Hobbies And Interests
Things You'll Need
Instructions
Fill the bowl with cool-to-lukewarm water. Do not use hot water or you could damage the stamp paper or cause some of the colors to bleed.
Place the stamp ball in the water and allow to soak for about 10 minutes.
Pull the stamp ball out of the water and check if any of the stamps have begun to unstick from each other. If not, allow to soak for another 10 minutes and check back. Keep doing this until the stamps begin to unstick, then remove from water.
Pull gently on one edge of one of the stamps using your stamp tongs. The tongs are made not to puncture or cause damage, but you can still tear the stamps by pulling too hard. If the stamps resist pulling, soak for another 10 minutes.
Remove the loose stamps with the tongs and place carefully on the non-stick mat to dry completely.
Re-soak the ball of stamps after removing loose stamps. Eventually, the rest will become loose. Repeat Steps 3-5 until all stamps from the ball have been successfully removed and there are no more left to soak.
Open the large heavy book. Use the stamp tongs to move stamps from the mat to the book. Close the book and leave the stamps there for several days. The weight of the book ensures that any curling due to the water is flattened out.
Place the flattened stamps in a glassine envelope for storage. These types of envelopes are used by collectors to keep stamps free of debris, moisture and damage. The stamps won't stick to the envelope. This is optional, but can go a long way toward ensuring you don't have to unstick your stamps again.