Stamps are used by millions of people daily yet few of us give them any thought. We take them for granted, seeing them as mere functional objects. It is true that they are functional objects but not only. Ask any stamp collector and he or she will tell you that a stamp is a lot more than that. In the case of used stamps, a lot of them tell a story and reflect the period and mood of the country in which they were issued.
Let us backtrack for a while and talk about the history of stamps and how they came about. It is commonly accepted that stamps were first introduced in the United Kingdom in 1840 with the penny black stamp. It was a revolution of sorts since it meant that the sender had to pay the postage fee and not the recipient like before. Shortly after the two pence blue stamp was issued. On thing to note is that the United Kingdom is to this day the only country whose name does not appear on its stamps.
As you know, stamp collecting is a very popular hobby throughout the world. Some people prefer to collect brand new stamps while others prefer to collect used stamps that actually served their purpose. Some of course do not discriminate and collect both. There are a lot of different types of stamps. Some stamps are issued for collecting rather than postal use. Let us have a quick look at the type of stamps available and their characteristics.
First is the definitive stamp. This is simply your regular stamp in any denomination that you can buy at the post office. These stamps often feature symbols of the country of issuance. They usually begin at the smallest unit of currency and can go up to fifty to a hundred times the usual postage rate. Collectors are looking to collect every denomination of a definitive series.
The commemorative stamp, like its name suggests, is a stamp issued to commemorate an important event, person or location. A few of these are usually issued each year, the first day of issues normally taking place where in the location associated with the person or event.
Pictorial stamps, also referred to as simply pictorials, are stamps depicting a representative landscape of the country of issuance.
Revenue stamps are stamps that were not intended for mail (although some stamps could be used both for revenue and postage) but for collecting taxes and fees. These stamps actually predate the postage stamps. Revenue stamps are issued by the finance ministry.
First Class Postage Stamp
You can find many online shops that offer personalized postage stamps for all of your mailing needs. These sites will offer you additional postal services as well as many offers and deals. The trick is to make sure that you avoid the online shops that are actually scams. Unfortunately with the advancement of technology, there are some people out there that just want your money without delivering you any product.
Credit Card by Telephone
You have found the perfect Internet site to create your personalized stamps of the new house you just bought. All of your house warming party invitations are written and addressed. You have filled out all the online information, uploaded your photo of your new house and are ready to finalize your order to print your sheet of personalized stamps.
Ideally this would be how everything should work. Yet, after all the time you just spent and the excitement building you are told that you need to pay for the order by phone. Once the order is paid for, you will be able to instantly print your personalized stamps.
This is an online shop that you should leave as quickly as you can log off the website, close your browser and clean your cookies from your Internet cache. No reputable company is going to ask for your credit card information by phone. Additionally, if they have their site developed enough for you to print your personalized stamps instantly after payment, they would not need to process orders by phone only. This is a major scam that you should have red flags raise the instant you see the message for finalizing your order.
Processing Fee
We all know the current rate of a traditional postage stamp that you can print online or purchase at the regular post office. Of course if you are going to create personalized stamps you expect to play slightly more. After all you are using their programs and web server. Reputable companies are going to list very clearly on the website the amount per stamp and per quantity. Often, you can get deals for ordering more than one sheet at a time. This is all that you should have to pay them.
Some companies try to back end the customer with processing fees. Clients are tricked into paying processing fees because they assume that is part of the additional price to make the stamps personalized. If any processing fees are added to the shopping cart when you pay for your order, you are being scammed. You should not pay the fees and should leave the stamp shop for a more reputable company.
Membership Fee for Personalized Postage Stamps
Some of the online photo and personalize stamps service companies offer more than just stamps. They will provide you with bulk mailing, postal meters, postal scales, ink cartridges, printing paper supplies, envelopes and even more. While these services are all wonderful and a great advantage to someone that has their own business, you do not need all of this stuff just for personalized stamps to go on envelopes for special occasions.
These companies are not being dishonest but are really catering to the business person instead of the average consumer. Instead of paying a membership fee for all of these additional services, there are plenty of reputable online services that will help you create and print personalized postage stamps without any membership fees.
Both Mat Depp & James Hinkley are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Mat Depp has sinced written about articles on various topics from Recreation and Sports, Finances and Investments. The author is a stamp collector operating a store selling , or in Fre. Mat Depp's top article generates over 22200 views. to your Favourites.
A Career In Architecture Much like a doctor, lawyer or accountant who branches out into their own private practice, an architect may also enjoy that same freedom