My Birthday Postcard Giveaway

In celebration of my upcoming birthday, I'm giving out three postcards, three refrigerator magnets, plus surprise gifts.

Just leave a comment to enter the lottery.  I'll pick the winners on November 5, 2011. 


Find out who the winners are in this post.


Wishing you happy journeys...

Sunday Stamps: Suomi in Bloom and Stamps that Glow

"Flowers are those little colorful beacons of the sun from which we get sunshine when dark, somber skies blanket our thoughts."

Flowers, indeed, brighten up one's gloomy day. So for this week's Sunday Stamps, allow me to perk up your Sunday by featuring these lovely flower postage stamps from Finland. 


The first stamp features red amaryllis belladonna flowers.  It was released on 06 November 2009.  The rich red color of the flower evokes the festive color of Christmas. 

The two circular self-adhesive stamps below were issued in April of this year.  I received these two stamps separately from two Finnish postcrossers.

Apart from the interesting shape, the dahlia stamps also glow in the dark.  (Erratum: I'm sorry for the wrong information.  I relied on a blog entry claiming that the stamps are glow-in-the-dark kinds, but it turned out they weren't.  I did a little experiment to find out if they really glow in the dark, but they didn't.  I guess the blogger misunderstood the description of the stamps, which read as:  "the two incandescent dahlias are easy to pick up from the dark sheet....")


Below is what the dahlia stamp sheet looks like:    

Indeed, against a dark background, the dahlias would seem to glow.  


Anyway, don't despair because there are indeed glow in the dark Finnish stamps! 

The Finland Postal Service issued this souvenir sheet in 2003.  It is said to be the world's first  glow in the dark lighthouse stamps.  Featured on the stamps are the Bengtskar, Russaro, Ronnskar, Harmaja, and Sodeskar lighthouses.  


Printed in the border above the stamps are the years that the each lighthouse was built and the height of each structure above sea level.  The Bengstkar Lighthouse was built in 1906 and stands 43.8 meters.  The Russaro Lighthouse was erected in 1863 and measures 21.4 meters in height.   Constructed in 1800 and standing 30 meters tall is the Ronnskar Lighthouse. The Harmaja Lighthouse was built in 1883 and stands 14 meters.  The Sodeskar Lighthouse, which was built in 1862, measures 32.5 meters in height.  


On the other side of the world, Malaysia and New Zealand also issued interesting luminous stamps.

Glow in the dark butterfly stamps from Malaysia
Issued in April 2008

Glow in the dark nocturnal animal stamps
Issued in March 2008

Glow in the dark New Zealand lighthouse stamps
Issued in 2009

How I wish I could get my hands on these awesome glow in the dark stamps! 


Wishing you happy journeys...

For more interesting stamps, head on to Viridian's Blog