Vintage Halloween German Diecut Diadem Tiara GERMANY JOL Pumpkin Girl Black Cats

Plenty of nice items are popping up on eBay now - not surprising given the time of the year. This tiara diecut is one of twelve designs, all of which can be seen on page 188. All are hard to find in collectible condition, but this one seems to surface less than some others. There was a brief blip up on the selling price of these tiaras about 18 months ago, driven mainly by one buyer, but since then the market has settled down. Most of these sell in the $700-1000 range at this time, but this is a quirky time of year so who really knows?

09/11 Update: This sold for a modest $597. Given what I have written above, I think the era of big dollars for these tiaras is over, at least for now.

Rare Vintage Halloween Dennison Witch Diecut "Eats"

Dennison diecuts from this time period, 1928-1932, are exceedingly hard-to-find in collectible condition. Even this one with its flaws has already garnered bids to $787 with 5 days to go! Dennison adopted a very specific design aesthetic during these years that differentiated their printed paper wares from all other major competitors. As the Halloween season of 1929 was wrapping up the stock market crashed. Within a year the icy tendrils of the Great Depression were crushing the vitality out of the general US economy. Dennison wasn’t spared. The overall number of their designs, and the number of each design made, atrophied. The general population was more concerned about buying food than decorations. So, at this remove of ~90 years, Dennison Halloween products from this time period are rarely seen but avidly pursued. This particularly charming non-embossed diecut first appeared in their 1930 Price List pamphlet.

08/31 Update: This ended up selling for the long-time high bid of $787, a strong price.

SUPER RARE Vintage Halloween Mask Hat w/ Crepe Paper Beistle Prototype? 20s-30s!

Since I have a trimmed one of these in the collection, I called the seller this morning to convey that it was not a prototype not meant to be sold, but an item produced and distributed by Beistle - very much meant to be sold. I acquired my lesser example 6-7 years ago when I purchased a box from a seller in the Midwest. Everything in the box was from a party some relative threw in 1923. Therefore, I think it reasonable to assume this creation was sold that year, too. I suspect that it didn’t sell well, causing Beistle to but the brakes on such designs. (Beistle was a well-managed company with responsive management acutely attuned to market trends. From my familiarity with their business practices honed through my 33 years of avid collecting, I know Beistle seldom lost much time in acknowledging market missteps.) They tinkered with the overall design until they hit upon a better one, a more easily worn one, known today as Domino masks. These were sold from 1926-1931. Examples can be seen on pages 236-237. In short, this is a rarity - and in better shape than the only other one I’ve ever seen.

Vintage Halloween rare 1930's German paper pumpkins

Sadly, this lot of fantasy items has already been bid up to far more than they are valued today. All except one were made during or after 1995 and have very modest decorative value only. (The JOL at the center bottom is probably truly vintage.) Bottom line - several are pleasant to look at, but they aren’t truly vintage.

4 Unused Tally Cards w/ Tassels Owl on Moon with JOL, Vintage Halloween c.1930’s

These tallies were produced by Hallmark, almost certainly in the late 1920s. Hallmark small paper has escalated rapidly in price over these last three years - and deservedly so. The cleverness of their designs and brilliant use of color make them poppers in a display case. That said, the ending price at $215 each, seems excessive.

Vintage Dennisons Halloween Seals Green and Red Leaves In Box 1920s

Dennison hit a few home runs in their seal designs produced from the early teens through the early 30s. (Admittedly, there were a few singles, doubles and triples - and sadly, a very few strikeouts, too!) This “triple” design first appeared in 1928. They contain an assortment of two, not necessarily evenly balanced between the two designs. (Things weren’t as precise back then.) The fact that this example has nine of one and eleven of the other is perfectly fine. I expect this listing to fetch significantly more than the current level of $146.50. If you’re a Dennison boxed set collector, you cannot let this slip away.

RARE VINTAGE HALLOWEEN EMBOSSED JOL WITH HANDS AND FEET 12" GERMANY TABLE DECOR

Great stuff is slowly showing up on eBay. Given that this has over 4 days to go, collectors haven’t had trouble finding this listing as the bidding has already reached $2,325. I’ve only seen this diecut twice before seeing this listing, and haven’t had a chance to add it to the collection yet. This example is in the best condition of the three total. These exceedingly rare German diecuts were all produced around 1935 and sent to Canada exclusively.

