stamps: botanical art

Image from: uses.com

The USPS continues its tradition of beautiful floral-themed stamps with the new Botanical Art stamps.

The stamp art features ten signs, each a detail of an illustration from an American nursery catalog printed between 1891 and 1912. the design details are courtesy of the New York Botanical Garden; the catalogs are part of the NYBG's Nursery and Seed Catalog Collection, one of the largest and most important collections in the U.S.

the artists responsible for the work seen on early nursery catalogs are mostly unknown to us now, but their captivating work lives on. 

The Botanical Art stamps will be issued as Forever® stamps.

You can read more about the Botanical Art stamps here.

stamps: quilled paper heart

Image from: usps.com

The newest stamp in the popular love series is the Quilled Paper Heart stamp. Quilling-also called paper filigree-involves rolling and shaping narrow strips of paper, laying them on their edges, and gluing them in place to form intricate designs.

The origin of the name "quilling" is obscure, but it might have come from the first tool used to create paper curls, the base of a feather or a quill. Quilling is believed to date from the 15th or 16th century. The first known quilters were monks and nuns in European religious houses.

Artist Yulia Brodskaya used heavy paper strips to create her design., choosing bright colors that would be appealing and eye-catching.

The Quilled Paper Hearts stamp will be issued as a Forever® stamp.

You can read more about the Quilled Paper Heart stamp here.