Top 7 Ways to Start a Stamp Collection for Free

1. Remove Stamps from Mail

Perhaps, the easiest means of obtaining stamps is by removing them from your letters. Simply cut around the stamp in the shape of a square or rectangle. Then, soak the cut stamps in a bowl of luke warm water for ten minutes. Once the stamps fall off of their paper backing, dip then in cool water, and allow them to dry. It is best that you put the stamps in a drying book or dry them between layers of paper towels, so they will flatten.

Don't receive that much mail? Try contacting family members, local businesses, schools, and other organizations. They may be willing to save their own mail for your collection.

2. Get Free Stamps Online (Kids)

The International Society of Worldwide Stamp Collectors will give any child, under the age of seventeen, a free stamp packet. Just have the child send in a self-addressed stamped envelope if they reside in the United States, or an international reply coupon if they live outside the U.S., to help with postage fees.

The ISWSC, also, supplies free stamps to school stamp clubs and other collecting groups for youngsters. Group leaders will have to write the ISWSC mentioning the number of kids involved, their ages and interests.

3. Get Free Stamps Online (Anyone)

Interested in free stamps and not under the age of 17? Arpin Philately offers beginning collectors a choice of four different free stamp packets: 50 Canadian Issues, 20 U.S. Issues, 50 Aviation Stamps, or 100 Worldwide Stamps. Choosing a packet enrolls you in their stamp approval program, but you can cancel at anytime.

What are stamp approvals? A stamp approval is a selection of stamps, sent through the mail, you can review for a period of time. Then, any stamps you don't want are sent back, along with, payment for those you keep. Approval stamps are a great way give to view a variety of stamps on a monthly basis.

4. Get a Free Stamp Catalog

Now that you have your stamps, you need to identify them. Mystic Stamp Company offers a free printed copy of their United States Stamp Catalog. Each catalog contains 128 pages of color photographs, a complete listing of U.S. postage stamps, valuable collecting tips, and fascinating philatelic history. The catalogs are send, postage free, to your home address, and all it takes is a few seconds to fill out an online form.

5. Download Album Pages

Need a place to put your stamps, and don't want to risk possibly damaging them in a shoe box? Try downloading, blank stamp album pages. The International Society of Worldwide Stamp Collector's offers a nice selection of blank album pages that can be customized to your collection. The interactive pages require Adobe Acrobat Reader to view, but luckly for us the ISWSC has a link to download the program.

6. Download Album Pages (Kids)

Planes, trains, lions, tigers, and space ships, oh my! Kids will love the fun themed album pages offered by the American Stamp Dealers Association. Just click and print. The hardest part will be deciding which pages to use.

7. Order Free Stamp Mounts

Now that you have your stamps, catalog, and album pages, you need a way to mount your stamps in your album. You should never tape, glue, or paste stamps onto your album pages. Washington Press, makers of StampMount brand mounts, will supply you with a package of mounts free of charge. All you need to do is fill out a quick one page online form. Not sure how to use your mounts? The Guide to Using Stamp Mounts will walk you through the stamp mounting process.