Whomever bought this Beistle Party Helps envelope with incomplete contents got a true bargain. These early enveloped sets are extremely desirable with much of the value residing in the envelope alone. This really should have brought in the neighborhood of $100 as is.
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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.
Halloween Flying Witch Noisemaker Rachet Germany German
Please read my post on this German tin litho ratchet from February 6th. The seller wised up and simply allowed an auction to take place, beginning the item at a very low price. Success was achieved in that she thereby received $200 for it, what I consider to be near the top of the value range.
Rare 1940s Beistle Co Die Cut Halloween Black Cat Mouse Swiss Cheese
Beistle was really scraping the bottom of the design barrel when it made this diecut, part of a Halloween diecut set that is equally uninspired. (Another from this forgettable set shows a doughnut by a coffee cup.) These typically don't sell for very much money. Someone should tell the deluded (optimistic?) seller as she has slapped a Buy-It-Now price of $549 on this sad piece.
I Sure Wish...
...there were higher quality offerings on Ebay! The vintage Halloween market suffers from dramatic declines in both the variety and quality of items offered for sale during the first quarter of a year. 2013 has not been an exception! I dislike the trend I see gaining strength where buyers will offer items for sale only as a Buy-It-Now with groan or laugh inducing asking prices - but without a chance to formally make an offer that would at the very least serve to educate the seller. As I've said before, I think Ebay by and large has become a lower-end forum. Although treasures now and again surface, the typical listing is either a reproduction or fantasy item, very common items or less common items in poor condition or only offered with head-shaking starting prices. I think the real action for high-quality vintage Halloween has definitely shifted to auction houses like Morphy's or Bertoia's, or other web-based sites like Ruby Lane or icollect24/7. (From time to time I offer great things directly on this site.) Perhaps my dour mood relative to Ebay will dissipate once this first quarter draws to a close.
Halloween Witch Tindeco Candy Tin
The condition of the paint on this common tin litho candy container is quite good! I've seen many, many examples of these over the 25 years I've been collecting, but the condition of this one seems to be near the top of all of them. This was made in or prior to 1935, as the Tin Decorating Company of Baltimore, MD (TINDECO) was purchased in that year by the Illinois Glass Company, which discontinued that mark right away. All of this is explained on page 58 of the book.
Vintage Beistle Two Sided Standup Halloween Pumpkin
This iconic lantern was made by Beistle in 1930-31 in two sizes: this 12" version and an 8" version. The latter is marginally harder to find. Overall, the condition on this lantern is solid, slightly better than the one sold earlier this month by the same seller. That one fetched $586.50. It seems logical that this one will end around the same price. This lantern in perfect condition typically brings between $700-800.
02/27 Update: This second of two lanterns brought $860.00 for reasons that I'll have to attribute to the vagaries of Ebay!
Vintage Halloween Diecut set of 5, Made in Germany
The star of this lot is the one at the bottom. Although the four crescent moon diecuts are part of a great, yet relatively common set of six, the mini-diecut at the bottom is quite hard-to-find, as are all five of its brethren. (The complete set of these mini-diecuts is shown on page 166.) This mini-diecut set was first made immediately after WWII. Items from this preliminary run are marked "USSR Occupied." Interestingly, the one being sold here is simply marked "Germany," so I suspect it was made as late as the early 1950s. I wouldn't think this later marking should have any impact on the value, which is in the neighborhood of $175.
Vintage Halloween Paper Mache Witch Sitting on Pumpkin Germany
The buyer greatly overpaid for this item. Given how common it is and this particular item's condition, the ending price is hard to understand. This was made in the US, not in Germany as the seller speculated. Additionally, this form was reproduced by Stamm House in the 1990s. The reproductions are easy to differentiate from the original as the latter are pulp and the former aren't. I believe the sustainable price on this item in this condition is less than $60.
RARE VINTAGE HALLOWEEN DUMBBELL NOISEMAKER DBL.SIDED T. COHN WITCH MOON PUMPKINS
Although I am very glad for the seller, I've never understood the attraction of this form of noisemaker. Awkward looking and difficult to display, it is too reminiscent of a gym to comfortable fit into my collection. I have seen three of these sell in the last year on Ebay and all of them fetched about the same dollars.
RARE 20s VINTAGE HALLOWEEN WOOD NOISEMAKER HORN BAT FACE CZECHOSLOVAKIA *MINT!!*
I have never seen this particular design before. As this great seller points out, it was made in the early 1920s in Czechoslovakia. These cute turned noisemakers have never received the collecting "love" I think they deserve. I wonder why this is the case?
SCARCE Vintage GERMANY Halloween DEVIL Heavily Embossed DIECUT German DECORATION
This is most certainly a hard-to-find German diecut. There were two design iterations for these devil face diecuts, both are shown on page 157. The one this seller has up right now is the mirror image of the one shown in the book. How a diecut was struck (mirror imaging) has no effect on the item's value. The guide price for this diecut is $175.
VINTAGE HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN MUSICIANS COMPOSITION GERMANY 1925
This seller has been trying to unload this incomplete set of veggie band members for a very long time. Catch a clue! No one wants these damaged pieces for such a high price. Offer them at a starting price of $200 and see where the bidding takes the lot. I dislike sellers who have vintage Halloween, know the market for such items has been strong for years, yet slaps a head-shakingly optimistic price on items without taking into account condition.
Halloween Tambourine Pair of Scary Cats from J. Chein & Co.
This has long been one of my favorite tambourines in that I love the apparent wickedness of the cats. This particular tam seems to be in eminently collectible condition. I only wish the seller wouldn't start the "auction" at a price that very nearly fully values it. Where's the fun in that? This tambourine was made by Chein in the 1920s and is shown on page 191.
Halloween cute kids with pumpkins jack o'lanterns 5x7 vintage repro photo
I recognized this photo as being from the 1970-71 television show called Nanny and the Professor. The kids are, from left to right, Trent Lehman, Kim Richards and David Doremus. Trent Lehman took his own life many years ago.
Vintage Beistle Two Sided Standup Halloween Pumpkin
This iconic lantern was made by Beistle in 1930-31 in two sizes: this 12" version and an 8" version. The latter is marginally harder to find. Overall, the condition on this lantern is solid, although it is definitely missing its bottom. Make sure you consider and allow for this fact when deciding on an appropriate bid. This lantern in perfect condition typically brings between $700-800.
2/16 Update: This iconic lantern ended at $586.50, a wholly expected selling price given its overall condition.
