After I picked up my kids from school this afternoon we ordered some Greek Gyros for pickup, but they were backed up and it would take about 20 minutes before they were ready so I took a brief detour and headed on over to the local Goodwill to see if they had any interesting glass.
My son is embarrassed of my interest in Goodwill and Salvation Army hunting and stayed in the SUV to blast trance tunes, but my daugher was game. Once inside she was intrigued by a barrel of used Beanie Babies that were not priced, in that she was looking for a large purple platypus BB to replace a tattered one she had, and that I had subjected to questionable treatment during Halloween. There were no large platypi but when I asked about the prices the lady told me that they were 3.00 - 6.00 each “because they were so collectible.” I thought they might be a dollar or so each and $ 3.00 was more than I wanted to pay for a little used BB.
I thought the whole Beanie Baby thing was past history for a year or two now. Are they still considered collectible and desirable?
Anything that shows wear or does not have all tags is not a collectible item. Similarly, any McD’s Teeny Beanies not in original plastic packaging are not collectibles.
Sadly, I know much more about this than I ever wanted to. When the Beanie Baby craze hit this area, we’d been selling them at the flower shop for some time. I have way too many Beanie Babies, and most are worth five bucks, the original retail. The few that were considered Very Rare are not worth a heck of a lot anymore. (My Garcia bear is only worth $65 in mint condition.) My ex-sister-in-law is an avid collector, and tells me ALL about it every time I call to check on the kids. (Woo-hoo.) Google the websites; some still have prices.
My nephew was into acquiring these a few years back, telling us how much his collection was worth. We tried to point out that it was only worth what someone was willing to pay him, despite what the books might say. I think he’s lost interest - I need to ask him next time I see him.
I don’t understand the concept of “collectibles” - then again, I’m a practical person. If I can’t use it, chances are I don’t want it collecting dust in my house. Knick-knacks and such do nothing for me. I put Beanies in the same category. Each to his own, I suppose.