Early this year I took possession of my Granddad's old postage stamps
. He had a really great collection and it was my job to help preserve his memory. There has been a lot to learn and I think that I have done well.
One of my first activities when I received the old postage stamps was going through them and cataloguing them. I found a book on Amazon which had all the issue releases in it. I then compare my Granddad's stamps with those in the book. It took me and my girlfriend a long time but it was worth it. You need to make sure you have a proper record of your stamps.
I was very keen to take them home and as a result I stored the old postage stamps incorrectly (for a short time). I had them in a flat position on the floor. This can damage the stamps. You should have them in a upright position. You also want them to be left in a dark place that is cool and dry. If possible you want the area to be of zero humidity.
Once I had the album at home I wanted to buy some stamps for it. I was keen to 'stamp' my personality on it. I bought a few stamps, basically any I liked, but then the album lost its way. I went for a theme so it will have a bit more of an order.
There are lots of places to buy old postage stamps. I have bought a number of mine from the post office. As you can imagine they have made mistakes. I have also bought a few over the internet on Ebay which went well. When you become more experienced you can look at going to an auction or a stamp dealer. This is better for more rare offerings.
I am happy with my journey of collecting old postage stamps. I think I know a lot more and still want to learn in the future. I want to pass the albums to my children.