Older Stamps For Sentimental Brides

John John H. Talman

As you may know we sell many cheap 50 year old mint stamps, per 50 or per 100, including to people who like their look on their mailings. An order we got this weekend was from a company who designs Wedding invitations, etc. for their clients. I don't recall one like this before but the company decided on 130 each of Canada #418 and 478 mint. Our price on #478 I just noted is higher than one of the sellers on Hip stamps sells singles of the same stamp in the same condition. Years ago I sold early Canada postage stamps suitable for mailing to Stuart McLean a famous Canadian story teller who was regularly on CBC with a show called the Vinyl Cafe. Before his untimely death Stuart became a friend and he liked the stories I told him about Postal History items. Eventually he started buying covers from me with plans to write them up at some point. In my last auction I sold part of his philatelic estate but a cover I sol;d him for several thousand dollars has disappeared for the time being in his estate. Probably in a file with the start of a story on it. There are many reasons why people buy cheap older stamps and one of them is to dress up their mail. Some like to commemorate the anniversary of an earlier event with related stamps. Buyers of these early stamps like to find a place where they can buy larger quantities at one time and will pay for the service.

Ron Carmichael

I too have sold old canadian mint stamps to folks who are using them on wedding invitations and replies! One even wrote me up on her blog, which sent a couple more orders my way!

I did have to explain to them that they have to use at least one stamp that is new enough to have tagging on it so the machines can tell there are stamps on the envelope.....

John John H. Talman

Ron: Interesting comments. This market sounds unlimited and many other dealers should take advantage of it to increase their sales and their profits. When buyers of common stamps in quantities for their special mailings want specific issues in large quantities I usually charge two times face or more. These days you might be able to buy some common mint stamps in fair quantity (More than one sheet) or dealers stocks with quantity of many issues. and get them for 50% of face. Such buyers can't be bothered trying to round up a specific issue from numerous dealers even if the price is cheaper. They want the stamps quickly and just priced fairly. On the order I spoke of at start of this thread buyer paid a substantial amount for speedy delivery. Word of mouth is a great way of advertising and it sounds like you are getting your share of it. Even non collectors appreciate the beauty of an interesting cover with stamps on it. In my next public auction a philatelist provided me with a Canadian Map stamp (#85-86) along with a cover he had prepared. I haven't got the cover he included in the lot in front of me but as I recall he used an official first day cover of the May 29, 1998 100th anniversary issue and then applied an original 2c Map to the same cover and got them nicely cancelled with a nice Dec. 7, 1998 cancel for the actual 100th anniversary of the original Map issue. Claims he made 20 examples of this and they came out very attractive and interesting and scarce. I don't think he used any VF-NH Maps to apply to these covers but may have used nice clean unused - no gum - or trifle thin issues that look fine on a cover.