A Disney Day at the Flea Market

By Nick

On Episode 18 of The Disney Exchange about Disney souvenirs, we briefly discuss my collection. Many pieces have been Flea Market Finds.

I thought I'd take photos of what could be found at the Columbus Flea Market in New Jersey on a random, lovely Spring morning, and to be completely honest, this was not the best assortment we've seen, but it is always a crap shoot when it comes to flea marketing. Not that I walked away empty handed; more on that later.
There is a wide variety, from the expensive to the down right cheap. Let's start at the very first table we encountered. The owner of this stuffed Mickey from Macys, which comes with an alarm clock, wanted $25, a bit steep in my opinion. If I was very interested, I could have perhaps haggled him down to $20.



We move on to another table, where we find this Winnie the Pooh collectible and this Walt Disney World Pen set, which sits on top of a pad. The owner wanted $20 for Pooh and $10 for the pen set.





Some people mark their items clearly, so you don't need to ask a price. I prefer this. I often wonder if I approach someone selling a Disney item and I am wearing a piece of Disney clothing, if they don't quote me a higher price.

If this Minnie had a matching Mickey, I most likely would have picked up the pair.



Every week, this booth is set up featuring a wide assortment of cookie jars and salt and pepper shaker sets, primarily Disney, but also featuring other franchises. I have never bought anything from here however, due to the fact we don't collect salt and pepper shakers, and simply don't have the space for cookie jars, but that doesn't mean we aren't tempted every week!







You can also find very reasonably priced items of all sorts, from mugs, collectible figures, cast iron, even clothing, everywhere you look!









I was on the fence on a few items on this particular morning, including this mug for $4...



...and this Snow White stamp set.





I did purchase something from this table.



I bought this pin set, for $35, because every pin on it, and the image featured on the packaging makes me smile! I intend on framing this as is!



I actually spent more than I normally would, but it was originally $44, and I figured, if I saw it at the park, even with a %10 discount, I'm saving money. Plus the guy selling it was so darn nice!

Do you go to your local flea markets looking for Disney treasures?

This article was originally posted on The Disney Exchange.

Flea Market Find; The Perfect Birthday Gift

By: Barbie

Today, I am writing about a flea market find that I needed to do a lot of work on to get it in present-worthy condition. Let me just say that I nearly jumped for joy when I saw this on the vendor's table.  Finally, I found a gift for Nick that I knew he didn't have! My knees were shaking and I immediately got a stomach ache. I figured there was no way I would be able to afford this little bit of Disney awesomeness! Or keep the secret if I was able to get it!

I got up the nerve to ask the vendor what he wanted for this and he said $60.00, which I said was absolutely fair. I told him all I had was $40.00 and maybe I would be back. That usually never works. If I wait, I loose out, every time I hesitate! I had a terrible time going through the rest of the flea market! On our way back, I told everyone that I had to go back and see whether my item was gone, and lo, it was still on the table. I asked Nick for a tenner and offered the guy $50.00, which he took, graciously.

I took this beauty home and carefully started cleaning off of my present to Nick. (ps: He already knows what it is, you can't hide any present from him, he has a 6th sense about presents!)

That's right! It's an original 1977 R2D2 cookie jar with the original liner intact, in perfect condition, except for a ton of tape, tape goo and some small paint splatters that needed to be removed with as much care as possible.

 

 So when you find yours, here is a helpful hint for you, be very careful around R2D2's red eye, as that has been hand painted on, and could scratch off, or worse, wipe off. If you use Goof Off, as I did to get rid of the stickiness (I had tried alcohol wipes), it will take any hand painted, unglazed details right off!

 And in conclusion, Astromechs are awesome! Mech mech!

Flea Market Find: EPCOT Center Ornament

By Nick

I bought this glass ball Epcot Center ornament from 1985 at the Columbus Flea Market a couple of years ago.

I am constantly on the lookout for reasonably priced Epcot ornaments on Ebay, but this is the first time I’ve found one at the flea market. And at a price that I couldn’t believe. More on that later.
First let’s take a look at the ornament.

Not the most colorful of ornaments, but I love the graphics, which depict the pavilions existing in Future World at that time.

Here we have, of course, Spaceship Earth with the Monorail going by.

As we turn the ball, we have the Journey Into Imagination…

… and next to that, the Universe of Energy.

Then, maybe the artist realized he was running out of room, so put The World of Motion, and my beloved, and much missed, Horizons, pretty much on top of each other. Next to that is The Land.

A terrific addition to my Epcot collection. And the cost? $.50!

Flea Market Find: Haunted Mansion Monorail Playset

By Nick

Walking around the Columbus New Jersey Flea Market back in April, I stopped by a friend's table to say hello, and saw this Haunted Mansion Monorail Playset.

I confess, I didn't have a clue as to how much this set went for originally, or how much it was worth, but I of course asked how much. The Haunted Mansion is my favorite ride at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom.

When she told me $5, I was very pleasantly surprised.

There are some fun accessories, including the Hitchiking Ghosts.

Out of the box.

It opens from the back.

The stairs swing out revealing more of the interior.

A  lot from the ride is represented including the floating instruments and the dining room.

The organ, floating candelabra, and portrait gallery.

The library,  the changing portrait of Master Gracey, and a view of the cemetery from above.

The accessories in addition to the Hitchiking Ghosts include the creepy chair, clock, and Madame Leota's crystal ball.

If all that awesomeness wasn't enough, it also has flashing lights and sound!

All in all, a really great collectible and one of my best ever flea market finds.

Flea Market Find: An Unusual Disney(?) Find

By: Nick

I bought this at our local flea market several years ago and was just flummoxed.
Looking at it, a multitude of questions popped into my head:

• What is it?
• Who’s the blond? A different princess? Is this an untold chapter of Cinderella’s life?
• Where did the figures come from?
• Were the 7 dwarf’s bought with purple noses?
• How do you spell the plural possessive of dwarf?
• What was the person who made it thinking?
• How much work went into it?
• What does something like this cost?

I commented to Barbie that I would pay a dollar just to have it to blog about. I asked how much it was. The woman said “A dollar”. I think she overheard me discussing it.
Sold!



Did the creator use those fancy pattern cutting scissors on the tape, or did the tape come that way?



Why is the back a mirror?

.

The figures are really glued down well.






Was it a school project? How old is it?
So many questions I’ll never know the answers to, but one thing I do know, this is absolutely the oddest piece of my collection.