Stamp Albums

Ideally, stamps should be kept in an album so they are kept protected for years. Albums can vary in price and sizes. The prices vary from a few dollars to over $5000 for complete world albums. If you have time, you can even save money and make your own album with a simple ring binder and blank pages-it will give you flexibility regarding to the organization of the stamps in it and can be a fun project. Once you got the desired album it's time to affix your valuable stamps to it. In order to affix the stamps correctly and avoid damaging them you will have to use one of two methods: stamp mounts or stamp hinges. The stamp mounts are little plastic pieces that hold the stamps inside them and get attached to the album. The stamp mounts will protect your stamp from damage and are recommended for mint (never used) stamps. The down side is that mounts are not cheap and sometimes it is hard to find the right sizes and you might need to cut them in order to fit your stamps. The other method for keeping stamps secure in albums is to use stamps hinges which are little rectangular pieces of glassine paper that are folded to keep the stamp in. those are recommended for used stamps and are relatively inexpensive. The short side of the hinge gets attached to the back of the stamp (you have to lick it) and the longer side gets attached to the album. Good hinges should be made from acid free paper and should be peelable when dry. Now that you have your album filled with stamps keep it in a safe dry place away from sun and extreme temperatures. This will maintain the value of your precious stamps for years.