1949 3d HMS Vanguard.

Here she is - 1949 3d HMS Vanguard.
Scroll down this page to see her and her six sisters, the only seven known examples.

Personal Message & Greeting Stamps.

        Sometime ago Anne did a post on Personalised Stamps. These seemed to have appeared in 2001 and continued on until today. Well recently we found another series of stamps that are close cousins to the Personalised Stamps, these are the Greeting Stamps. There appears to have been four of these issues with another two that appear to be a cross between Greeting and Personalised Stamps.

        This post is intended to cover the first four Greeting Stamp issues and I've also included the other two cross issues that are also found in our Personalised Stamps collection, (See link above.)

         Greeting stamps were usually issued in booklets so could be included in a booklet collection. Their purpose was to provide stamps for special purpose greeting cards and letters. The idea being that when you sent a birthday card you could use a stamp saying 'Happy Birthday' too.

Personalised Stamps

          Personalised Stamps have been issued in a number of formats since 2001. The basic idea is that you add your own photograph or logo to the one provided by NZ Post. Your personal stamps are then created and sent to you. While there is an extra cost involved you do get a postage stamp the is uniquely you.
          In this post, we intend to show you each issue listed by year on the one page. There is not much description needed and in many cases, the same design appears a number of times with different values. In some cases, the same stamp has appeared twice in the same issue with different values too. While this may not turn out to be the most popular post on this blog we all thought these issues need to be covered as they are genuine stamps able to be used for postage by their purchaser.
          Before Personalised Stamps, there was a series of four issues known as Greeting Stamps. These began in 1988 and went through until Personalised Stamps began in 2001. The first two issues of Personalised Stamps from 2001 and 2005 could also be considered as Greeting Stamps two so we have included them here and in our Greeting Stamp collection.

                

2014 - The Hobbit Personalised Stamps

        New Zealand Post wrote on their web site, "Join the mighty race of Dwarves with a brand new range of personalised stamps made especially for the final film in Sir Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy – The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies."

         For Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit fans this is another interesting and unusual stamp issue. It was released on the 15th October and consists of two parts. First is the collectors part which features a miniature sheet and its First Day Cover. Included on this sheet are the two stamp which can be seen to the right. Since these two stamps will be only sold in miniature sheets it is not expected that many will be used for postage.

        The second part is where a person can up-load their photo and make personal stamps for their own use. The idea here is that a person selects the dwarf of their choice whose hair and other features will be applied to their own photo. (See the pictures further down this post.)  The photo is then used to create a personalised stamp that is purchased in a sheet of 20 for $25.90.  

2014 Personalised Stamps.

        This one of a series issues that began in 2001 with new issues, new values, appearing regularly. For an over view of all of these issued see our thematic collection Personalised Stamps.

        In May 2014 New Zealand Post issued a new range of Personalised Stamps to meet changes in postal rates. The stamps feature a picture provided by the purchaser combined with a design from NZ Post to create a Personalised Stamp. Using a simple three step process, they can be ordered to your requirements and delivered quickly. A sheet of 20 stamps will cost you $23.90. They can be ordered via the NZ Post Web Site http://stamps.nzpost.co.nz/

          NZ Post describes these:-
          This vibrant range of Personalised Stamps has been issued to reflect the upcoming changes to postage rates. It allows you to give your mail that special touch by featuring your favourite photo or image alongside one of the gorgeous stamp designs.
          These Personalised Stamps are the perfect way to spread the good news about a wedding, an engagement, a new baby or a new pet. Use them on your Christmas cards, invitations or anything else you like! Alternatively, a sheet of 20 Personalised Stamps makes a great gift or a keepsake for yourself to remember a special event or occasion.

        These stamps are also offered in two sheets for collectors, one of eight stamps and one of four. The eight stamps all have a value of 80c while the four stamp sheet had two $2.00 stamps and two $2.50 stamps. Each sheet came with its own First Day Cover.
     
2014 All Blacks Rugby.
       I have also included the 2014 All Blacks Miniature Sheet as these stamps can be used as part of the 2014 Personalised Stamps issue.