StampCat Stamps is another fairly new YouTube channel that had escaped my radar up to now. The videos are hosted by Lisa Berthin, a young lady who is completely new to philately. During the pandemic, she decided one day to simply start collecting stamps. Her first video — shot in mid-February 2021 — features the unboxing of a mix (250 used stamps for $5) that officially launched her new hobby. Right from the start, her enthusiasm shines through as she shows that the packet is franked with current stamps from Greece and she is ready with her tongs.

Granted, that first mix was featured mainly topicals and was full of cancelled to order (CTO) stamps — something she addresses in her second video — but there were a couple of older Commonwealth items in there as well. I did cringe a little when her partner entered and started pawing through the stamps but he was also excited (and inadvertently creased one!). I was impressed that she sorted the mixture and then stated her collecting goals. Definitely a step up from your average “newbie collector” video.

Following that auspicious debut, StampCat has another 33 videos which are a nice mix, often researching a subject portrayed upon a stamp or stamps, entity profiles, topicals, viewer mail, and the like. Most are between seven and 15 minutes in length with the longest clocking-in at just under 30 minutes (a viewer mail episode, something I always enjoy). The most recent is “MailDay #7“, filmed on 19 September. According to the YouTube statistics, StampCat currently has 992 subscribers and 24,279 views.

Well done, StampCat Stamps. I think I will spend this very rainy night binge-watching the 32 episodes I have yet to view. I will start with the episode highlighting master engraver Czeslaw Slania.