Straight Talk About Selvage

Most people just tears off all the paper around the stamp and sticks only the stamp on the letter. On the other hand I carefully tear the stamp along with the outside edges and place the whole thing on a letter. In fact when I buy single stamps I request the selvage. Can you tell I'm a stamp collector?

This has carried over to the way I collect stamps, the more selvage the better it is. I often make custom mounts just so I can display the selvage along with the stamp.

I'm not a selvage expert though I know what to look for in selvage. I try to find stamps with markings in the selvage these markings in the selvage serve various purposes. The list is long and if there is someone with more knowledge maybe they can list all the various meanings.

In any event I'm a selvage person and I do feel a stamp with selvage is more interesting and the next time you go to take off that selvage maybe you will stop and let it on for the other prople like me.

MK

I'm afraid I'm one of those that removes all selvage from the stamps that go in my albums. I do leave it on the spares though

Dianne

I'm one that will remove it before mounting the stamp in my album..... but, if the stamp is to be used on a letter I will leave the selvage intact.

I remember an avid stamp collector gave me two pieces of advice when I was starting out. 1.) never hinge a mint stamp and 2.) never tear off that extra paper and try to get it with something written on it.

Well I didn't do half bad, I hinged my mint stamps but I didn't tear off the selvage.