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stamps & stamp collecting,
and want to increase your knowledge on these topics, then you have come to right place.
stamps & stamp collecting,
and want to increase your knowledge on these topics, then you have come to right place.
Hello,
If you are interested in exchanging stamps with me, you have come to the right place. Over the last decade, I’ve made over 500 successful stamp exchanges (view archives for 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 2017, 2018 ) using this blog. Anyone can participate, but there is a specific set of practices and rules that all participants MUST agree to follow.
Rules for Stamp Exchange (revised Aug 2022)
It has been a few years since I last had open for all stamp exchange. The world around is now very different. My life is very different (thus I kept a break of few years). Therefore the rules of this stamp exchange have gone through thorough changes as well.
Rule #1. You must live within EU in order to participate
Over the past few years, there has been great changes with postal regulations worldwide. These rules have made stamp exchanges across continents very difficult as you are obliged to deal with customs declarations even if the value of stamps swapped is literally nill. So therefore I am very sorry to say that from 2022 onwards, this stamp exchange of mine is for collectors within European Union only. For my long term stamp exchange friends in US, Canada, Australia etc – I am sorry.
Rule #2. You must be prepared to sent first if this is your first exchange with me.
I have done a massive amount of stamp exchanges during my life, and one of the over-and-over issues has been mixed quality of stamps. I have zero interest on stamps that have faults, but occasionally up to 30-50% of the stamps I have received for exchange have contained faults such as thins, creases, rust spots, missing teeth etc. If I give you 100 solid stamps, then I expect to receive 100 solid stamps in return. If you are new to this, consider this first exchange as a test that you need to pass.
Rule #3. This is pick-and-choose based on actual photos of stamps you can get
This is very easy…. No bulk exchanges, no blind swaps. Both parties send photos of stamps available and get to pick-and-choose from those photos. No blurry photos, no overlapping stamps, no sample images, no stamps that are taken by somebody else. Just good and clear photos/scans of the stamps you are actually providing at the moment for exchange. The goal is to pick 100-150 stamps during single exchange.
Rule #4. Be prepared to offer/take stamps from at least 5 different countries, with no more 20% from single country.
As I am a worldwide collector, my interest lies in getting stamps in/out from as many countries as possible. So that this stamp exchange of mine does not turn into ‘I get 100 US (or any other common country) stamps in exchage for 100 Aland Islands stamps’, I have come up with a simple rule. You must be able to provide stamps from at least 5 countries, and no single country may present more than 20% of stamps swapped. And of course I will abide for the same policy.
Rule #5. Find time to prepare, commit and finnish the exchange in time.
When you are exchanging with multiple people or when you want more-and-more stamps for single swap, it is very easy for the exchange to drag what seems like forever. This is something I am not looking for. Instead I like to have very simple, fast and clean exchanges that could be pulled through within a single night (thus the amount of stamps is limited to 100-150). I will not do multiple swaps at the same, but instead to commit to “rule of one exchange at a time” (and I hope you do the same) with “first come, first served” policy.
Rule #6. I am looking for used stamps only. You can ask from me mint, mint hinged, used, or mixture of all.
And yes, I accept CTO-used for exchange as well. But please acknowledge that CTO-used stamps are worth only other CTO-used stamps.
Rule #7. Classic, modern or mixed?
You get to choose what era of stamps would you like to swap with me. Classic (1840-1945), modern (1945-2022), or mixed ?
That’s all…. If you are interested in doing some stamp exchanges with me, drop a comment below, and I will contact you privately for the arrangements.
-keijo-
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