Colnect on Sberatel - Part 1

Colnect presented on Sberatel 2011 fair in Prague, Czech Republic. The fair has been attended by over 12,000 people. It has been a lot of fun to meet Colnect members and collectors who were not yet familiar with Colnect.

Colnect's first fantasy banknotes have been publicly presented for the first time. Here you can see the Colnect dollar presented

Colnect had a table right at the entrance to the fair so that visitors would see Colnect as the first thing in the fair. Our table featured Frognector Da-Green himself, new fliers (or: fantasy banknotes) of Colnect, Colnect T-Shirts and a projector that played videos of Colnect and presented the site in real time.





Here Colnect's founder, Amir Wald [tcawe], is seen waiting for collectors at the table. Each day Mr. Wald put on a Colnect T-Shirt of a different color.



On this picture you can see Frognector and Moo resting after sipping a tasty Czech beer.



This year's fair has been a success as published by its organizer, Mr. Jindřich Jirásek: "This year's Collector Fair, 14th in a row, was the biggest in its history - both as for the space expanse and the number of the participating exhibitors. The number of paying visitors entering its gate exceeded 12,000... Many thanks to all visitors and to all 260 exhibitors, this time from 35 countries from all around the globe, for coming..."

More pictures from the fair coming in part 2...

Giving Life to a New Catalog - Meet Carine De Pauw [crookscarine]

Meet one of Colnect's most notable contributors and the creator and coordinator of the world's most extensive tea bag catalog, Carine de Pauw [crookscarine]. As her Colnect profile shows, Carine is a serious collector of stamps, phone cards, tea bags and beer mats. She has been a Colnect member since 2005, when Colnect was still a website only catering to phone card collectors.



Carine has just celebrated her birthday and we thought it would be a good time to feature her on Colnect's blog and ask her a few questions.

When and how did you begin collecting in general and tea bags specifically?

I've started to collect stamps during my childhood. Now I have other collections as well, of which the most important ones are phone cards and teabags.
Our daughter began collecting teabags in 1996. She didn't have enough time so I took it over. I'm always looking for new items for all my collections.
Luckily I have a lot of good friends and relatives who are helping me. Every time they are going on holidays, they come back with new collectibles I can add to my collections.



How and why did you start tea bag category on Colnect?

As I knew many people who collected teabags, I've asked Amir [tcawe] to start a tea bag category on Colnect. He was happy to add the new category and I became the coordinator of the tea bags catalog in August 2009.
Now I post scans of my own teabags and of the ones I receive from the other members. For the time being we are with 150 tea bag collectors. The catalog shows 13,236 teabags from 1,139 brands and out of 75 different countries.

How often do you use Colnect?

I'm now using the site on a daily basis to manage my swaps and to add new tea bags to our tea bag catalog.



What do you like best about Colnect?
Colnect is perfect. You can reach many collectors from all over the world.
Of course new members are more than welcome. The more members we have, the bigger our teabag collection will be, and the more possibility we have to exchange.
Last but not least I would like to thank Amir for all the work he's doing.



Thank you Carine for the interview and we all wish you a happy birthday, happy collecting and enjoyable time on Colnect :)

Kolaportið, Reykjavik, Iceland - Icelandic Collectors

Collectors be warned, Frognector is out on the loose and has started his journey around the world. You can meet Frognector and Colnect's founder, Amir Wald, when they pass near you. Big collector club conventions and collector fairs are Frognector's favorites but if you have an interesting collectors shop or own an interesting personal collection, don't hesitate to make contact. If you meet Frognector and get to take a picture with him and your collection, you may win cool prizes such as Colnect memorabilia and Colnect premium membership.

Finding collectors in Iceland was not an easy task for Frognector. When he heard of the weekend market in Kolaportið, Reykjavík he was excited.



The trip there unveiled two stalls (there's supposed to be a third one) of charmingly nice collectors who also sell Icelandic stamps, Icelandic coins, Icelandic banknotes and other collectibles.



Frognector heard about the different collecting clubs in Iceland and learnt that there are relatively a lot of collectors in Iceland. However, as it's a country with a relatively small population, only ~330,000 people, there aren't that many collectors.

A big challenge to collectors in Iceland who wish to exchange with other collectors is the Icelandic customs. Many times they charge a very high tax rate which can make a swap or trade too costly.

We wish to welcome collectors from Iceland to join Colnect and be a part of our growing community. So if you're an Icelander, join us now. If you're not but know collectors from Iceland, help them join Colnect. Iceland has produced some beautiful collectibles and we'd all benefit from having more collectors from Iceland on Colnect.


Happy collecting :)

Colnect on Sberatel, Prague - HUGE Discount to Colnect Members

We are pleased to announce that Colnect will soon present on Sberatel collector fair in Prague. You are welcome to have your picture taken with Frognector and meet some of Colnect's most influential members: Amir Wald [tcawe] , Vadym Sulimenko [Dravec] , Gary Hoff [gazzaoz] and more.

