Postage Stamp Chat Board & Stamp Bulletin Board Forum
 

I have these two personalized stamps with me. Are they something worth collecting? Do the others hold on to them, or does everyone just throw them away?

I'm guessing the (correct) altruistic answer would be yes, they are worth collecting, if you like them.

As for something worth collecting (value wise), only time will tell, but I'd imagine it'd be as valuable as a thematic collection of say, dogs with pineapples, and only of financial worth to likeminded collectors.

One upside to collecting them would be the scarcity of each design, coupled with however long the USPO run with the idea.

I would certainly say they are worth collecting - especially on cover.

Mint personalised stamps are also worth collecting. Some of the early issues are particularly tricky to find in either mint or used condition, and even scarcer on cover used in the correct period.

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Chris de Haer
Author of 'A Closer Look at Modern Australian Stamps' in Stamp News Australia.
Latest news on my blog http://stamps.chrisdehaer.com.au Follow me on Facebook twitter.com/stampchris

Absolutely worth collecting, especially for topical/thematic collections - though I would draw the line at creating one especially for such a collection, and rule out self-created ones in competitions.

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Ian Billings - Norvic Philatelics GB stamps info: http://www.norphil.co.uk - also /catalog for our ecommerce site, blog.norphil.co.uk, shop.norphil.co.uk and Ian_norvic on twitter

Ian's spot on. The US, Canadian, French, Finnish and Austrian versions (and other countries?) allow people to almost use the whole stamp area, rather than place the image on the tab.

Personalised stamps are also used by organisations for promotion - stamp clubs and shows in Australia use them frequently for promotion and on their souvenirs.

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Chris de Haer
Author of 'A Closer Look at Modern Australian Stamps' in Stamp News Australia.
Latest news on my blog http://stamps.chrisdehaer.com.au Follow me on Facebook twitter.com/stampchris

Here's a nice example of a personalised stamp that was found (with a couple of thousand other stamps) at the local tip!!!!



Obviously thrown out from a deceased clean out! Obviously the birth of someones new baby back in 1999. Don't you love the size of the dummy! Well, It certainly has a place in my collection!

hutch

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I am having fun collecting WW and Indian States.

How does this work? Can anyone submit their artwork to the Australian postal service, and, for a fee on top of face, have the stamps produced?

I can see amazing scope if this is the case, for example, if you create stamps with scenes from a town, you could then have them posted from the town, an endless thematic collection.

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With kind regards, Jim

Basically yes.

There are some conditions. You must own the copyright in the artwork, or have the permission of the copyright owner. If the image contains people's faces you have their permission. Also, the design can't be defamatory etc.

Australia Post publishes some guidelines at: http://www.pstamps.com.au/Image%20Suita ... elines.pdf and http://www.pstamps.com.au/Terms%20and%20conditions.pdf

You can sometimes run foul of these rules unintentionally. I've had a design rejected as it was too close to the Australia Post stamp design; and another one got delayed as unbeknown to me the tab design featured a photograph of an Australia Post staff member (the staff member gave permission for their photograph to be used).

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Chris de Haer
Author of 'A Closer Look at Modern Australian Stamps' in Stamp News Australia.
Latest news on my blog http://stamps.chrisdehaer.com.au Follow me on Facebook twitter.com/stampchris

Used, especially on cover, I imagine they would definitely be of use to thematic collectors, just as slogan/pictorial meter marks are. If you're collecting the stamps of a country, commercial or semi-commercial used ones would obviously be wanted too. They aren't likely to be worth lots anytime soon, but definitely worth hanging on to.

Suppose someone made, say, 100 with her own image, signed. Sent out 100 invites to a birthday party, perhaps with special related cachets on the envelopes, and then 30 years later became some notorious criminal or Nobel Prize winner or any other kind of historical figure or footnote. Would those not be quite desirable at that future time? Image if Oprah only made 100 of such special covers/stamps! Did you see the Andy Warhol artwork from when he was 11 someone found in a yard sale or some such?

Hasn't someone from this forum (Lichtenfeld??) done something similar to this already for his imaginary nation? I want to make "Billy Hill" stamps to honor my own petty fiefdom!

American & Canadian personalised stamps are extremely collectable & whenever I have seen used copies for sale they have gone for far more than face value.
There was the higher production cost to consider, and usually there is a minimum quantity you must order.

Australia Post has the monopoly in this country, and earlier posts have covered personalised stamps here.

New Zealand deregulated the mail monopoly in 1998 so there are numerous producers of stamps. Advertisers have utilised stamps to promote their name & products, as well as towns & cities now promoting their districts with magnificent scenes. Even philatelic societies use personalised stamps to publicise their activities.

