January 1994 saw the release by Canada Post of a new-style self-adhesive stamp that offered a number of firsts in Canadian philately:

• the design and format of the stamps was such that there are no squared "corners" -- the edges are curved.

• the stamps were designed in a such a way that the public was able to "build" their own stamp. Seven different special occasion stickers were supplied that fit nicely onto the stamp image resulting in the possibility of 7 different stamps (in fact, the number is limitless, as we will see).

• as was customary with all previous Canadian self-adhesive stamps, the 43¢ Greeting booklet stamps were sold for a small premium over face value. However, all 45¢ booklets have been sold for their face value.

This article will touch upon the various booklets that have been issued, the numerous stickers that have appeared, how to identify the individual stamps and stickers, and finally a look at the inevitable errors that have occurred.

Wedding - May 9/94	Valentines - Feb 96	Hamilton - Jun 8/96	Santa - Dec 96

Hamilton error "Vignettes" spelled wrong

The design of the Greeting stamps lends themselves to some innovative alternatives. Examples have been seen with hand-drawn illustrations, photographs, etc., etc. Shown at right is an overprint applied to a limited number of entire booklets and sold as a promotional item.

Two of the five booklets contained seven different stickers, as illustrated to the left. Two other booklets contained only four different stickers. The fifth booklet, issued to commemorate the Chiropractic profession, contained four different stickers, however, these were not "Greeting" oriented. The circular stickers, like the stamps, are die-cut. The actual sticker image is larger than the removed sticker, except one -- a sticker in the Chiropractic booklet is a logo on a white background and did not require a surrounding border. As shown in the previous table, there are also five sticker-only items, producing three new sticker designs and two new sizes of sticker (heart and wedding).

[As an aside, the design of the Santa sticker was taken from a christmas stamp issued four years earlier, in 1992! Notice though that the "sticker" Santa is a mirror image of the "stamp" Santa.]