An Arpin Philately initiative – Dealing in Quality Stamps since 1969
Lisa 
Winter has arrived and what a perfect time to organize our stamp albums. Arpin Philately is pleased to announce that the 2011 CWS stamp supplements for Canada stamps have arrived. These supplements contain the illustrated pages you will need to keep your stamp albums looking perfect and up-to-date. CWS offers supplements for the following Canada stamp albums: Unity, Uni (french), Dominion (english and french), Tradition/Constitution and Parliament.
Now that colder days have arrived, it’s an ideal time to organize your stamp albums! Arpin Philately is happy to announce that the 2011 CWS stamp supplements for Popular World stamp albums have arrived. These supplements are made to fit some of the most popular World stamp albums such as: Planet Earth, World Travel, World Deluxe, World Senior, Olympian, World Nations, World Phoenix, 21st Century, and others as well. They are available in 3 formats to fit your specific album.
Now that you know how to grade the condition of your stamps, you may feel ready to either purchase or sell some stamps. However, if you are dealing in Mint stamps, there is another factor you need to understand in order to determine the proper value—the never hinged surcharge (NH%). This is a percentage to be added to the regular price (the value of a mint previously hinged stamp); this will give you the final value of a stamp that has never been hinged. For Canadian stamps, the never hinged surcharge value of each stamp is established and printed in the Unitrade Specialized Catalogue of Canadian Stamps and represented by the NH% symbol.
Condition grading can sometimes be very confusing as it is a subjective evaluation and even veteran experts may disagree on some points. The overall quality must be taken into consideration before a grade can be determined. Many points must be examined in detail, both front and back, before a conclusion can be made. A close study of the centering, the perforations, the cancellation and the paper must be made in order to determine the presence of any hidden flaws. A very fine appearing stamp may under close examination be downgraded to fine or even to defect. This knowledge is necessary and very important as the grading of a stamp will dramatically influence the price of a stamp.
On November 1st, 2011, Canada Post began issuing three new stamps as part of its Christmas 2011 series. This year’s theme for the new stamps is ‘Stained Glass’. The craft of colouring glass goes back to ancient times. In ancient Egypt, colouring glass was used to make beads and jewelery, as well as ornamental and decorative pieces. The ancient Romans are also known to have manufactured coloured glass; some of these artifacts can still be viewed in various museums.
On November 1st, 2011, Canada Post began issuing a new stamp in its Christmas series featuring ‘Holly’. This plant, with its pointy green leaves and bright, red berries is a popular decoration during this winter holiday. The stamp depicts a highly coloured, red and green holly plant against a snowy background.
Welcome to the fascinating world of stamp collecting. Everyone has different reason for collecting, some enjoy collecting according to specific themes, others to learn about history, others still as an investment. Whatever your reasons, starting a new hobby can be a little intimidating at first and you may feel you need help getting to know your way around. That is why Arpin Philately has decided to post a series of articles helping you to understand the basics of stamp collecting-the stamp ABC’s!
On October 3rd, 2011, Canada Post issued a new stamp commemorating the International Year of Chemistry. The opening ceremonies of the IYC took place in Paris, France in January and events continue until the end of 2011. According to the committee, the purpose is to increase the public’s appreciation of chemistry and how it has shaped our lives.
On September 6, 2011, Canada Post began issuing a new stamp in its Mental Health series. The design of the stamp was opened up to all Canadians and the favourite design out of the five finalists was voted on by the public. The winning stamp was the entry by Miriane Majeau of Terrebonne, QC, entitled ‘The Puzzle’.
On August 17th, 2011, Canada Post will begin issuing a new stamp series commemorating important Canadian innovations. You may be surprised to learn which objects used in your day to day life have a ‘Made in Canada’ stamp on them! These stamps will feature the following inventors and their inventions: Thomas Ahearn-the electric oven and stove, George J. Klein-the electric wheelchair, Dr. John Hopps-the pacemaker, and Mike Lazaridis-the Blackberry.