NZ Post also reacted by allowing the public (and advertisers) to submit images/photos for stamp production - subject to minimum production of 1,000 copies being ordered. Those ordering & paying for those stamps (called CALs - Customised Advertising Labels) are provided with the entire stock & are responsible for their distribution.
As with USA & Canada, used items sell in NZ for significent prices even beyond issue price. The 2004 40¢ CAL on my avatar sells in NZ for NZ$3,000 mint & NZ$3,500 used (it was the first ever issued with only 1,000 copies).

After another personalised set of stamps (CALs) were distributed there was a protest from China.
NZ Post demanded the return of those two stamps for destruction, however the purchaser refused & now those two are sought after. The values are 50¢ & $1.

Why are some CALs worth so much? Couldn't someone today order 1000 CALs and sell them at a high price just because they are not available elsewhere?

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My wantlist for Malta Revenues

They wouldn't be the first ever though.

absolutely, some can be desirable.

What I meant was that if someone made CALs today, and sold limited numbers of them, would they be worth $1000s?

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My wantlist for Malta Revenues

Well, no -- that's what I meant; they wouldn't have the cachet of being the first ever issue to make them especially desirable. New limited editions wouldn't hit the heights unless there was something about them that made them special -- I dunno, maybe a piece of artwork by a famous artist that only appeared on the CALs?

The reason the very early CALs command such money is that originally the printing contract prevented the issue of more of that stamp. It was not realised how popular they would become.

After the first five CALs were issued, NZ Post changed their conditions for designs submitted, taking away the exclusive rights from the applicant.
Now, in addition to the quantity ordered by the applicant, NZ Post prints more to sell themselves in an "annual pack" of every CAL produced that year.

So now collectors world wide are able to obtain a copy of each for their collection, whereas the first five (Wellington Festival, BMW car sales, and three (3) for the ANZ Bank) are extremely hard to obtain.

Prices are:-
No.1 Wellington Festival 40¢ Cat $3,000
No.2. ANZ Bank Haddad's menswear 5¢ Cat $30
No.3 ANZ Bank Passage Rock Vinyard 5¢ Cat $30
No.4 ANZ Bank United Fisheries 5¢ Cat $30
No.5 BMW New Zealand 45¢ Cat $500

Although it is another item for NZPO to sell. It is to be commended for so doing.
Basically everybody can now get each of the CALs the easy way. Aside from the Tibet saga we know that we will get them each year [only single copies from the PO and as part of a big happy block last year]. For the collector there is the search to get blocks or pairs which will indicate they may have come from the 'owner' of the CAL or better yet on a cover/piece dated in the year of issue again showing a genuine usage.

Finding these new issues in the year of issue has put some old fashioned real stamp collection back on our plates.

Some mail from NZ is sent using mixed franking of normal post office stamps & CALs. Some mail uses only a group of CALs.
How overseas countries know to accept these different "designs" without a country name is probably merely due to mechanisation of the sorting process, as England is the only country which does not have the name on their stamps.

Here is an envelope just received this morning.

Quite simple - NZ Post is breaking UPU rules by not having the name of the country on the CAL stamps. USPS can do it on Zazzle stamps and every other personalised stamp should have the name of the country on.

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Ian Billings - Norvic Philatelics GB stamps info: http://www.norphil.co.uk - also /catalog for our ecommerce site, blog.norphil.co.uk, shop.norphil.co.uk and Ian_norvic on twitter

Norvic,
Might the UPU regulations have been changed ?

Absolutely worth collecting, but difficult.

Obviously impractical to get each personalization, but still difficult to collect just by format. I'm leery of including the custom content in topical collections as that opens up unlimited to-order production.

Do personalized stamps also have first day covers?

Agreed, but I'm not sure how they can be actively excluded (as opposed to being marked down as an unstated rule) under the general "approved by the postal service" rubric. The logic is the same as with postage meter slogans -- except those can be made up on the fly now too! But then a lot of people, including me, always did think that "definitional" approach to what was valid frayed a bit at the margins.

Personalised stamps are no different from those issued by the formal Postal Issuers in that the creater can elect the first day to commence issue - thus the stamps on that day become part of the First Day Cover.
This enables a chronological order to be established, with records available for future collectors.

I think CALs are classed by NZ Post as labels (hence the 'L' in CAL). Since they are labels, and not stamps they don't need a country name. IIRC the first CALs were only ever intended to be used within NZ (i.e. the 5c make up rate stamps for the increase in the domestic rate), so the NZ Post logo was the only identifier needed. However, as they are clearly valid for postage worldwide (indeed I've received many on mail from NZ (including the odd single use)), I wonder what the UPU does make of them.

