This report will be on the pins that we got as part of the pin event. It will not include the pin we got during pin trading with other attendees (that would be horrendously long!).
We received 2 pins as part of our registration on the first day. First was a welcome pin, and the other was the early bird pin since we registered online early before the deadline.
We then picked up our merchandise that we have ordered as part of our Random Selection Process (RSP). This is the process where, a few weeks before you arrive, you enter online the items you want to buy, which are in limited (some VERY limited, like 10) quantities. Then all the requests will be randomly selected. Your chances of getting what you want depends on the edition size, and how many people selected that same item.
For me, all of the regular size pins that I selected, I got, so that made me happy. These are the pins (a few, I got multiples of since there were 3 RSPs before the event):
The jumbo pins were more difficult to get, since the edition numbers were usually smaller (often they were just 200, or 250, or 500). I think I did not get one of the jumbo pins that I requested. Here are the ones that I did get:
We didn't go overboard as what we did last year. So compare to that, we actually bought a rather small quantity. We certainly bought one of the smallest quantity when compared to what others around us were buying. Some were leaving with large shopping bags, and boxes and boxes of stuff (those were either the framed sets, or the boxed set). We did, however, have one framed set that we got in our final RSP, the 4th RSP, which we submitted during our registration process. That framed set is, hopefully, being shipped to us as we speak (we weren't going to risk damaging it by bringing it back in our luggage).
The one item that was being sold at the event that I have mentioned before that became a small frenzy was the Mystery pin set. There were these sealed tins that contained 4 pins, randomly selected out of a set containing a total of 10 different pins. To make it even more frustrating, each pin in this set have different edition number. Pin #1, which is Pluto, only has an edition number of 200. Pin #2, which is Goofy, has an edition number of 400. The same with #3 Stitch. Pin #4 (Chip) and Pin #5 (Dale) has edition number of 600. Pin #6 is Daisy with an edition number of 800. Pin #7 (Mickey) and Pin #8 (Minnie) are 1000. Pin #9 (Tinkerbel) and #10 (Donald) are 1500.
So as you can already guess, even if you buy multiple tins of these, there's no guarantee that you'll get a complete set. When we filled up our RSP, my partner and I each bought 3 tins (that's all you can get when you are given 3 RSPs). So when we got our merchandise, we sat down, and opened all 6 pins. If you've read my report, you'll know that people were hovering behind us as we were opening the tins. As luck would have it, between the 6 tins, we got one complete set! We had only one Pluto and one Goofy pin, but 2 Stitch pins. A girl asked to trade one of the Stitch pin with a Daisy, and we did.
Surprisingly enough, these tins were still available to be purchased. So we thought, with all the frenzy, we might get a few more and use them for trading. So we bought 4 more. When we opened the 4 tins, and combined with the duplicates of what we already had from the first 6, we discovered that we ALMOST had ANOTHER complete set, but we're missing the Stitch! So of course, I was then regretting that I traded the Stitch away. We didn't plan on collecting a second set, since we didn't think we were going to be lucky enough to find another Pluto (which, by the way, was THE most sought-after pin at that event by then). So we thought, what the hell, let's buy 2 more tins and see what happened. We did, and still, no Stitch. However, we did get another Goofy, and 2 Dales. I decided to sit on Goofy and will only trade that with a Stitch. By then, we weren't telling others that we were working on our 2nd set, because there were people walking around still looking to complete their first set.
While we were in line for the various pin games, and doing pin tradings with others, we made sure people around us knew that we're looking for Stitch. We traded away several Tink pins, and even Dale pins were sought after, and we got very good pins in return, many were pins that were parts of sets that we were trying to complete.
Sure enough, while I was sitting down in between pin games, one of the nicest person we met during the event also sat down near me. I asked her if she had any new lead on the Piglet pin that I was looking for (it was from the cast lanyard series 3 and I've been looking for it for a couple of years). She didn't have any lead, she said. She also said that she's looking for the Goofy pin. I said, "Oh? You don't happen to have a Stitch pin, do you?" She replied "Why yes!" So I took out from my pocket the Goofy pin. She almost had a heart attack!
Needless to say, we quickly traded pins. So we now own two complete sets of the Mystery pins. A few people started hearing about it later in the event, and they jokingly (at least, I think they were joking) said they hated us.
We didn't mind.
This is the picture of the tin, with the full complete set of 10 pins.
Incidentally, on the last day of the pin event (by then the tin sets were all sold out), someone told me that a Goofy pin already appeared on e-bay, with a starting bid of $40. I wonder how much someone will pay for the entire set?
The other racket.... er ... I mean, enticement that they had for the event is that if you buy a certain amount from your RSP 1,2, and 3, you are entitle to buy a limited edition pin for $3. If you bought in the next range, you can buy that pin, and another different pin, each for $3. etc.. etc. My purchases qualified me to buy 4 different pins, and I did. These pins are special because each one of them have Mickey, and a portrait of Walt. (I'm a sucker for such pins). These are the 4 pins:
As part of our registration, we were given commemorative pins as parting gifts. While I was a bit disappointed with the ones we got from last year, I don't have that feeling this year. The parting pins were terrific. It includes one jumbo pin, and a box pin set. Here they are:
The jumbo pin on the left is a spinner. The wheel spins.
All in all, it was a wonderful event, and we had a great time. We got a lot of pins from trading, and a few good pins from the pin games (I think I gotno less than 8 Artist Choice pins from the pin games alone). I know have to start thinking how to display these pins.
Zz.
