How to Capture a Stamp…

…as a valuable part of your stamp collection. When you receive a card or letter in the mail sent with an interesting stamp, why throw it away? You can safely remove the stamp from the envelope and add it to your collection instead. If you don’t yet have a collection, what better way to start one than with a free stamp?

We regularly receive stamps in the mail on a variety of envelopes. From advertising pieces, business correspondence, and personal mail received from friends and family, you have quite an opportunity to yield a bounty of stamps, all without charge. Once you’ve established your collection, add to it with stamps from your local Post Office or usps.com to enhance your album.

Here are a few tips from the American Philatelic Society on how to remove a stamp from an envelope without damaging it:

1. Cut the envelope paper around the stamp.
2. Remember your laundry protocol – separate the white envelopes from brightly colored ones.
3. Soak the separated stamps face up in lukewarm water.
4. The stamps should easily slip away from the paper after a few minutes, but don’t force it. Keep soaking them until they’re ready to separate with minimal effort.
5. Remove the glue from the stamps by rinsing with water. Place in between two paper towels and allow them to dry overnight. Make sure something flat and heavy presses down on the towel-encased stamps to keep them from curling. 

What stamps have you received in the mail?