I’ve never understood the attraction of this diecut. (Another design from the same set is a donut and cup. That, too, leaves me cold.) Great companies like Beistle can’t always hit home runs. No organization does. However, sometimes the strike-out is so spectacular that I wonder if the Art Director at the time was sacked for poor judgement. This design rivals the Dennison frog diecut for having little logical tie-in to Halloween iconography.
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Mark B. Ledenbach's vintage Halloween collectibles blog.
VINTAGE 1960's HALLOWEEN Flying WITCH, Surprised MOON Die-Cut Party Decoration
Eureka produced a small number of Halloween diecuts in the early 1960s. They were produced on thin paper stock, so most are in poor condition when found. I’ve noticed that prices for Eureka diecuts have increased sharply over the last five years. This is a diecut of a broomed witch racing against a large moon with a surprised look on its face. The trees at the bottom are a bit spookier than one finds in the typical Eureka diecut. I sold a duplicate of this diecut in my recent vintage Halloween auction extravaganza. Unlike this one, it didn't have a specific date printed on the front, so Eureka definitely made at least two iterations of this diecut. (I feel this is the most interesting of their Halloween diecuts.)
06/24 Update: This seems to be the most coveted Eureka diecut design. It brought a strong $152.50.
HTF LARGE Vintage Dennison Whistling Moon & Owls Halloween Decoration cardboard
Be aware that someone bought this complete diecut at a dime store than decided it would be cool to cut out portions of the eyes and cover them with crepe paper. Dennison, which began making this diecut in 1927, did not issue this diecut this way. If you decide to purchase this, it would not have any collectible value.
vintage halloween Rare Die cut Man In Moon
This is one of a set of four diecuts Beistle issued in the mid-1950s. The set is hard to find, but this example is in poor enough condition that I feel collectors should pass it by. Why? The set was distinguished by a little-used novelty of having a separately attached image made from a black light construction paper give a cheap 3-D effect to the overall diecut. The bat that should be with this diecut would have been attached where the holes are located in the left middle of the item. Please see page 158 to view the entire set.
ESTATE #476-VINTAGE HALLOWEEN PRINTED CARDBOARD DIECUT MOON FACE + WITCH DETAIL
It is great to see such a nice diecut surface amid all the dreck that is on Ebay right now. (Ebay has really become a junkyard, albeit one in which the occasional gem can be found and in which several quality dealers still endeavor to provide quality items. Overall, though, Ebay has long ago lost control over the integrity of their categories. For instance, they have allowed a seller to list and re-list a white tractor seat in the Vintage Halloween category. Really?) OK, off the soapbox and on to this great diecut. This is a visually arresting piece to add to your collection. It is one of a set of four diecuts Beistle issued during the mid-1950s. As a write on page 158, "Having an item like this witch separately attached to a diecut is unusual. More labor is required and the chance for defects increases the risk of returns. This may account for the mere three season run this diecut enjoyed."
05/24 Update: This super diecut sold for a very strong $372. I feel the cited values for this set of diecuts are now too low. Instead of $175-200 for each of the four depending on design, I feel sustainable guide value should be $250-325.
Halloween Crescent Moon With Flying Witch
This is probably the best design of a set of very-tough-to-find diecuts Beistle issued in the mid-1950s when their creative juices were at very low tide. This set has an unusual feature of silhouettes separately attached to the main diecut. As I write in my newly published third edition on page 158, "More labor is required and the chance for defects increases the risk of returns. This may account for the mere three season run this diecut enjoyed."
09/16 Update: This sold for an unbelievable and completely unsustainable price of $538. The seller got top, top dollar the likes of which for this diecut probably will not be seen again.
OLD Halloween die cut perched owl against the moon Hallmark
This smallish perched owl diecut was made by Hallmark in the later 1940s. It was sold as one diecut of a boxed set of diecuts. (Hallmark didn't seem to have a standardized set of diecuts sold in their larger box, but seemed to have a varying assortment they sold over a handful of Halloween seasons.) You can see what the box looks like if you turn to page 164 of my new third edition. (Hallmark sold place cards in a smaller, otherwise identical box.)
vintage Halloween diecut
This is one of a set of three 3-D fold-out decorations Beistle made in the mid-1950s. (The other two can be seen on page 231.) These surface on a somewhat regular basis, but typically bring $150-225. This is a great example of how condition affects value. Instead of $150, due to someone carelessly ripping the one side, this only brought $32.99.
