Elyse and Kylie had a total of 168 stamps. Kylie gave ¹₄ of her stamps to Elyse. In return, Elyse gave ¹₈ of the total number of stamps that she had to Kylie. In the end, each girl had the same number of stamps. How many stamps did Elyse have at first?

	Elyse	Kylie	Total
Before 1	?	4 u	168
Change 1	+ 1 u	- 1 u
After 1	96	3 u	168
Before 2	8 p	3 u	168
Change 2	- 1 p	+ 1 p
After 2	7 p (84)	84	168

Since Kylie gave some stamps to Elyse and Elyse then gave some stamps to Kylie, it is an internal transfer of stamps between the two girls. So, the total number of stamps remains unchanged.

Number of stamps that Kylie and Elyse each had in the end is the same.

Number of stamps that Elyse had in the end
= 168 ÷ 2
= 84

Number of stamps that Elyse had in the end = 7 p

7 p = 84

1 p = 84 ÷ 7 = 12

Number of stamps that Elyse had after receiving some stamps from Kylie
= 8 p
= 8 x 12
= 96

Number of stamps that Kylie had after giving to Elyse
= 168 - 96
= 72

3 u = 72

1 u = 72 ÷ 3 = 24

Number of stamps that Kylie had at first
= 4 u
= 4 x 24
= 96

Number of stamps that Elyse had at first
= 168 - 96
= 72

Answer(s): 72