Is it Collecting or Hoardering?

I started collecting vintage toys over ten years ago. My first real job was working at an antique mall where I was surrounded by collectables and vintage items daily. It's hard not to start collecting something when you work in an environment full of temptation. Items that may remind you of your childhood or items from a completely different era that simply just fascinate you. My collecting all started with one tiny Smurf figurine....


Smurfs were a huge part of my childhood. I remember playing with the cute little figurines and watching the cartoon daily. At the time when I started collecting it seemed really harmless. I bought a few figurines here and there. Soon though it turned into over 150! Then the mushrooms houses came, along with anything else that had a Smurf on it. I currently have four totes devoted to just Smurf items. Only for the first years of my collecting I had it all on display. Fast forward through time, I moved into my first house and got married. After that most of the toy collection ended up just stored in plastic totes stacked to the ceiling. You need a lot of room to display an entire collection.

The Mickey Mouse in the photo is actually from my childhood visit to Disney World.
That entire collection turned into also collecting CareBears, Rainbow Bright, Wuzzles, lunchboxes, books, many little figurines, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Little People, My Little Ponies, Trolls, Garfield, PowerPuff Girls and many more items. (I think you get the idea.) While working at the antique mall the business of reselling vintage items really sucked me in. I sold items in my own booth for awhile. It was really fun. That meant shopping for inventory on a weekly basis. While thrifting I would find vintage toys almost every time. Making my collection grow larger and LARGER!! When you find a cute stuffed animal for nine cents it's hard to pass up. Looking back now I wish I would of!


All the things that I am sharing photos of are things that are currently displayed in my office. They are the items that I seem to still be drawn to. When we moved across the country almost two years ago I realized how much stuff I really do have. Especially when it comes to my collection. Sadly I "thought" I had downsized before our big move but I will never forget the day when the semi-truck came to our tiny apartment with all my stuff. I counted thirty totes full of just my toy collection alone. Please know that as I'm typing this I'm busting out laughing at myself. Thirty totes? Really? I have never ever considered myself a hoarder. But that statement of thirty totes doesn't help my case.


However there is a light at the end of tunnel for me. I am finally sick of moving totes and more totes around the country back and forth. I'm not ready to get rid of everything yet, but I am planning to downsize the collection. Some of my collection is some of my original toys that were mine from my childhood. I still have my very first baby doll and some of the Barbies I played with. I am a very sentimental person. I get attached to items very easily because of a memory attached to that item. Even though I know that I won't lose my memories. Of course I find that's not entirely true because over time we do forget things and it takes something to "trigger" a memory to bring it back. This happens to me all the time.



Lately I have been spending a lot less time glued to my computer. It has been awesome! Giving me more time to do things like go through tons of totes and make tuff decisions on who goes and who gets to stay. It hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be just because I've changed so much. Items that I used to be very fond of mean nothing to me now. I am literally just storing it. Cody and I are always talking about our future. Where the next place will be that will live, etc.. I may not know what state or city I will end up in but I do know I will probably have a lot less space. I think that collecting is fun. I know why I have always done it and why others do it. The hunt becomes rather addicting and a hobby. It's been a long time since I've really bought a vintage toy because I know my collection is rather large.



So far I have three totes overflowing of vintage toys that I plan to sell or get rid of. I also have a huge box full of vintage stuffed animals. I am very confident that there will a lot more that I will be parting with. I figure I shouldn't keep holding on to items that I have no love for anymore. Especially when there is someone out there who would really enjoy having it.



I even have Harry Potter Valentines. I guess I could mail them to people next year??? (I'm kidding)
My newest collection is the Disney Vinylmations. Geez, was starting this probably a mistake!!!

We got sucked straight into these cute little guys. Trading the duplicates you get is addicting. Once you take a step back from it you realize all this. But sadly by then it's too late and you own two hundred of them. hahaha The way I look at collecting is it's great as long as you don't let it take over your entire house or life. Having things to decorate with is pretty cool and fun. For me the main problem is the amount of times I move. I just have to downsize my entire life sooner or later because I've realized I'm probably just going to keep moving. Having a huge collection of adorable things just isn't for my lifestyle anymore. I hope that this proves that I'm not a hoarder after all. :)

I hope you enjoyed this post. It was fun to share. I hoped you picked up on my humor. Yet I think that hoarding is a serious thing. I've watched the tv shows about hoarding and it breaks my heart every time.
Do you collect things?

You can view photos of all my toy collection on Flickr HERE.
All my blog posts featuring Vinylmations HERE.

