. I will begin to explore them and put them into some better organization. I really do enjoy their beauty and historical value. But to see them in artistic settings adds to their charm, for certain. I appreciate your videos so much.
So as a kid, my husband collected stamps. They were stored in big binders which has stayed on our selves all our married life...44 years but longer for him. It wasn't until I stated watching your videos did I know what to do with them. Collage Art!!! Yipppeee!!! Thanks always for the inspiration.
Hello, Margarete. I'm so glad I found your videos on RU-vid. I like to use postage stamps in my collages, too...and just stamps in general. Your little journals are inspiring. I will be making my own "Moon Passport" as soon as I get over Covid properly. Keep up the good work. 🙂
I bought a large plastic bin at a thrift store for $20. Many were sorted into glassine envelopes and jumbled into old checkbook boxes. I shared them with friends and sort as needed. The collector's driver's license was inside... I think he'd appreciate how much I enjoy his collection.
Hi Margarete, I Love stamps!! I get them on etsy as well and use them in my collage, scrapbook and journals! My mom sent a box of stamps last year from her Rock Clubs storage bin...no one knew why they were there and she is so sweet to have thought of me to donate them to!! I have to revisit them as I have moved and have not had time to put them in my stamp book!! TFS Peace to you!
Wow this was so interesting. Of course I've heard of stamp collecting, but using them as art is so beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge.
