ipdesign

Great collections are more than just an assemblage of stamps. They are created with a purpose, an underlying goal, and in the best of collections this purpose is to explore all the varieties and rarities that can be obtained. By this standard one of the finest collections ever assembled is the United States collection created […]

Among the many different types of stamps and covers to collect, one of the more interesting is state postal history and covers. Each state has its own rich history and most states have collector societies devoted to advancing collecting of local postal history. Recently, I came across a pretty good collection of Colorado postal history.

Double dip used to be two scoops of ice cream on a warm summer night. Now it means a recession that never ends. Economists are predicting a “lost decade” like the one that Japan has been enduring for nearly two decades now, with low economic growth and high unemployment.It’s hard to know what is really

The APS show that was held in Richmond this past weekend was quite a success. The venue was attractive and the attendance was excellent. Dealers reported brisk sales and lots of interest. I always enjoy APS conventions and have only missed a few in the last forty years. When I was young, Apfelbaum was in

When it comes to matters of money, people vote with their feet. If a business or organization gives good value it will thrive. The fact that the membership of the APS has been declining has many factors but, most significantly, membership is not seen as important enough by many stamp collectors to spend $45 a

The annual APS convention (which is this weekend in Richmond) is held each year in August and it provides a good opportunity to look at some of the trends in our hobby over the last year. Organized philately has taken a hit as membership in the APS slid another 10%. If the society keeps up

We’ve just introduced our new web site and I invite you to take a look. It provides the usual selling tools (links to our auctions etc) but besides that it has links to Apfelbaums corner a series of articles that my grandfather wrote in the 1960’s and 1970’s. It has the Apfelbaum philatelic library- a

The American Philatelic Society annual convention, called Stampshow, will be held in Richmond, Virginia August 12-15. The APS has an annual meeting and convention each summer and moves the event around the country in an attempt to give geographical access to collectors who wish to attend. The APS has fallen on hard times in the

First issues of every country have always been popular with stamp collectors. Many collectors collect first issues of the world and there has always been a tremendous appeal to casual collectors to acquire the first issues of the countries that they collect so that the number ones and twos of most countries sell extremely well.