Learning to Use My Camera {not really}

I am attempting to learn how to use my camera. I am clueless what all the settings mean and how to figure out the functions. I have been playing around with it more. I accidentally found a setting that allows me to take fish-eye photos, a setting for scenery shots of snow, a beach setting, a poster effect and many more things that I don't know how to use yet. The photos I took below are black and white except one color that the camera selected. I thought it was pretty neat.
(or maybe it's the toys that make the photos neat?)


As you can see I have been staging some toys in my office. It's been fun, but a lot of work as well.
I have decided not to display my entire collection because it's just too much for the space.
We still have to build our desks and hang a lot of stuff on the walls.



And a random photo of Norman being Norman. He is loving the office.
He just sits on the chair and purrs while I blog. He really brings sunshine into my life. :)
Kitty started a Photo101 Series over on her blog.
Also check out Katherine's post for beginners HERE. Lots of great info! I plan to read them all over and over and take notes!!!
I think by the end of this year I will start to "get" it.

Collecting Disney Vinylmations

I wanted to devote an entire blog post to collecting Vinylmations. I have used information from Wikipedia to first explain what Vinylmations are and other basic information about collecting them. I tried to type it out myself, but I was rambling way too much. I figured it was best to use their information for this post. So lets start with the basic facts first.


Vinylmation is a brand of 1.5", 3", and 9" vinyl collectibles sold at Disney theme parks, select Disney Stores, and the online Disney Store. The name Vinylmation is a combination of the word Animation and Vinyl. The figures are all shaped like Mickey Mouse but have different themed markings, colors and patterns. Vinylmation was first introduced in July 2008, and the first figures were introduced in November 2008.



Trading of figures is officially encouraged and practiced at Disney locations in a fashion similar to Disney pin trading. There are designated places where guests may trade figures with cast members. Trading now takes place at select Disney Stores as well. Disney Parks allow people to trade in their Vinylmations for either one out of a mystery box numbered one through 24, or for one in a small clear case. If you do not like the Vinylmation from the mystery box then you may trade with one of three in a clear case that you can see which ones there are. You can trade them in at most stores throughout Walt Disney World, the Disneyland Resort, and in several Disney stores.



Vinylmation figures are sold in sealed packaging. The purchaser does not know which figure they are buying until they have opened it. Each figure belongs to a series and all of the figures in a series are printed on the packaging for that series and the series comes in a large box. Each series has one unknown figure, termed the chaser. Some come with cards, stickers or another figure to make a set. In addition to being a mystery figure the chaser is also the rarest figure in each series. Limited edition nine-inch figures are also sold and these are visible without opening the packaging. 3" figures can be purchased by the case. Each case comes with 24 vinyls: 2 of each known design, and 1 mystery chaser. To accommodate the chaser, one of the 11 known designs appears 3 times in each case.


Above you can see Cody standing in the store called D-Street located at Downtown Disney. This is the best store to go to for purchasing Vinylmations. They have the largest selection. The store is basically all Vinylmations and is known for good trading. We went to D-Street many times in hope of finding some good Vinyl trades! D-Street also has a great selection of urban art and collectables...


As you can see above, there is also a great selection of open box Vinylmations to collect. Not all of them are mystery boxes. This is great for those who don't want to end up with a bunch of duplicates. We went on our Disney vacation we had 27 trades (duplicates). It was so exciting trading our entire vacation. Our duplicates were all paid for already so we ended up trading them all to get "new" ones to add to our collection! I actually ended up completing a series/set also! I was super excited about that! One of the best things about going to D-Street is all the Vinylmation eyecandy...


They have an entire table and display of Vinylmations. If you are really into collecting it almost is torture because all the "harder" to get Vinyl's are in that table behind a thin piece of glass. You honestly just want to take a hammer to it and grab them! HA! You see many Vinylmations behind that glass that are worth 1000's of dollars! Yes, I know, CRAZY!


So what Vinyl's did we end up with while trading on our vacation?
Here is Cody with our very first trade!

We were very excited to end up with this lime green guy. He is an older Vinylmation that retailed at $15 originally and is a few years old. I always wanted him! It was a good way to kick off our trading. We also traded for him at our Disney resort. That's another perk of trading. All the resorts have Vinyl trading. It makes it easy to trade every morning before heading to the parks! Now I am going to flood you with more photos! Below is everything we came home with. (Some were purchased)


Aren't the above guys awesome? They are 9" Vinyl's that were purchased at the Orlando Disney Outlet store. They all retailed at $45 each originally and we paid less then $15 each for them. We don't have many of the 9" Vinyl's because they are so expensive. Some are even priced at $74! I think that's insane, so we only purchase sale ones.