SPECIAL: Colnect members will receive 75% admission discount: Sberatel Voucher for Colnect Members!

Icelandic Collectors in Iceland?

Collectors be warned, Frognector is out on the loose and has started his journey around the world. You can meet Frognector and Colnect's founder, Amir Wald, when they pass near you. Big collector club conventions and collector fairs are Frognector's favorites but if you have an interesting collectors shop or own an interesting personal collection, don't hesitate to make contact. If you meet Frognector and get to take a picture with him and your collection, you may win cool prizes such as Colnect memorabilia and Colnect premium membership.

Where are the collectors in Iceland? Frognector has been circling the island for over 2 weeks and have not yet met one dedicated collector. The views in Iceland are great and the pools are hot, but where are the collectors?



Iceland has a total population of nearly 330,000 people altogether. There are bound to be some dedicated collectors here. There were a few on Colnect before, but none of them is now active. If you know of any, please let us know.

Frognector Sees Coins and Banknotes at the British Museum

Collectors be warned, Frognector is out on the loose and has started his journey around the world. You can meet Frognector and Colnect's founder, Amir Wald, when they pass near you. Big collector club conventions and collector fairs are Frognector's favorites but if you have an interesting collectors shop or own an interesting personal collection, don't hesitate to make contact. If you meet Frognector and get to take a picture with him and your collection, you may win cool prizes such as Colnect memorabilia and Colnect premium membership.

Even at the height of summer, London is not missing rain. There's surely a reason the weather is a common topic of discussion.



But such rainy days offer other interesting alternatives, such as the world famous British Museum which holds amazing pieces of art from around the globe.





Perhaps more interestingly for collectors, there are nice sections of world coins and world banknotes on display.



Even a few bank cards and phone cards are out on display.



So the next time you visit the British Museum in London, don't focus only on eating in the cafeteria.



Focus on the interesting coins, banknotes, bank cards and other items on display.

Charing Cross Collectors Fair

Collectors be warned, Frognector is out on the loose and has started his journey around the world. You can meet Frognector and Colnect's founder, Amir Wald, when they pass near you. Big collector club conventions and collector fairs are Frognector's favorites but if you have an interesting collectors shop or own an interesting personal collection, don't hesitate to make contact. If you meet Frognector and get to take a picture with him and your collection, you may win cool prizes such as Colnect memorabilia and Colnect premium membership.

Quite an odd and interesting collectors fair (or market) is held every week in Charing Cross.



It is located in an underground parking space where dozens of sellers present their coins, banknotes, stamps and, more rarely, other items such as postcards other memorabilia.



Frognector and Colnect's founder, Amir, were introducing Colnect to the sellers and collectors in the market but, with the exception of one Colnect member, it seems most are not yet accustomed or wishing to use the Internet. Some have promised to check Colnect out and perhaps one of them is now reading this post :)



Which collector markets are held next to where you live?

Which collector markets have you visited when being abroad?

Frognector in London - An Ancient Meteorite

Collectors be warned, Frognector is out on the loose and has started his journey around the world. You can meet Frognector and Colnect's founder, Amir Wald, when they pass near you. Big collector club conventions and collector fairs are Frognector's favorites but if you have an interesting collectors shop or own an interesting personal collection, don't hesitate to make contact. If you meet Frognector and get to take a picture with him and your collection, you may win cool prizes such as Colnect memorabilia and Colnect premium membership.

When visiting London, Frognector did not forget to have his picture taken next to important monuments such as the British parliament.

And let's not neglect the famous London Underground and the magnificent city view from Greenwich village.




Next, Frognector's next to probably the oldest rock you could ever touch: a part of the Gibeon meteorite that is believed to have hit the Earth in prehistoric times.




Coming next: Charing cross collectors market and collecting at the British Museum.

Have you been to London? What did you like best?

Collectors Take Heed! Frognector's World Journey Commences

SPOILER ALERT: great music video in the end of the post.

Collectors be warned, Frognector is out on the loose and has started his journey around the world. You can meet Frognector and Colnect's founder, Amir Wald, when they pass near you. Big collector club conventions and collector fairs are Frognector's favorites but if you have an interesting collectors shop or own an interesting personal collection, don't hesitate to make contact. If you meet Frognector and get to take a picture with him and your collection, you may win cool prizes such as Colnect memorabilia and Colnect premium membership.

The journey started in TLV airport where Frognector had enjoyed his last supply of tahini before setting out to London, United Kingdom. Tahini is very healthy and Frognector makes a great hummus even though some humans don't like the added nutritional value of flies added.




The picture heading this post, as well as those followed here are from the South Bank area. Grafiti is abundant is a small area for all rollers (bikers, skateboarders and such).



But children needn't worry as a fake beach was created where sand is in plenty as well.




And relaxing on the river bank, there's always time to make new friends.




And finally rest on a fake beach.



When the sun is down, another stroll revealed these extremely talented street musicians.