08/22 Update: This sold for $6699.99, a price level well above what I would have thought reasonable. I received an email from another long-time collector who made a point that resonated with me. She said that prices being what they are today…”I would not ever be able to accumulate very much. And would have a hard time having real love for all those things that cost so much, now. When they cost a pittance, there was such a warmth for them.”

Beistle Fairy Honeycomb band hat, Vintage Halloween Party Hat 1923 6"H x 11.5"W

These band hats surface so rarely that I sat up and took notice when I saw this listing. Beistle produced a small set of fairy hat designs during their fairy mania phase in 1923. Each is playful and whimsical while also subtly including hints of menace. It will be fun to see what this fetches. It has been years since one of this quality has become available.

08/24 Update: This sold for the wild price of $875.

Vintage Halloween Beistle Die Cut 1920’s Witch Over Moon

Beistle sold this non-embossed diecut, a smaller otherwise identical diecut and both small and large non-embossed diecuts of an electrified cat in large envelopes during the early 1920s. Characteristic of so much of Beistle’s early output, the envelope is nearly as good as the contents. It is this kind of rigorous attention to detail that causes so many of us to avidly collect anything Beistle produced prior to 1935.
Given the condition of this diecut, so fully described by the seller, I wouldn’t have expected the price to have exceeded $90-100.

Halloween Vintage Dennison Die Cut Gummed Seals,Cats, Leaves, Acorns, JOLs1920s

I find it amazing that this miscellaneous lot of Dennison seals has already been bid up to $159.80 with about 6 hours to go. The stars of the lot by far are the acorns and leaves.

Vintage Paper Mache Pumpkin Jack O Lantern LARGE 11" Candy Container w Lid rare

It isn’t every day that this rare and desirable pulp item surfaces. I’ve seen these described as cookie jars, too. The closed features, size and extant lid make this a real show piece. I remember some very optimistic seller tried to unsuccessfully sell another example some years back for $10,000. This isn’t in that price league, for sure, although this listing could reach close to $1,000. The market on eBay is strange these days since eBay unilaterally and imprudently changed the way they categorized holiday items. Who really knows what this will bring? I know a broad swath of collectors that have migrated away from eBay. I don’t feel there are as many eyes on these prizes as there were at the beginning of the year.

Vintage Halloween Place Card, JOL Grins Evilly at Two Black Kittens

This fine seller is normally very specific in her listings, so I’m surprised she neglects to mention this place card was produced by Dennison. It first appeared in 1926 and was sold singly with stock number H462. What does “sold singly” mean? Dennison packaged a high percentage of their wares into envelopes or slide boxes. However, a few designs were sold in stationary stores one-by-one. This is one of these designs.

vintage halloween JOL candy container in original packaging

The mark on the bottom of this German JOL indicates it was produced during or after 1949. I’d say it was produced during the interval of 1955-1959.

08/10 Update: This sold for $395, quite a lot for something made post-war.

Vintage HALLOWEEN Eureka Bat Ghost Cat Cardboard Die Cut USA Jack O Lantern 16"

I’ve been tracking selling prices for the variety of diecuts produced in the later 1950s and into the early 1960s by Eureka for about two years now. I feel it is an emerging market segment unto itself. There was a time not long ago when you could hardly give them away. Several years ago I offered ~8 Eureka designs in one of my annual auctions. Each brought a then-record price. I feel there is great likelihood of continued increasing valuations associated with this market segment, so if you like Eureka’s gentle and sentimental take on Halloween, begin buying these diecuts right now.

vintage halloween decorations pre1960

This seller has several interesting assorted lots up for auction. The star of this lot is the gourd-shaped Beistle diecut, which seems to be intact and in collectible condition. Bear in mind that there are material issues with several items: the three-sided Gibson JOL shade is missing its black top-piece that serves to hold the lantern together, the Beistle walking witch diecut has no legs and the bottom ends of the large Beistle diecut of a cat with a smiling moon behind have been trimmed. I’d advise bidding accordingly.

07/29 Update: This sold for much more than I would have expected - $710!