Thanks. That is a pity though, Japan esp is something I’d be interested in.
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I have my Japanese “stamp pal” he told me, Japan is releasing like 600 diffrent stamps a year would be so hard to follow them all and Sooo expensive 
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That seems a bit excessive… No way I’d be able to afford that. Guess I’ll just have to go through all the stamps I do have. But I’m going way off topic here, sorry.
I put stamps from countries I don’t specifically collect in glassine bags, and those I do collect in albums or binders. But I’m not a ‘serious’ collector, I don’t spend much money or time on it
Whatever topic which is stamp related is totally OK for me here 
It was kind of my point as I made this thread
I am spending some money, no much. I am just buying “mystery” bags - mix. That probably someone already went through few times.
but I appreciate the stamps postcrossers are sending to me, those are kept in separate album
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You might be interested in what Philatelovely has to offer. He has an Etsy shop and a surprise subscription service on Patreon.
There may be others doing similar things, I just know about him 
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600 stamps a year?
Wild.
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I know
“Brain freeze” 
I started to collect stamps since I was a boy.
So allow me to say something:
Give your stamps a cozy home！
As philately is not a popular hobby nowadays. It’s hard to buy stamp albums so I prefer to make them myself.
All you need is a normal file folder （30 pages）
Then you can put pages in it （They can be bought from philately shop or ebay）
There are many kind of pages: 6 lines,5 lines, 4 lines, 3 lines, 2 lines or a blank page which can fit all types of stamps.
Since some stamps have strong stick on the back. Using crystal mount is a good way to protect them.
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Thank you for the tips
Indded those folder + pages looks like very good iede!
I’m thinking of starting to collect stamps. Since doing postcrossing I’ve seen so many cool ones out there. I would like to make a 
primate themed collection.
But, in case this desire is a flash in the pan, I’m not going to buy anything for it until next year (my interest come and go and I want to make sure this isn’t a short-lasting one)
However, I recently won a lottery on here for a selection of used stamps (all of them really nice! But no monkeys) and I’m wondering about beginning to trade them out for primate stamps somewhere. I’ve made an account on stampboards.com but I have to be a member for two months before I can trade there. So that will have to wait.
Unless people want to trade here?
Another thought I was having was making a website that was a digital stamp collection - eventually aiming to get the stamps irl, but until then having them online and functionally making my own catalogue. Has anyone done this themselves?
@elmani and anyone else who reads this.
Deciding to collect a certain stamp makes you a topical collector.
I dont know what kind of clubs or organizations are avaliable there, but you join an organization like the American Topical Association, dedicated to topical collecting by topics. They provide lists for subjects on stamps for their members.
I may not know stampboards, but another option is to go to stamp shows and buy used or mint stamps from stamp dealers about your topic if you find them.
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When I was a teenager I collected stamps. My grandmother sent me from Germany. I divided them by country, but if I had an excess of stamps or enough representation of the country, I divided them by theme. I still have my collection and every few months I look at them but I like postcrossing better and I don’t have as much time to do both. Mostly my collection are from large countries in Europe, the United States, Caribbean countries and Australia. My mother-in-law is Venezuelan and today she gave me several series of stamps from Venezuela that she had extra.
You can make a subscription for Indian stamps as well. Here is a link with some details - https://www.indiapost.gov.in/VAS/Pages/faqs.aspx?Category=Jgo4qG+ZxEexWRs1ZJkRvYXvcfKmUorbRNSFa0C7I3Jc4sJnLfunHjQy76Zmejqm#:~:text=Foreign%20customers%20can%20also%20avail,by%20domestic%20and%20overseas%20customers.
For more information, anyone can reach out to India Post on their Twitter handle, they are very active there.
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ou can make your own collecting page with this freeware
https://www.thestampweb.com/albumeasy
I do mine with this, it’s look very nice.
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I have collected on and off for…well forever just about. I used to keep all of the same exact stamps in the same little wax envelope, and now I have 100’s of stupid wax envelopes full of stamps! So what I started doing for fun is sorting them by COLOR, and then I’m going to make art with them. That might sound awful to you, but I figure if my collection-or parts of it-are to “live on,” I better make some cool art since no one collects stamps in the US anymore!
WHATEVER WAY BRINGS YOU JOY IS THE RIGHT WAY, BTW!! ;0)
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I will keep stamps with card and envelopes.
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Hello!
At first, I felt compelled to collect ALL the stamps of EVERY country… but now I sort by:
-
Theme (I collect fauna(animals and related), flora(plants), scenery(natural landscapes like waterfalls), Buildings/People (some beautiful buildings and cool people), things (various objects from toys to fans,), and science/space.
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Country
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Size/Stamp Collection (Sort on stock pages by sizes so they fit, and try to match sets together)
I use VARIO stock sheets in binders. I had stock books, but I tend to change my mind too often, and hated not being able to move around pages. I use a label maker to print out transparent labels with the stamp numbers on the stock sheets for identification!
I try to say goodbye to stamps by trading them for new ones, like 100 used for 100 used or something like that. I have found it hard to get rid of foreign stamps, even if they aren’t ones I love or that fit into my themes. For now, I have them in a few extra stock sheets while I decide. But, the ones in my binder are ones that spark joy
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I also make stamp art with my damaged stamps better not to throw them away
@debotmad I think every collector of stamps comes to that crossroad at some point; going from a general collector to collecting specific countries or themes. Organizing your collection with VARIO stock sheets is a great way to do it. You can arrange them as you see fit, plus they are pleasing to the eye with the arrangement you like.
Several years ago, I decided to move on from stamps to Covers, mostly First Day Covers. With Postal History, the cover adds an interesting story to the stamp(s). I acquired a large lot of Space covers some time ago. Here are some of the interesting ones:
These are quite popular with my customers as well. Regarding exchanges, Postcrossing has a couple of nice groups (Tags) that might interest you. Here is one that I host:
https://community.postcrossing.com/t/50-used-stamps-tag/1454/589
The bottom line is to collect what you like and always be open to learn more about your hobby.
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I started collecting stamps over 50 years ago as a child, I collect mainly used stamps from the United Kingdom.
I decided to collect postage stamps which depict post boxes, mail boxes and pillar boxes from around the world, so far I have stamps from 55+ countries.
I’ve now decided to collect postcards with the same theme.
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