Next Destinations?
Frognector is planned to stay around London unless you can lure him next to your place. Frognector will land in Iceland's captial, Reykjavik, on July 21st and then continue to travel around Iceland.

300,003 Phone Cards on the World's Biggest Phone Card Catalog

The world's biggest and most extensive phone card catalog has now surpassed 300,003 unique phone cards. The amazing growth of the phonecard catalog reflects the tireless efforts of many volunteer contributors.

300,003

We would like to especially commend Ignacio F López Vico [iflvico] and Carlos Rodriguez [venezuelanphonecards]. Ignacio has been our dedicated and talented phone card coordinator for a long time before becoming our respected community manager. Carlos has filled Ignacio's role as a coordinator for a few months and has also been doing a fantastic job.

The diversity of the catalog is incredible and many phone cards are continuously added from around the world. There are now 236 countries represented on our phone card catalog. Even during the last week, phone cards from 33 different countries have been added, including China, Iran, United States, Nepal, Russia, France, Israel, Greece, Luxembourg and more.

Click any of these phone card images to see some of the recent additions:

Colnect's catalog, created by volunteering collectors for all the collectors in the world, is the world's biggest and most extensive phone card catalog. It's unique wiki-like nature is the main reason for its rapid growth and development. Colnect has started with only phone cards and due to Colnect's catalog success we now have different categories such as coins, stamps and more.

We're always looking for more contributors to Colnect and if you have any phone cards missing on our catalogs, you're welcome to learn how easy it is to contribute to our catalogs.

Happy collecting :)

Collectors Alert: Problems With Mail and Packages to and from Venezuela

Collectors ALERT: if you're going to rely on postal services from Venezuela, please read the following warning published by our dear member Carlos Rodriguez [venezuelanphonecards]. More information can be found on Colnect's forum.

Hello fellow collectors,

I want to state that all incoming and outgoing mail from Venezuela are amazingly delayed, collectors have been waiting at about 3 or 4 whole months to receive their letters, so these delays are becoming a very serious problem, because it can´t be guaranteed that the letters are going to arrive in a short period of time till the problem with the mail system get solved

What i know from a employee is that the main branch at the capital city (Caracas) is currently out of capacity of handling the huge ammount of incoming and outgoing mail, so the handle the most recent mail and older mail has no priority. There is one more thing and is that the company don´t have efficient ways of transport, they trucks are used in other tasks different from Ipostel and also there are a lot of trucks out of service. There could be more reasons, unknown by me

The problem are not the secondary branches from the cities around Venezuela, they all work fine and efficiently, at least offices from Maracaibo works very well and efficient, as i´ve noticed, the main problem has always been the mail branch at Caracas

Having said all this, on behalf of the community of collectors of Venezuela i´m asking to the whole community of collectors of Colnect please understand this situation that has been developing for several months and when making or receiving a proposal for exchanging know the shipment will take longer than usual and you will have to be patient at the time of receiving the letter and know that any events that may occur after the letter was sent is not the responsibility of the sender but the company where the shipment is made

---

Quiero informar que todos los envios entrantes y salientes de Venezuela han estado enormemente atrasados, muchos coleccionistas han tenido que esperar entre 3 y 4 meses para recibir sus respectivas cartas. Estos atrasos se han convertido en un problema serio, ya que de esta forma no se puede garantizar que las cartas vayan a llegar en un corto tiempo hasta que el problema se resuelva

Lo que he sabido por una empleada es que en la sede principal en la capital Caracas es que están trabajando fuera de capacidad de manejo de la correspondencia, por lo tanto no pueden manejar las enormes cantidades de correo que entra y sale, entonces al manejar la correspondencia no se tiene ninguna prioridad ya que las cartas recientes son mezcladas con las viejas entonces se envía lo primero que este a la vista sin importar lo demás. Hay otra cosa mas y es que la empresa no cuenta con formas eficientes de transporte, los camiones son destinados a otros usos distintos a las funciones propias de Ipostel, eso sin mencionar el monton de camiones que están fuera de servicio. Pudiera existir otras razones, pero las desconosco

Una aclaración es que el problema no se debe a las sedes secundarios de las ciudades alrededor de Venezuela, en mi opinión todas funcionan bien, al menos aquí son muy eficientes, tal como lo he notado, el problema es cuando toda la correspondencia es enviada a la sede principal en Caracas

Habiendo dicho todo esto, en nombre de la comunidad de coleccionistas de Venezuela le pido a toda la comunidad de coleccionistas de Colnect que por favor, comprenda esta situación se ha venido desarrollando desde hace varios meses y la toma de cuándo o recibe una propuesta de intercambio de conocimientos el envío tomar más tiempo de lo habitual y tendrá que ser paciente en el momento de recibir la carta y sepan que todo evento que pueda ocurrir después de haber sido enviada la carta no es responsabilidad de quien envía sino de la empresa por donde se realiza el envio

Pido a todos los coleccionistas de Venezuela, aparte de mi persona, que actualmente tengan problemas con sus intercambios favor hagan sus comentarios aqui