Take A Great Big Whiff

The great thing about stamp collecting is that you can collect whatever sparks your interest. Scratch and sniff stamps are some of the stamps that I find the most fun and interesting to collect.

The first scented stamp was released by Bhutan in 1973. It featured six stamps in the series, all with a beautiful rose scent. During the production of the stamps, each stamp was perfumed to smell like a rose by soaking in rose essence. Each stamp smelled like the rose that was depicted on the individual stamp.

The scratch and sniff technology has been around for quite some time (since the 1940’s). You might be wondering how scents are captured onto the actual stamps. The process is called Micro-encapsulation. Tiny particles (essence) are surrounded by a microscopic coating. When the surface is scratched on a stamp, only a few scented particles are released at a time. The scent will last easily for 5 years if not longer depending on the amount of scratching done
to the stamp.

Since the successful launch of the scented stamp in Bhutan, many other countries have released their own scented stamps. Flowers are by far the most popular scented stamp produced.

Keep a watch out for more scented stamp news that will be coming soon. Click here to view an amazing array of stamps and stamp collecting products.