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Chris de Haer
Author of 'A Closer Look at Modern Australian Stamps' in Stamp News Australia.
Latest news on my blog http://stamps.chrisdehaer.com.au Follow me on Facebook twitter.com/stampchris

The term "Label" doesn't make them any different from one called a "stamp". If the design is attractive, and especially if it features something you like, then prople will want to collect it.

All the CALs are finding a home, with demand for both mint or used causing prices to rise. Some sellers have inflated what they want beyond what purchasers are willing to pay - so their items remain unsold until reoffered at a more realistic figure ( or unless some a crazy buyer steps in).

To the original question, my answer is "no". Not interested! Gimmicky and a turn-off! Sorry!

Sometimes a particular topic rarely appears on stamps, postmarks or other philatelic items. For example, I collect mathematics as a thematic topic.

I wouldn't necessarily create a personalised stamp, but if a society or organisation related to the theme created a personalised stamp, then I would buy it and add it to my collection.

IMHO the important thing is that your thematic collection should probably only have a few personalised stamps. Possibly a cover that shows the stamp was issued for a 'legitimate' reason/cause, such as a FDC or postally used from an organisation would be even better.

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Chris de Haer
Author of 'A Closer Look at Modern Australian Stamps' in Stamp News Australia.
Latest news on my blog http://stamps.chrisdehaer.com.au Follow me on Facebook twitter.com/stampchris

I guess you are familiar with the regular column in the journal
THE MATHEMATICAL INTELLIGENCER

There is a page column each issue.
Get on the mailing list for the journal from Springer

http://springer.r.delivery.net/r/r?2.1.Ee.2Tp.1go9fR.C1v45W..H.StRo.3kb%5f.bW89MQ%5f%5fDDZKFRL0

These are usually abstracts of the articles but the stamp page is complete.
Go back and down load from the abstracts, etc
This may not be new for you but just in case it is, I mention it. Enjoy
Tony

Yes aware of it and have viewed it online - but thanks for the reminder.
Nice to see stamps in a professional publication - wonder how often that occurs?

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Chris de Haer
Author of 'A Closer Look at Modern Australian Stamps' in Stamp News Australia.
Latest news on my blog http://stamps.chrisdehaer.com.au Follow me on Facebook twitter.com/stampchris

Used cals are very sought-after in NZ, and always sell for MORE THAN FACE, perhaps the only stamps to do so, among current issues. (As long as the posties don't maul the stamps with evil postmarks, as they so love to do!)

This means that some collectors have now managed to in effect get their parcels posted "free" by getting the cals returned from non-collecting recipients.

Here is a random selection of used cals I have offered on Trademe:

NZ cals: 20 used. Train, Tibet, Cat, Lighthouse,

Description:

20 of the unusual personalised stamps known as "cals" that NZ Post produces in limited editions to clients' requirements.

These are all postally-used, and include:

50c ... America's Cup yacht race.
50c ... Orange Lambretta.
50c ... Tibet flag.
50c ... Dog.
50c ... Steam train.
50c ... Victoria Cross medal.
50c ... 1929 Health, nurse.
60c ... Pioneer Basketball Club.
50c ... Kaiapoi.
50c ... Pillar box.
50c ... Paekakariki Signalbox.
60c ... Space scene.
45c ... Hell Pizza.
$1 ... Lighthouse.
50c ... Khilafat e Ahamadiya.
50c ... Animal Re-homing: rabbit, puppy, kitten.
60c ... Blockhouse Bay Radio cat (2 different, one with corner selvedge!).
50c ... Richard Pearce aircraft.
45c ... Kiwi.
====

The Tibet flag is still attached to its piece of envelope, as I am unwilling to take the risk of ruining such an elusive stamp by soaking it.

Unusual to find modern stamps as well-presented as this, particularly considering NZ Post's deteriorating reputation for ruining stamps with atrocious postmarks. Most of the CALs (now listed by several major catalogues) are issued in limited editions of 1,000 or so. It is unusual to locate many used ones, as most are targetted to members or clients of the issuing organisations.

I will use a cal on the envelope when posting these to the lucky winner.

This item has several bids already, and after it is sold, I will assemble another selection of 20 used cals and offer them.

I get most of my used cals by buying the collector packs (containing the full year's issues) from NZ Post, then use them to pay postage when I send 16mm movie films to friends. Such parcels are heavy, so lots of cals are used to make up the rate.

Most kiwis find it hard to obtain used cals, as most are done in limited editions and go to targetted audiences. But some inevitably end up in kiloware.

So yes, I do recommend collecting these, if you want something out of the ordinary. But they are unlikely to be listed by Scott and Gibbons any time in the near future. However, a kiwi, Bernie Styris, published a colour catalogue of them a while back, but this is almost as hard to find now as Cal Number One!

