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Trading Pins
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Published: October 18, 2006
No longer considered just a hobby, the art of trading pins has upped the ante and become an actual sport to many fanatics. The pin trading industry has grown immensely in the last couple of decades with the advent of the Internet to simplify buying and trading pins. There are various groups who are trading pins, but a few stand out with the abundance of participants in their pin trading sport.
Rising pin trading groups are those trading baseball and softball pins. This is especially popular among actual baseball and softball teams; however non-affiliates also participate in this pin trading phenomenon. Following a game, the players will trade pins with other players, sometimes trading up to twenty five pins per game. These players seek out larger pins and pins with special features. Some of these special features are:
Danglers- pins with a secondary pin hanging from the main pin.
Blinkies- pins with a small light bulb, or LED, and hidden battery pack illuminating the pin.
Spinners- rarest feature, a second pin is attached through a hole allowing it to spin freely.
If a baseball pin trader spots any pins with these unique qualities, they make a grand effort to trade them for something else. It is said this form of pin trading among sports teams became so prevalent because it raises awareness and increases the popularity of a team or special event. However this form of pin trading did not originate on its own. It all started with the most renowned area of pin trading, Olympic pin trading.
Some say all pin trading began with the Olympics. Originally the traders only officially gathered every four years to swap pins; however with trade groups and the availability of pins on the Internet, Olympic pin traders are now making exchanges daily. Pin traders would walk around the Olympic Games with their pins displayed clearly and make trades with other collectors. There are many different types of Olympic pins:
Countdown and Holiday Pins- ex: 365 days, 1994, etc
Media Pins- distributed by media agencies like NBC, Sports Illustrated, Associated Press
Sponsor Pins- pins featuring Olympic Games official sponsors
Commemoratives- pins from Organizing Committee of Olympic Games
IOC Badges- International Olympic Committee pins
NOC Pins- National Olympic Committee pins
Olympic trading pins are still some of the most sought after. However, there is a pin trading cult right on their heels, quickly becoming the most popular trading pin sector: Disney pin trading.
Disney pin traders are among the most serious traders around (there is even an etiquette guide to the right and wrong ways to exchange pins). Disney pin trading was officially recognized in 1999 at their Millennium Celebration. This marked the bona fide beginning to the Disney trading pin craze. Disney pins start at a base price of around seven dollars and can fetch over five hundred dollars once they have been retired. Disney pin traders can find their pins on location at Disney theme parks and resorts in gift shops, on one of the thousands of Disney trading pin websites or even on an actual Disney crew member.
Given the boundless amount of existing Disney pins, the true collector is always searching for the Holy Grail–the most elusive of the Disney pins. This is the pin which is the rarest or hardest to find, differing among each collector. The trader must also be on the lookout for any sharks, or people who trade pins which are less valuable than the ones they are receiving. With so many rules and guidelines to follow, it may be difficult for an outsider to understand the enjoyment in Disney pin trading. However, to anyone on the inside, it's the most magical thing on Earth.
Whether you are a little leaguer trading your team pin after a game or a Cinderella junkie exchanging a pin with a crew member at Disneyland, each person in the field of trading pins is alike. They all share the passion of collecting as many pins as possible. They each share the excitement of acquiring a new pin for an old one. And they all share the commonality that an action as simple as trading a piece of metal can evolve into a very rewarding pastime.
Wolff, Alexander. "Pinheaded." Sports Illustrated. 18 October 2006.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/events/1996/oly mpics/daily/july23/pins/html.
Monterey lapel pins. 18 October 2006. 18 October 2006.
http://www.montereycompany.com/lapelpins/trading -pins.html.
Pins for trade. 18 October 2006. 18 October 2006. http://www.janecky.com/pins/trade.html.
Rising pin trading groups are those trading baseball and softball pins. This is especially popular among actual baseball and softball teams; however non-affiliates also participate in this pin trading phenomenon. Following a game, the players will trade pins with other players, sometimes trading up to twenty five pins per game. These players seek out larger pins and pins with special features. Some of these special features are:
Danglers- pins with a secondary pin hanging from the main pin.
Blinkies- pins with a small light bulb, or LED, and hidden battery pack illuminating the pin.
Spinners- rarest feature, a second pin is attached through a hole allowing it to spin freely.
If a baseball pin trader spots any pins with these unique qualities, they make a grand effort to trade them for something else. It is said this form of pin trading among sports teams became so prevalent because it raises awareness and increases the popularity of a team or special event. However this form of pin trading did not originate on its own. It all started with the most renowned area of pin trading, Olympic pin trading.
Some say all pin trading began with the Olympics. Originally the traders only officially gathered every four years to swap pins; however with trade groups and the availability of pins on the Internet, Olympic pin traders are now making exchanges daily. Pin traders would walk around the Olympic Games with their pins displayed clearly and make trades with other collectors. There are many different types of Olympic pins:
Countdown and Holiday Pins- ex: 365 days, 1994, etc
Media Pins- distributed by media agencies like NBC, Sports Illustrated, Associated Press
Sponsor Pins- pins featuring Olympic Games official sponsors
Commemoratives- pins from Organizing Committee of Olympic Games
IOC Badges- International Olympic Committee pins
NOC Pins- National Olympic Committee pins
Olympic trading pins are still some of the most sought after. However, there is a pin trading cult right on their heels, quickly becoming the most popular trading pin sector: Disney pin trading.
Disney pin traders are among the most serious traders around (there is even an etiquette guide to the right and wrong ways to exchange pins). Disney pin trading was officially recognized in 1999 at their Millennium Celebration. This marked the bona fide beginning to the Disney trading pin craze. Disney pins start at a base price of around seven dollars and can fetch over five hundred dollars once they have been retired. Disney pin traders can find their pins on location at Disney theme parks and resorts in gift shops, on one of the thousands of Disney trading pin websites or even on an actual Disney crew member.
Given the boundless amount of existing Disney pins, the true collector is always searching for the Holy Grail–the most elusive of the Disney pins. This is the pin which is the rarest or hardest to find, differing among each collector. The trader must also be on the lookout for any sharks, or people who trade pins which are less valuable than the ones they are receiving. With so many rules and guidelines to follow, it may be difficult for an outsider to understand the enjoyment in Disney pin trading. However, to anyone on the inside, it's the most magical thing on Earth.
Whether you are a little leaguer trading your team pin after a game or a Cinderella junkie exchanging a pin with a crew member at Disneyland, each person in the field of trading pins is alike. They all share the passion of collecting as many pins as possible. They each share the excitement of acquiring a new pin for an old one. And they all share the commonality that an action as simple as trading a piece of metal can evolve into a very rewarding pastime.
Wolff, Alexander. "Pinheaded." Sports Illustrated. 18 October 2006.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/events/1996/oly mpics/daily/july23/pins/html.
Monterey lapel pins. 18 October 2006. 18 October 2006.
http://www.montereycompany.com/lapelpins/trading -pins.html.
Pins for trade. 18 October 2006. 18 October 2006. http://www.janecky.com/pins/trade.html.
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