Now for all the little guys...
Cody added a few more Star Wars figurines to his collection...
I purchased the entire set below for $20 at the outlet.
They are all so fun to look at. I really look forward to displaying them in our new house. A great way to learn more about Vinylmations is by visiting the Disney Vinlymation blog HERE. It keeps you updated on new Vinyl's that are coming out. The Disney online store runs some good sales occasionally on Vinylmations. You can also view the Vinylmation vault HERE to see all the series! Collecting Vinylmations becomes addicting. My collecting has slowed down because I feel like I have a lot. I don't even know how many I have, but I will tally them all up once I start decorating with them. :)

If you want to view all my posts about Vinylmations click HERE.
To view all my posts from my Disney Vacation click HERE.

Collecting Childhood Toy Figurines

Whenever I go thrifting or antiquing I am always looking for toy figurines to add to my toy collection. I think it's a sickness. Toy figurines are my favorite thing to collect because they are small. You can collect so many and they still all fit in a small box. The newest figurines I have added to my collection are these little guys....


2 headed Garfield | Smurf with yellow ribbon | Gonzo from Muppet Babies | Blueberry Muffin from Strawberry Shortcake



I had been looking for Gonzo for a longtime! I was obsessed with the Muppet Babies when I was a child. This Gonzo figurine is part of a McDonald's Happy Meal set. I am still attempting to find Animal and Fozzie's hobby horse! It's fun hunting for these guys though. Here is a "retro" video of the McDonald's commercial of the happy meal toys.

WARNING: If you were born in the 1980's be prepared to feel old!!!

Then there are the adorable Strawberry Shortcake figurines!
I love finding these guys. I haven't taken the time to research how many there actually are.
I probably don't want to know! HA!
I usually find toy figurines I need at the Denver Brass Armadillo.
Once the winter and cold weather come back, Cody and I will start antiquing again.
Collecting toys from your childhood is so fun!
What do you collect?

View {most} of my toy collection HERE.
I also collect Disney Vinylmation Figurines, see them HERE.

A Vinlymation Christmas

I had a Vinylmation Christmas! I wanted Vinylmations for Christmas this year. A lot of sets are getting harder to find, so I asked for some of the ones that I knew would be sold out soon!
Urban 6
Villians 2
Nerds
For Cody! Star Wars Series 1
I also got some 9" Vinylmations!
Gonzo Muppets Series 2
Retro Mickey Mouse & Dumbo
The Mad HatterAfter Christmas the Disney Store was running a sale on Urban 6, so I bought 7 more hoping to end up with a complete set of 12. Well, that didn't happen! I got 2 that I needed and 5 duplicates!
Urban 6Cody and I visited the two Disney Stores located in the Denver area yesterday. I was able to trade 3 of my duplicates for 3 Vinylmations I didn't have yet...

Dr. Facilier from the Villians 2 Series and two Vinylmations from Cutesters 2 Series

I have a total of 51 duplicates to trade when we go to Disney World again!!! Now I am on the lookout for shelves or a display cabinet for my Vinylmations! I hung our wedding pictures in our hallway this week. I decided it would be cute to sit some of the Vinylmations on top of the frames...
Thanks to my family for getting me some Vinylmations for Christmas!

Key Lime Green Curio

Things that I am drawn to has changed so much when it comes to decorating. Cody will see me pick out certain things while we are shopping, and he just gives me this look that says,"Oh! Please No! That's not going in our house!" I have been so inspired by other bloggers to buy more second hand items and breath new life into them. In the past I would buy furniture all the time that I planned on painting. Problem was I lacked motivation and time. Things are different now. I try to only have so many projects at a time to pace myself. Last weekend I found this cute little Wall Curio Cabinet for $7.00....The weather was mild enough this week to spray paint out on my patio. I lightly sanded the cabinet because it did have a glossy finish. I used Rust-Oleum Painter's Touch Spray Paint. First I applied 1 coat of primer. The only color of spray paint I had was Key Lime....
I decided instead of going and buying more paint I would just use what I had. Plus, I love the bright Key Lime green. I applied about 3 coats. Some of the little corners were hard to get and I had to apply more paint to them. I love how bright the green is....I am very happy with the end result. I bought it with the plan of putting some of my toy figurines in it...The cabinet is hanging in our front entry by our front door! I still have many projects for the front entry area, so I will reveal it when I get more projects finished.