July 20, 2015

Stamp Collecting – Philately

Stamp collecting is one of the top hobbies worldwide.  As philatelists, we delight in little bits of art work that come from far away places, and that tell about a tiny bit of history, geography, social changes, or feature someone that has effected their country. The vast majority of the stamps that we collect cost less than a US quarter, yet bring hours and hours of fun as we track down complete year sets, special revenue issues, or even discover cancelled stamped envelopes from distant cities.

It is estimated that to have a complete worldwide collection you would have over 500,000 different stamps, from so many countries that Wikipedia has their own WikiProject just for collectors.   Many of us focus on several favorite countries, or perhaps a topic or theme that is important to us.

Where you might specialize in butterflies, steam engine trains, or famous women in history, I personally search for stamps that feature maps, geology, and space endeavors. On one of my stamp collecting forums, Stamp Community Forum, one member noted that he collected stamps that feature men with mustaches.

Treasure Trove of Ideas

As wood carvers, pyrographers, and craft artists stamp collecting is a treasure trove of ideas, designs, and pattern work.  Over the next few days I will be working on a pyrography pointillism project that features two Celtic birds, entwined in a Celtic knot pattern, inside of a traditional stamp frame.

Pointillism is the process of creating a design using only small dots.  Small, widely spaced dots will create our pale tonal values; medium-sized dots, loosely packed give us the mid-tone values; and large, tightly packed dots will make our dark tonal value range.

Art Styles of Pyrography

To learn more about the different styles and patterns that can be used in your pyrography work please check out Lora Irish’s Art Style of Pyrography – 190 pages, 15 projects, Ready for Download, which we have placed on sale for those following our blog and this free project.

This is a quick, easy, beginner’s level free pyrography project that can quickly be personalized to include your name, a date, or a location.  By the time we are done this project you will discover how you can create your own postage stamp designs by mix and matching topic patterns with stamp frames.

Supplies needed:

12″ x 12″- 1/4″ sheet of birch, poplar, or basswood plywood
Wood burning unit – either one temperature or variable
220-grit sandpaper
#2 to #4 soft pencil
Painter’s tape or masking tape
Red ball-point ink pen for tracing
Loop tipped burning pen
Ball tipped burning pen
Ruler

So, while you get your supplies together, I am off to get our newest e-Project completed, which will, of course, focus on stamp collecting designs and ideas.  See ya’ tomorrow with the free pattern to this project.  – Lora