2d Blue Beyond The Point Of Saving?

Thanks for all the advice everyone. Its amazing how careful and particular we all are and I suppose it pays testament to the regard in which we hold each stamp. In most hobbies that are around this long there's a fixed way of doing things but it's actually nice that on this side of things everything is open for discussion and consideration. You're dead right Don, there's history in the condition and that's a huge part of it, I suppose it's just about preservation of everything attached to the stamp whether its physical or not. At the end of the day I just used plain old water and it had a very small but noticeable effect on the face but cleaned up the back nicely :)

The hydrogen peroxide thing is best done with just a humid environment. No need to have the stamp in physical contact with the solution. I've seen a 'sweat box' type of arrangement where the stamp was kept in one chamber and the solution in another, with just evaporation going between them. A quick rinse in water after a while in the humidifier pretty much removes all the oxidation without bleaching any of the paper.
I have seen plenty of stamps that went through too soapy a bath. They have nice bright looking paper and design, but when you hit it with UV you can see why. :) A single drop of soap in a bowl of water should be just fine though.