tin halloween parade lantern jack o' lantern

This seller has angered a number of collectors who have repeatedly contacted him/her to tell him this was made by Bethany Lowe within the last few years and has zero collectible value. This seller refuses to accurately describe this lantern or list it in the Modern category. The dodge he/she uses is so old...stating that the age is unknown. It isn't. He/she simply refuses to be educated. 

06/17 Update: I feel for the buyer who dropped $632 on what is merely a decorative item. People: Do your research before dropping serious cash on things like this. 

Great Email Received...

I received an email from a faithful reader which makes a good point. Thanks so much, Glenn! 

You come down on seller's shipping prices a lot on your blog. What you may not take into account is that the shipping price often includes insurance since eBay does not separate insurance costs from shipping. Regarding your recent post about the witch whistle, the insurance alone on this would be $2.75 if the final price doesn't go above the $75 opening bid. That's the bulk of the shipping cost! I wouldn't want this shipped for $1.25 because that would mean the item was not insured. In my opinion that would be the "negative". Tracking may be included, but that is not insurance.
I personally overpack for safety. Often the box and packaging is 95% of the weight. It's better to ship something safely in a box than be sorry for a damaged item that arrived in a cheaply-shipped envelope.
Something to think about.

Vintage Beistle Black Cat Owl Bat Pumpkin Halloween Orange Tissue HoneyComb Hat

I haven't seen this choice hat surface for some time. Early Beistle (1918-1935) is arguably the hottest sub-genre of vintage Halloween right now, something that has remained true for many years. Even with the condition issues specific to this hat, it fetched a strong price. What captivates me about this hat is the energy the artist conveyed with the four principal figures. 

Vintage Halloween Die Cut Cardboard Witch Ring Toss Party Game 16-pc Set xx18

These are reproductions. Authentic ones were made by Beistle during the early 1940s, have dual-sided lithography and printed instructions on the handle. These have no collectible value. 

1920s Beistle Die Cut Halloween Johnny Pumpkin Head Easel Back Stand Up

This seller is very optimistic if she thinks this will fetch $275. In perfect condition, these at one time brought $100, but now they routinely bring significantly less. 
Beistle made an entire "family" of these in varying sizes and design. This small one, measuring ~5.25" is the most common design by a wide margin. Please see pages 122-124 for a nearly complete array of these Johnny Pumpkin designs. 

Antique Tin Germany Halloween Siren Whistle Witches Cats

This petite whistle noisemaker was made in Germany sometime during the late 1920s. Its RSIN is "2," so you know these don't surface much. Sustainable guide value is $150, so the opening price is actually not unreasonable. The whistling mechanism on these is often broken, so I consider it a slight bonus that this is purported to be fully functional. 
One negative with this seller is that the postage charge is $4.54. Given the item's small form factor and its negligible weight, postage shouldn't be more than $1.25, especially considering how tracking is now automatically included with First Class postage. 

06/11 Update: The buyer got a solid bargain when scooping this up for the pittance of $74.95. 

Rare 10" Vintage Halloween wind-up Pumpkin Head Walker Well-Preserved & Working

As with virtually every gear-based mechanical Halloween item I've seen offered on Ebay these last two years, this is not old. Be VERY cautious purchasing such items. The few indisputably authentic items I've seen all show their age and have that patina and look missing from this and other such items I've seen listed.