Do You Label Stamps Mounted On Blank Pages? In What Manner?

Hi,
I've got about 100 Scott quadrille blank pages for the International albums upon which I'll hinge those stamps that just don't have a home on the printed album pages.

Of course I'll header the page with the country name, but I'm conflicted as to what I should label each stamp - of even if I should label each stamp.

I will identify them by sub group (i.e. airmail, regular, official, etc.). But after that, I'm uncertain as to whether I should put the Scott number under each stamp, or the year issued, or both, or nothing.

What have you done in labeling your stamps on blank pages, and has it served you well?

Thank you,
Mobilman44

I sometimes label, or put notations by stamps in my specialized collections. Usually, the collection will contain a page of mint stamps...followed by a page of the same stamps in used condition...followed by a page, or pages which may contain multiples, plate flaws, various cancellations, color varieties, or marginal copies. I make notations in pencil with a .5mm lead (HB grade). I do this when there is information about a particular item which I believe I could forget. This practice has worked well for me.

I do it similarly with my Plate Number Coils. But I have to add that I print my own album pages.
In case of my Japanese Occupation of Dutch East Indies I do use quadrilled pages. I write anything I need to on the page - the little squares help me to write neatly! ( The reason I still use these pages is that the collection dates from before the sixties and I have no intention to redo the whole thing! )

Peter

mobilman44,
I make up small labels on the computer and print them out on cream-colored paper. I use PowerPoint and make a box around the text so when I cut it out the label has a frame.

Here's an example:

bookbndrbob's approach is sophisticated and elegant.

This is what I do too.

Only if you have nice handwriting

Chris2015, that pages is really elegant! What a great idea to pre-print the little "labels" (in case you make a mistake, for one reason). You don't say, but I assume you glue them onto the page with something like rubber cement?

To respond to the question that was asked, I've noticed that most collectors who mount stamps on blank pages, for some reason don't label them. Maybe they'll include a country (or type of stamp -- "Airmails") heading, but that's about it. This has always seemed strange to me. A collection isn't just a stockbook of stamps, it's a presentation. Without some information, the collection is mute, just stamps mounted on pages.

I want my pages to make it clear what the viewer is looking at. So, I suggest adding short identifiers to groups or types of stamps. That would include the year issued and the subject of the stamps if it's not already clear. Beyond that, if it's relevant perhaps type of paper or perf measurements might be useful, though not usually.

Beyond these fairly "classical" types of information, my favorite albums to look at are the more personalized ones. I've bought a few albums created by other collectors (who I assume had passed on) which are interesting not so much because they have stamps on the page but because the collector had something to say about the stamps. Often this is simply what I've mentioned above, but sometimes it's more. It might be a comment on the attractiveness of the stamp, its purpose, a note about what makes it special, sometimes a critical remark, as well. These are things that are not in catalogues but which might be known at the time, information that personalizes a collection and makes it more interesting. Most of these pages are handwritten, and I find that the handwriting information makes them that much more personal -- assuming it's legible, of course. "Typing" is fine, but not as appealing to me.

I'm not talking about the long and windy descriptions of each and every stamp which some album makers use (White Ace is one, if I remember correctly) which occupy too much space on the page. I mean short descriptions and comments. It just makes the collection much more personal and therefore much more interesting. If there's nothing like that on your album pages, your stamps are just going to get removed by the next collector for their own albums. I'd like my albums to be somewhat interesting for people to look at, and maybe some of them will be preserved because what I include is interesting to someone.

So, yes, I'd label groups of stamps briefly, at the minimum. And I might write a comment where it seems useful, as well.