Storing Postcards

[cuppatea2]

Hi:

I've been buying postcards on Ebay for a few years now and am now facing the issue of storing them. What is your preference? Albums? Storage boxes? I'd appreciate any advice or ideas.  

Thanks!

[allotment]

I'm a seller who also collects.

My cards for sale are stored in boxes with each card in a acid free polyprotec sleeve (there are orher brands).

For my private collection I use both boxes and albums. The cards in the boxes are a 'work in progress', those in the albums are completed sets or groups. I collect Raphael Kirchner, Art Nouveau, and Art Deco Postcards.

Albums are best once you have a group of related items, a set of cards, a theme, etc. Think in terms of a set of six related cards, they will always look better and be easier to enjoy or display when gathered together in a single album page. Once in the album the cards are unlikely to be moved. The albums I use have six acid free poly slots per page and additional pages can be added to the album as necessary. The album itself fits into an outer sleeve that prevents any dust and so on.

Boxes are great for interim storage; for the set that's missing just one card; for the cards were where you hope to find a better condition example or where you've just not decided where it belongs in the collction.

Whatever storage medium you use it's important to ensure that you use materials that are designed to preserve the card. If you have a local postcard collectors society in your area they will be able to advise on suppliers.  Failing that a stamp collectors supplier can often help.

Hope this helps

Linda

About Postcards

[cuppatea2]

Thanks Linda - that is exactly the type of advice I was looking for!  I will bookmark your site as well in case I have other questions. 

[allotment]

I should have also have mentioned that when storing cards in boxes that it's a good idea to have each card in an individual sleeve to ensure that no colour or postal marks migrate from card to card. I've lost count of the number of times that I've found an un-noticed exceptional card among a collection of others has been damaged as a result of poor storage.

If in doubt......... protect as best you can and check them regularly.

Linda

About Postcards

[merriette]

A question in regard to storing: like you, I was storing all my best postcards in books, archival postcard books, which were pretty expensive, but not nearly as expensive as replacing my collection. After a month, say, I noticed that cards would start to curl I think because of the way pressure was being distributed on them from the flaps of the book.

So I flipped all the books over in the opposite direction for the next month--then I encountered the same problem for that side. So I stacked them on the shelves, on top of one another for the next month, found a similar kind of curling problem; flipped them so each was facing the other direction--ridiculous!

Finally, I took the advice of one of the members of my old postcard club and slid them in rigid sleeves and set them back in boxes, where I'd first had them.

My question is: what sort of books/albums do you use for storing your postcards? I would far prefer to store mine this way.

(Sorry for the long-windedness.)

[allotment]

Our albums are simple ring binders with heavy duty archival quality polyprotec sleeves within, six cards to a page. Polyprotec is a UK brand name I think but I'm sure there will be equivalents in the US. For me the key to avoid curvature was to ensure that the albums were not overfilled and then to store the binders with the spine uppermost such that pages were suspended (think in terms of an inverted letter U where the binder rings are at the top). The binders were held in groups within a cardboard outer box. Perhaps not an elegant solution but it has proved to be one that has worked.

I have recently started selling my husbands personal collection (we are retiring)and have started to take cards out from storage as above where they have been in the albums for nearly 20 years. All of them are curvature free and just as they were when first purchased.

Hope this helps
Best wishes
Linda

[due2cents]

i use the Tupperware bread box nice tight seal holds a hard sleeve
nicely

but i guess it depends on your style of collecting
as mentioned before
some like sets ,artists topic

me i do it by date mailed as i only collect postally used ones..

.

[merriette]

Thanks, that does help!
Best,
Merry