Worth collecting. But only real personalized stamps and not all those 'personalized' high priced thematic sheets some postal administrations are throwing at you almost on a weekly basis.

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/stewie1980/collections/
http://www.delcampe.net/stores/stewie1980

I hate to be pedantic, but, England does not issue stamps. Great Britain does.

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With kind regards, Jim

What about the regionals?

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My wantlist for Malta Revenues

Surely these will go the way of FDCs?

A lot of initial interest and high values for the first few issues, then a rapid drop-off within a few years, with a huge output of wallpaper.

Certainly I keep them (from kiloware etc.), but I'm not about to spend money to acquire any more.

Steevh,
Glad you won't purchase any more, as that will reduce the competition for these stamps.

It would be nice for collectors if the reduced demand saw lower prices in order that we enthuasts could afford more of them.

Not worth collecting at all.....
I don't see the point of it.... What next???? Printing your own banknote design....RIDICULOUS.......

^ If printing your own banknote design included those banknotes being ACCEPTABLE LEGAL TENDER, then they WOULD be collectable!

What you are overlooking is that the cals are usable on mail. And often are!

Collectable is debatable.
But i do understand your point Pantera.

As for me I will not collect them and I agree with greidp on the matter.

It opens the Pandora box to everything and anything, nothing in relation with an "official release"
If putting a cucumber or the face of so and so or the scenery of somewhere in the world, as part of a stamp is what you want well go for it, but it doesn't bring anything to the "hobby" at all, in my own opinion. There is an official program and that should just suffice the demand.

No, collectable is purely a personal subjective judgement, like pretty much everything in life. If somebody likes something - anything - enough, they will collect it. Done in extremes, these people become hoarders. Done in moderation, without expectation of making a fortune, it is perfectly OK. And with personalised stamps it can only ever be done that way, because any form of completeness is impossible, so they can just make up a collection of nothing in particular. An obsession with these I think would not be a good thing.

BTW, I keep New Zealand CALS with my New Zealand stuff, do not go out of my way to buy them, and do not care whether I ever get another one. But I do keep them.

Norm

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Geelong, VFA Premiers 1878, 1879, 1800, 1882, 1883, 1884, 1886, AFL Premiers 1925, 1931, 1937, 1951, 1952, 1963, 2007, 2009, 2011, .

Anybody wanting some NZ cals on letters, I am happy to use some on a cover to you! Just send me some items to exchange (such as a couple of mint sets and minisheets of your country) with a request for similar from New Zealand, and I will oblige.

Just email me for my address.

Everyone needs this in their collection.

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Only philatelists dare visit KoalaStamps, the new kid on the stamp block: http://www.koalastamps.com

Nice! How many did you get of this?

It's a very limited edition of 100.

It's available on my website at my buying cost.

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Only philatelists dare visit KoalaStamps, the new kid on the stamp block: http://www.koalastamps.com

Of course Fromdownunder everybody is free to collect whatever they want.
However for me, in this instance, it feels like collecting stickers or biscuit tins' pictures.....there is no real value, and i'm not talking only financial value...
There is perhaps value only to the one "collecting" this type of items.
I will have to agree with you then.
I am perhaps too conservative in what I consider collecting in this hobby of ours.....

I think the problem with personalized stamps is their spurious rarity.

A personalized 50 cent stamp with a print run of 50 is very different from a Victorian 10/- high value, despite being a lot rarer.

It reminds me too much of making your own stamps, which I did as a kid. I dont think anyone is collecting these.

No, there is no "spurious rarity."

The buyer can obtain a MINIMUM of 1,000 (or many more if they wish, as in the case of the Mowbrays $1 "HMS Vanguard" and the 50c Vietnamese politician Chan Boi Trau: the latter of which 25,000 were done to use on junkmail appeals for help by the Save the Children Fund), plus there are the several hundred from the Collector Packs.

What all this adds up to is at least a thousand in circulation, and numerous used stamps.

I am still hoping that David Smitham will reveal the quantities that Mowbrays did of that $1 Vanguard, and how many of that quantity they then overprinted? Every collector loves statistics!

I agree that these are spurious rarities and wonder if they'll go the way of phonecards (remember them?). My advice would be to sell them for good money while you still can.

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29,000 stamped postcards & covers:http://www.delcampe.net/stores/edwardx
Collecting old passports:http://www.passportland.com/

We had this set of 5 stamps - especially ordered for print for our own website in 2009.

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Michele in sunny Cyprus!
A purveyor of fine Cyprus stamps, covers and postal history items from Aphrodite's island of love.