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What Is Your Personal Pin Trading Rule?

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What Is Your Personal Pin Trading Rule?
Such a fun topic! I have strong collector tendencies but Disney pins still remain the only thing I allow myself to largely and consistently collect. Here are my collection rules:


  • Only characters from theatrical animated feature films
  • Main characters only, strong focus on princesses (any side kicks or secondary character I have are from booster packs)
  • Full-body depiction of the character with no background elements or text
  • Alternate outfits really make me happy, such as my signature! When I can find a character in a less popular outfit, I really hunt them down

Visually, I think these pins showcase the character the best and still remain simple enough to be "wearable" for my style. Also, a lot of the pins I'm interested in are (or were at some point) open edition so it keeps the costs down!
 
For my Rapunzel collection, my rule is to keep the colors pastel!! No dark purples or blues for me, only pins that are majority pink and light purple. Pascal is okay however!! Unfortunately no Flynn or Gothel haha

Another rule for my collection is to only collect what you like, not what you think makes your collection look more impressive. I feel that many people go for only the big stuff they like for specific collections and ignore the smaller, but still beautiful pins.

I also do not like holiday pins unless I one day make a holiday collection.
Words aren't good in my collection either because even when I think the pin is so cute, I end up getting rid of it due to the fact that there are words on it.

When it comes to trading, my rule is to never impose values on someone else. Everyone can value their pins differently because different aspects go into the value. It could have some sentimental value, it could have been they overtraded for it, or that they just like the pin more than their other traders. It's easier to just move on if you see it is valued at something you don't agree with! No need to try to talk them down and offend. Keep the hobby fun and keep that greed out.
 

Good rule!

Related rule... if someone does try to impose their value on me during a trade... my rule is to smile, thank them, decline the trade, and walk away.
 
I don't have rules. Which is why I have 11,000 pins. The exception to the rule of having no rules, is the one rule I try to remind myself of. Never need a pin that bad. 90% of pins either go less than retail, or hang around retail. And even "popular" pins lose their luster, as the people cycle through and have different interests. So don't overpay, and sometimes pins have interesting ways of finding their way to you.
 
Generally most of my collections are anything from the certain movie but when it came to BatB there are so many pins so I just went with pins that feature the Bell Jar/ Rose. With Cats its only Siamese cats.
 
I think my main 'rule' is this: collect the pins that make you happy, and let go of them if they no longer do. I have a few 'main' collections, but I am interested in any pin that makes me happy. So I end up having a little of everything! But each collection is closely curated- I go through my collection once or twice a year, and purge pins that I feel, "This pin has given me joy, but I've had it long enough that I'm willing to trade it for something that gives me more joy." Some pins I'm satisfied knowing that I've owned them at one point, and some pins I know are in my "forever collection." This helps me keep the size of my collection fairly consistent and manageable, and keeps my pin books from taking up too much space.

The only time that I keep pins that I'm not thrilled about are in my few "completist" collections. I figure if there are 50 blue fairy pins, and you love 45 of them, you might as well get the last five just so you can say you're a completist! But in general, if a set comes out and I love 4 out of the 5 pins, I'll only buy the 4 I love.

Also, I hate free-D. Total deal-breaker for me! :lol:
 

What an EXCELLENT rule!
 

Totally agree with your rules. Friends and other collectors often as if I’m trying collect a full Dumbo set but really, I only buy the pins I like and make me happy. I also buy a few none Dumbos because they look nice but those are often up for trade if opportunity arises. Living by this standard really does help keep a collection from getting out of hang and keeps me out of the poor house lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
sockgnome said:
But each collection is closely curated- I go through my collection once or twice a year, and purge pins that I feel, "This pin has given me joy, but I've had it long enough that I'm willing to trade it for something that gives me more joy."
Click to expand...

Totally needed to read that! Purging a few from my collection now, to make room for more pins of my other collection
 
I only have 3 rules
1. To try to be fair in my trades. The fairness is, of course, in my own eyes because pins have different value to each person.
2. I do not like to trade with people who have a poor reputation here or on Facebook.
3. Mulan pins. I only need maybe 10 pins to complete my 2X collection, which are extremely hard to come by, including that darn LE25 and a few Japanese pins, soooooo.... I would make exceptions to rules 1&2
 
I knew when I got into pin collecting that I had to have a very narrow focus or it would get out of hand. My main collection is specifically of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Jules Verne-related pins that have Disney characters on them. So I have pins of Mickey Mouse as Captain Nemo or Minnie Mouse on Tokyo Disneysea's Journey to the Center of the Earth ride, with very few exceptions where the pin is especially nice or there just isn't a version with a Disney character on it. I also have to like the pin... If it's an ugly pin, I don't want it, no matter what it is.

I also have a collection of just plain souvenir pins (e.g.: Disneyland 50th and 60th anniversaries, DLP 15th and 20th anniversaries, Walt Disney Studios, etc.), which follows the "I have to like it" rule a lot more. It also has a trend towards pins that are either gold-coloured or have black-and-white Mickey on them, for some reason
 
Just saw this pin today...

Trying to decide if this would be an ugly face or just a tough face. Since I lean towards "cutie" style pins in general... this just may be one of those pins I just don't like.

Anyway, since reading of others 'no ugly faces' rule... I may try it and see how it goes. No ugly faces for me either.
 
I just started out collecting but my rules are pretty straightforward.

Anything Disney Dogs - so 101, Lady and the Tramp, Bolt, or generally any other Disney doggo. Only exception is I also collect Bambi, as it's my favourite Disney movie.

I'm not really a completionist, or care much about the value. They could all be rack pins, just so long as they are dogs or Bambi It makes it a lot easier as it seems the dog movies are a little under appreciated in the pin world!

The very first pins I had as a kid were Stitch pins so they don't really go, but they remind me of visiting the parks as a child and I haven't formally started collecting until just this year, so I let that slide too. Stitch was adopted from a dog shelter after all
 

I love Leia but that is one pin I will be skipping. That's an ugly face, IMO.


My main rule is only collect pins you like. My collection seems to change every couple of years. Right now, Mickey Mouse (mostly by himself or with Minnie. Not with other characters), The Three Caballeros, and Walt Disney are my main collections. I still kept some of my Snow White pins from when I was collecting her. My pins change with my Disney interests. I don't try to be a completist. I don't like 90% of the Mickey pins out there so it's real easy not to be a completist. I only collect pins I like. If I end up disliking the pin in person, I either trade or sell it.
 
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