Homemade Album Pages - A.w.n.

I have finally finished the design for my A.W.N (All World's Nations) collection. Way to much procrastination, but here is the first one, for Tasmania - Van Diemens Land.

The maps and pages are are all done in AutoCAD and printed with a laser printer on #67 lb card stock - still not sure if to use white or an off white.

I printed the flags on a colour laser and cut them out and stick them on separately.

The stamps will go in the grid at the bottom, which will be ruled to suit each country - I will be using the oldest, coolest looking affordable stamps as possible, preferably used.

Any comments would be appreciated.

Nice looking page. That is what I like about doing your own pages us that you can be creative and customize them to your collection. The maps, flag and historical data are a nice touch.

Nice! I have been ruminating about making a cover page for my album(s). This gives a great idea.

Thanks! Now I have to add the stamps...

I hope to do at least one page for every stamp issuing country, territory or entity.

I may have to live well past 100 AND win the lottery ...

Very nice album page! How long did it take to create? It may be a bit easier to reproduce now that you have a standard "boilerplate" you can use to make others.

Just wondering why you had to print the flags out on a color laser printer only to have to paste them onto the album page ... wouldn't it have been just as easy to scan the flag images into your computer and print the entire album page on a color laser printer? In this way, you could even go a step further and printout the maps in color as well. But as I've said in many previous posts, do it the way you like and enjoy it, that's what stamp collecting is all about.

Personally, I don't think I'd have the patience to go through all of the work involved to make such a detailed album page to place only a dozen stamps, as it would take me the rest of my life to create such pages for all the stamps I own!

Great points, WT! One thing I did not do was explain the "look" I was trying to get.

I wanted to create pages that have a "retro old" look, so I decided it would be in black and white only. Also, that way the stamps will stand out. I decided to do the flags in colour and put them on separately, just like those old albums, where the flags came as separate stickers. The font I used for the information is called "Bohemian Typewriter" and does look like it was from an old typewriter (except on the map) - much easier to see on the actual printed page.

Hah, it took me two years to decide a final design, mainly just thinking and hurting my brain. I have always had a world map in AutoCAD, and since AutoCAD is my profession, it will be easy to create other countries now that I finally have something.

Very nice BeeSee,
I am just a little concerned with
"1913 Australian stamps first used in Tasmania"
I think they may have been used before that, unless
you are just referring to the roo and map as "Australian"

Good point Rod, thanks! I forgot about the postage dues, I assume that is what you meant? I will have to make some adjustments.

I also since found a couple of spelling mistakes, "Poclaimed" and "frst".

No BeeSee, had not even entertained those!
I was referring to the "Australian States"
stamps used randomly throughout Australia,
wherever stocks were needed.(Queensland used in Tassy etc)
I have not checked my dates so don't quote me.

To illustrate another point, I thought you may have
had another mistake when you quoted "Indian Ocean"
on the larboard side of Tasmania.

I have always considered that the "Southern Ocean"
Checking wiki, the area is in debate, but all my school
atlas' used to print Southern Ocean.
We never stop learning

It's going to take some time to adjust my thinking on that one!

South Australia used Tasmania 1911
(this may not be meant by you when quoting "Australia" per se)
It's just as I read it.


(tripped roller canceller applied twice)

Not to be too critical, but don't forget to adjust the word "Dtch" following "1642".




Thanks for clarifying what your goal was in how you wanted to create these pages...now it makes perfect sense!

Ditto "Sighting"

Fat fingers BeeSee? or thin keys

Actually my AutoCad spell check did get "Sightg" but not "dtch".

I just did not change the image after correcting.

As for the Australian stamps, my intention is to list when stamps inscribed Australia were first used in Tasmania, so would that be 1902? I knew all states remained valid anywhere afterwards, just the same as the Canadian provinces after they joined Confederation.

Here is the current inscription, open for cririque!

Current Status: Australian State
Location: 240 kilometres (150 mi) south of the Australian continent.
Current Population: 500,000
Capital: Hobart

Historical Dates:
1642: Dutch explorer Abel Tasman makes first European sighting of the island on 24 November, naming it Van Diemen's Land.
1803: First British settlement established, administered from New South Wales.
1825: Proclaimed the British Colony of Van Diemens Land.
1853: First stamps inscribed Van Diemens Land issued.
1856: Renamed Tasmania, January 1.
1858: First stamps inscribed Tasmania issued.
1901: Joined Australia, January 1.
1902: Australian postage due stamps first used in Tasmania.
1913: Australian postage stamps first used in Tasmania.
1914: Tasmanian stamps withdrawn from sale.

Do you include postage dues Bee See?
must be your call.
For the benefit of readers,and the record,
but not appropriate for BeeSee's page,
the first stamp Inscribed Van Dieman's land
was the 2d orange or black Newspaper duty stamp
of 1827.

Wow Rod, any pics of that stamp?

Another thing, I am still not sure what to do about the "Southern Ocean".

Wow Bee See, impressive, I love the maps.

Re Indian Ocean / Southern Ocean, why not look in an old atlas or old map and see how the British settlers called it then or Captain Cook or other explorers even.

Old maps on this site call it Indian Ocean.
http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/ser...No,Series_No

Where is New South Wales or maybe even the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) for modern completeness on the Australia map?

What is needed is little grey kangaroos and Tasmanian devils and tigers and birds other indigenous wildlife populating the map perhaps(like on old maps) or perhaps the edges of the page (illuminating like old manuscripts or scroll / books).

Just send your pages off to the monastery for a few years to get this done. Gold leaf and filagree and gilding on the edges of the pages would look good too.