National Stamp Collecting Month (NSCM).

Since 1981 the U.S. Postal Service has designated the month of October as National Stamp Collecting Month (NSCM).

Developed to introduce children ages 8-12 to this popular and educational hobby, the NSCM program is also intended to raise awareness about the recreational benefits of stamp collecting among all age groups.

Creating PhotoStamps is as easy as 1-2-3!

PhotoStamps are an exciting new product that lets you take your own images or photographs and turn them into real U.S. postage! To create PhotoStamps all you need to do is upload a photo, customize it using our fun, easy-to-use interface, and place your order.

Philately - history

One of the world's most popular hobbies, philately is the study and collection of stamps. Many hobbyists collect regular postage stamps, others collect special-use issues—some of which are unrelated to postal service. National postal administrations or smaller political entities and their lawful competitors issue stamps. So too do local posts, express companies, and even forgers.

While hobbyists organize their collections around personal interests, they frequently enjoy the philatelic pursuits of other collectors. Consequently, philately has fostered local clubs, national societies, major annual exhibitions, and innumerable publications since its rather obscure origins in nineteenth-century England.

Introduction to Philately

What can you call a hobby which teaches so much—in addition to providing fun and pleasure. Philately helps instruct the collector in geography, biography, history, culture and art. Stamps are miniature gateways to the world.

Stamp collecting has very few rules. You don't have to buy expensive sneakers or rackets to enjoy it. However, there are a few simple things to remember when collecting stamps.

Crops of the Americas

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> Crops of the Americas
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> By: Maria Teresa Villaverde Trujillo
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> Artist Steve Buchanan, of Winsted, Connecticut, -New England-, created each of the next five stamp designs.
> As reference, he used slide photographs made by his wife Rita Buchanan's research in the late 1970s on indigenous agricultural methods in the southwestern United States. The crops depicted in the stamps
> —corn, chili peppers, beans, squashes, and sunflowers— had been cultivated in the Americas
> for centuries when Europeans first arrived in the New World.
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> apple and orange
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> The U.S. Postal Service also selects familiar fruits for first-class stamps,
> which were issued for general mail use on and after March 2001.
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> The stamp art by Ned Seidler continues the theme of his earlier illustrations
> for the Peaches and Pears on 1995.
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> NOTE
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> The Citizen's Stamp Advisory Committee,
> is a group of 12 to 15 members appointed by the Postmaster General, considers about 50,000 ideas a year, most of which come from the American public. The Committee then recommends about 35 new subjects for commemorative stamps each year
> to the Postmaster General. The Postmaster General makes the final decision. To ensure consistent and fair consideration
> of all proposals, the Committee has established standards of eligibility for stamp designs. One such standard is that no living person can be depicted on a U.S. stamp and, except for former Presidents, an individual cannot be commemorated until at least
> 10 years following death. This allows the person's accomplishments to be viewed in the appropriate historical perspective.
> The exception allows a means of special recognition for past Presidents each of whom is honored with a memorial stamp
> on the first birthday following their death.
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> Art of the Postage Stamp opened in November 2000 at The Norman Rockwell Museum
> Stockbridge, Berkshire mountain, Massachusetts.
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> Friday, December 15, 2006
> Crops of the Americas
> ashiningworld@cox.net
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Are there any stamp groups I can join?

Yes! Stamp clubs can be a great source for new stamps and for stamp collecting advice. These clubs often meet at schools, YMCAs and community centers. Ask your local postmaster or librarian for the locations of stamp clubs in your area, or view the list of Organizations & Resources below:


Organizations
Philatelic Centers
Museums, libraries, and displays
Free periodicals
Literature
Foreign Postal Administrations

Other philatelic collectibles include:

* Plate Blocks usually consist of four stamps from the corner of a pane, with the printing plate number in the margin (or selvage) of the pane.

* Copyright Blocks feature the copyright symbol © followed by "United States Postal Service" or "USPS" in the margin of the pane. The USPS began copyrighting new stamp designs in 1978.

* Booklet Panes are panes of three or more of the same stamp issue. Panes are affixed inside a thin folder to form a booklet. Usually, collectors of booklet panes save the entire pane.

* Souvenir Sheets are panes of stamps issued without plate number's that may have margins containing lettering or design that commemorate a notable subject, such as Daffy Duck and Sonoran Desert.

* First Day Covers are envelopes bearing new stamps that are postmarked on the first day of sale. For each new postal issue, the USPS selects one location, usually related to the stamp subject, as the place for the first day dedication ceremony and the first day postmark. There is even an annual First Day Cover Collecting Week.

* First Day Ceremony Programs are given to persons who attend first day ceremonies. They contain a list of participants, information on the stamp subject and the actual stamp attached and postmarked.

* Matted Panes are full panes of stamps that are on a colored matted sheet to match the stamps. These are suitable for framing.