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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.

3 Vintage Beistle Halloween Die Cut Paper Folding Ghost Moon House Scarecrow Owl

These typically fetch $130-175 each, so the buyer got a good deal. Aside from Buy-It-Now items wherein the seller was clueless, I have seen many fewer good deals this season than in recent ones. I have had discussions with other collectors as to their thoughts on why this is so. Prices in the marquee lots were almost always driven by the same handful of determined bidders, but exclude these desirous folks and prices overall seem to have risen across the board, excluding tin and candy containers.  

vtg 1930/40s USA Halloween Die-Cut Witches Cauldron 3D 4 Piece Honeycomb Set

Here is what I wrote about this item in my 2nd edition in 2007:
"One of the most interesting of Beistle’s many tabletop decorations is its Rustic Fireplace. It is billed on the envelope as including an “Old Witches’ Beauty Caldron.” It consists of a lithoed paper and honeycomb cauldron with orange streamers attached to the bottom to simulate flames. (This was an ingenious way to boost sales of an already popular item.) Since these cauldrons were only made from 1926 through 1931, it stands to reason the Rustic Fireplace dates to this time. This is further buttressed by the use of Beistle’s diamond mark on the packaging. The detailed lithoed cardboard props and crossbar containing a hook for the cauldron are all representative of Beistle’s high quality. These measure 10.5" high by 15" wide. The cauldron measures 8" high by 8.5" wide. This complete set is valued at $800 to $1,000." 
I think the values for these items has drifted somewhat downward in the intervening 6+ years. Collectors I speak with don't find the props and crossbar all that interesting. I also hear complaints about how much room it takes to display the set in its entirety. Most collectors seem to want the cauldron but without the crepe paper "flames" as they prevent the cauldron from sitting evenly. Given the condition of the cauldron, it will be instructive as to what this set fetches. 

11/08 Update: $271.33 was the ending price for this item. I see the value for this set in near-perfect condition hovering around $450-500 these days.  

Vintage Dancing Skeleton Halloween Decoration

Virtually all of the value of this lot is in the rare envelope. The skeleton is almost immaterial. As with all of the early Beistle packaging, this medium-weight cardboard envelope is hard to locate in decent condition. Although the overall graphics aren't as interesting as their later envelopes containing elves or garlands, the straight-forward imagery is endearing and absolutely captures that early era of greater innocence. 

Vintage Halloween Easel Back Die-Cut JOL Pirate Germany

I am just shaking my head in wonder at those who have enough money to throw around in driving this somewhat common German diecut up to a laughable $521.87. Newer collectors - don't despair at this madness. Once this small handful of must-have-it-at-all-costs collectors obtain an item, their absence from the market will enable items to be purchased for sustainable prices. 

Wonderful German 1941 Hallowe'en Decorations Graphic Box

This is a superb box! These boxes are quite collectible for a number of reasons, not the least of which is they are rare AND serve as good references as to which diecuts were sold as sets. However, the boxed set was not assembled and exported in 1941. The Germans were two years into the Second World War at that time and were not exporting paper goods. In fact, they dramatically ramped down their exports of such items in 1935 as the leaders of the Third Reich bent the economy to begin preparing for armed conflict. If you look at the photo showing the stamped date, the way to read it is clear: Sep 24 1330, with 1330 referring to some inventory number assigned somewhere along the way. The "1" looks in size and shape to correspond to the "330," definitely not to the other two digits, "2" and "4." 

Rare Antique Beistle Halloween Party Favors Toy Horrible Wriggling Snake Box Lot

Darn, I wish I would have noticed this listing. A true example of "new old stock" found at an estate sale, the lot featured 12 complete and near-mint packages of the hard-to-find Beistle enveloped product called Horrible, Wriggling Snake. Whomever the buyer was got a killer deal. Expect to see prices on this item to dip in the short term as these begin to wend their way to the marketplace. The dip will be temporary in my opinion, as these are great sets. 

Vintage 1940's Halloween BEISTLE Embossed, Die-cut FLYING WITCH Large size

This large, saw-toothed diecut made by Beistle seemingly sold for a bargain price. The story behind the story, though, is that about one inch has been trimmed from the bottom edge. This is pretty severe damage. The buyer realized that something looked a little off and contacted me for my opinion. Given the data I provided, both parties to the sale agreed to void it. The lesson here is to look carefully at auction photos and compare them to photos in reference books, especially mine! :)