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I've been told that I take things too literally, so help me out here. It is my understanding that stamps need to be kept away from ultraviolet light, so I keep mine in a large Rubbermaid container. I would much rather shelve them as I have seen others do, or even put them in smaller Sterilite drawers or boxes. Do you find that light is an issue?
I just called SU! Demo Support on this question...
The guy that answered the phone went and asked the moderator for Stampin' Discuss (aka Mollie) since she is sort of the expert on that kind of stuff and she said she's never heard of that and he followed it up with it's not anything we (meaning SU!) say anywhere so he doesn't think so.
ozone and ultraviolet light are the main environmental degradants of all types of synthetic and natural rubbers. Ozone is an odorless gas, but is commonly thought of as the "electric train smell". Though more severe in cities and manufacturing centers, ozone is part of the air we breathe everywhere on earth. Hastened by the hazardous effects of UV light, ozone eventually causes rubber to dry and become brittle no matter the locale.
IMHO, I think direct sunlight might be a problem, but stamps stored on a shelf, with indirect lighting would probably be ok!
as a (self-titled) ozone "expert" (see note below), I believe that the damage occurs over a period of time if the rubber is consistently exposed to ozone and ultra-violet light.
my self-defined ozone expertness comes from when I had a contract position at a very large local company and I had the oh-so-fun job of contacting every supplier to make sure they filled out and returned an ozone safety document so that company could be given the official "our products are ozone free" stamp of approval. I had all kinds of info to read through. Okay, I'm no where near to being an expert but I do know there is a time and amout of exposure element to this issue. So, unless maybe you live in an intensely ozone-ish area and the UV light is constantly shining on your stamps, I don't think it's a big enough concern to keep you from storing your stamps on a shelf.
did the article say anything that contradicts my unofficial expert opinion?
Hey MaryAnn,
You could put some sunblock on your stamps. Then you could put them anywhere you wanted to, and you could even safely stamp with them at the beach or the park! Be sure to use at least a 30. I heard that 30 and under does nothing.
What about storing stamps at a high altitude? Should I be pumping oxygen into my craft cabinet? I'm at 6500 ft above sea level....
It's just the DIRECT sunlight that will do damage to your staps over time...the rubber will dry. Other than that you should be fine to store them on a shelf with no problem!
Hey MaryAnn,
You could put some sunblock on your stamps. Then you could put them anywhere you wanted to, and you could even safely stamp with them at the beach or the park! Be sure to use at least a 30. I heard that 30 and under does nothing.
What about storing stamps at a high altitude? Should I be pumping oxygen into my craft cabinet? I'm at 6500 ft above sea level....
girlygirl - you're on thin ice here! I thought we had already established that I am in charge of sarcasm and smart remarks. I'm willing to let it slide this time partly because it would have ruined my reputation as an expert if I had also made a smart remark and partly because I'm on a sugar high from the choc chip cookies I had for breakfast.
girlygirl - you're on thin ice here! I thought we had already established that I am in charge of sarcasm and smart remarks. I'm willing to let it slide this time partly because it would have ruined my reputation as an expert if I had also made a smart remark and partly because I'm on a sugar high from the choc chip cookies I had for breakfast.
Yes. Please. Pam is the Sarcasm and Smart Remark coordinator of SCS. Please step back and let her sarcasm ooze the way it's supposed to!!
;)
__________________ ~Debbi~
Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. ~Author Unknown
Another storage question...
