[from PostNL materials] [click on any of the pictures for larger versions]

Date of issue: 13 November 2023
Appearance: sheet of 20 December stamps in 10 different designs, with a special December rate for destinations in the Netherlands
Item number: 431461
Illustrations and design: Linde Faas, Tromsø (Norway)

The Netherlands doesn’t issue “Christmas” or “Holiday” stamps, but rather “December” stamps. The illustrations for the 2023 December stamps were created by illustrator Linde Faas from Tromsø, Norway.

Each year, PostNL issues new December stamps, which can be used by consumers and companies to send each other Christmas and New Year cards at a reduced rate. The special December rate of €0.96 per stamp is valid from 13 November 2023 until 6 January 2024. This year, a sheet of 20 December stamps costs € 19.20. (€0.96 is approximately US$1.02.)

When purchasing two sheets of December stamps at the store, each customer will receive a free gift: a Christmas ornament especially designed for PostNL by Vondels. This year’s ornament is in the shape of a dog with a letter in its mouth, derived from one of the illustrations on the December stamps.

The stories on this year’s December stamps are set in the far north. Dutch illustrator Linde Faas lives and works in Norway and draws a world full of magic and wonder. The special colours of the northern lights and the grandeur of the landscape create winter scenes full of atmosphere. People and animals enjoying new memories together and the happiness found in little things. Everywhere you discover surprising details, such as the vapour above the tea glass, next to the owl on the branch, around the bear in the forest and by the envelope with December mail.

The subjects are

• a festively set table with magical scenes in a steaming Christmas drink,
• people and animals watching falling stars together,
• a house under the northern lights with footsteps in the snow,
• a cat and a dog with a letter behind the window,
• a tree branch with an owl with birds and presents,
• a rabbit with an envelope with magical contents,
• people and animals decorating a Christmas tree together,
• a hedgehog in the snowstorm with a tall pile of presents,
• a bear surrounded by Christmas trees with birds as Christmas decorations, and,
• an animal parade with lights.

All typography on the December stamps and on the sheet edge was handwritten by Faas. The back of the December stamp sheet [right] features a description of what Linde wants to achieve with her illustrations. It also explains how to use the December stamps. Near the text area on the back is an illustration of a snowy winter forest. The headline “Boom versieren, kaarten versturen” translates as “decorate the tree, send cards.”

Faas didn’t have to think long when PostNL approached her about designing this year’s stamps. “Of course I wanted to!” she said. She follows on Instagram two designers responsible for prior years’ December stamps, Geertje Aalders and Miriam Bos. “I love their work. Back then, I was secretly thinking how great it would be if I could get to do this myself.

“During the first conversation with PostNL, all sorts of images immediately came to mind, typically northern scenes in typically northern light. I then wrote down a list of possible topics. Little stories, with the occasional sketch added in pencil.”

Adds Faas, “the beginning is always the hardest” but once the choices of subjects are made, “I get totally absorbed in making the image. So it really feels like I’m in the middle of the world of the illustration I’m currently working on.”

She has lived in Norway since 2017.

“I think the month of December is a beautiful time, full of magic and wonder,” she says. “There is always snow here then. Also unusual is the fact that the sun doesn’t rise for months. Because of this the colours are very different, very special. Together with the winter landscape, everything I dreamed of as a child comes together. I was already completely happy when even a thin layer of snow fell in the Netherlands. Then I fantasized that I could disappear into a vast forest. In Norway, my dream came true, including a small cottage in the middle of the woods.”

Elements of her life are reflected in these stamp designs. “Our cottage has just such a window through which the cat and the dog are looking out on one of the December stamps [left]. I like to do that myself too, with my nose against the window, hoping for moose to pass by. The bear among the trees also looks like me. I love walking through the forest by myself when there is a thick blanket of snow and the branches of the trees are bending down towards the ground.

“And the shooting stars? As a child, I could spend hours peering at the night sky in the hope of seeing a shooting star.”

Each December stamp features a little story, a snapshot in a larger winter narrative. “The storytelling has to excite,” says Faas. “This is how I hope to make people curious, making them pay extra attention to the stamps. The rabbit, for example, opens an envelope that emits the colourful magic [right]. Who could the envelope be from and what might it contain? That’s always a surprise.”

The validity period for these stamps is indefinite, but the December stamps can only be used on their own from 13 November 2023 through 6 January 2024. One stamp will cover postage for mail within the Netherlands during this period. Two December stamps are enough for mail weighing up to 50g (1.76 ounces) destined for delivery to addresses outside the Netherlands.

Technical Details:
Stamp size: 26.5 x 29 mm
Sheet size: 144 x 151 mm
Paper: normal with red phosphor print
Glue: self-adhesive
Printing technique: offset
Printing colours: cyan, magenta, yellow and black
Print run: 3,250,000 sheets
Appearance: sheet of 20 stamps with 10 different designs
Illustrations and design: Linde Faas, Tromsø (Norway)
Printing company: Koninklijke Joh. Enschedé B.V., Haarlem
Item number: 431461
Note: PostNL does not sell directly to collectors in North America. Its website refers to a company called Nordfirm, which says it sells Dutch new issues at face value. The Virtual Stamp Club has no connection to this company.