Pin Etiquette (Some Questions)

[happytraveler65]

I am new to this pin trading thing, my DD9 wants to try it out since we are doing land and sea and can trade with CM's at the park even if it is not allowed on board. I have heard that CM's need to trade unless they will end up with two of the same?? What about non-CM's (general population)do we approach them to trade too? Does the same rules apply, whereas you must trade if someone asks you to? I don't want to do this wrong and insult someone by asking or by declining a trade. I appreciate any comments.Thanks

 

[MickeyB426]

I am new to this pin trading thing, my DD9 wants to try it out since we are doing land and sea and can trade with CM's at the park even if it is not allowed on board. I have heard that CM's need to trade unless they will end up with two of the same?? What about non-CM's (general population)do we approach them to trade too? Does the same rules apply, whereas you must trade if someone asks you to? I don't want to do this wrong and insult someone by asking or by declining a trade. I appreciate any comments.Thanks

Pin trading with the CM's is now allowed on board. It was resumed on my cruise two weeks ago. It was temporarily suspended because of the flu outbreak.

Pin trading sessions vary. Some CM's will just leave a book of pins out on a table, and you can simply take a pin and leave one of yours there. This was done at one such trading session by the Mickey Pool. Of course, you won't come across any valuable Limited Editions this way, but it's fun and gives you an opportunity to get a pin that you may not see much.

Nearby the pin trading kiosk may be a cruiser with their pin collection out. It's very easygoing, and I've found the pin traders have been more than fair and accomodating, especially with the youngers kids. Again, you trade value to get value, but it's fun to do nonetheless.

 

[lbgraves]

The CMs on the ship were great! The kids wanted to go to the GS desk & the shops every day to see what new pins they had on their lanyards. They will trade ANY Disney pin for one on their lanyard. A couple CMs were very imformative about the pins that the kids had collected and while they can't come right out & tell you that you need to be careful when trading with non-CMs...they made sure that I understood. Little kids could always be an easy target for a serious collector & might try trading a bum pin to get a highly desirable one that a child has. Both of my kids know that they could only trade with a CM with a name tag on. Our last cruise was our first attempt at pin trading. I would recommend your DD stick with CMs for trades while she learns about it. Another thing that I learned is that if your pin has a mickey head back the CM will let you keep it if the one you chose to trade with does not.

 

[webray]

Unfortuantely..it does not work the same way with the general public. They are not required to trade. While you are at WDW, you can approach other guests with lanyards on, and you will see many people trading in the designated areas around each park.

 

[ohMom]

my understanding of pin trading - and our family does it solely for fun so i have nothing to offer for those interested in the value side

Same as you understand, CMs must trade as long as they don't have that exact pin on their lanyard, we found the CMs to be very approachable and ready to answer questions, etc on trading. They usually tell you to keep your back and just trade the front, especially if you have a better back. Those CMs wearing green lanyards trade only with kids 12 and under

as for guest-to-guest trading -- I understand that if both parties are happy with the agreed trade then it's fine. My DD traded a guest on a WDW bus one evening -- she was very innocently checking a very kind lady's lanyard and the lady brought up the subject to her. My DD explained to her that she was trading for princess pins this trip and she liked her such-and-such and would she trade it? This kind lady did. I just explain to my kids that other guests do not have to trade but it ok to ask them, with a parent by their side of course. That is the only guest-to-guest trading we did. I think you get a sense of who is approachable, where you are, etc and if it seems appropriate to ask. Personally I think there is no harm in asking, the worse to happen is that guest declines. But CM trading is so much more open you'll probably find that's what you do more of.

one more thing -- we wear our 'tradable' pins on one side of our lanyard and our 'keepers' on the opposite side -- helps in the heat of the moment

 

[lbgraves]

The kids had 15 pins to trade so they got a little lopsided when we tried to keep up with this half way thru the cruise. LOL! I bought some of the screw on backs for the ones that they were not going to trade or the ones that were fairly big & heavier so they wouldn't fall off. The CMs offered that suggestion & it worked for us.

 

[DCLgodess]

do you feel bad declining a trade? i mean i only collect the really special ones or ones i really like. I often buy them off ebay so i have spent money on them. If there are two i try to buy both so i have one to trade and one to keep for myself, but do you ever feel guilty saying no?

 

[lbgraves]

Personally, I wouldn't. There are just some pins that you don't want to trade once you have them. I just stocked up at the pin sale online at disney direct so we are all set for the next cruise.

 

[DCLgodess]

i searched Disney Direct and couldn't find the pins. where are they located? And what kinds can you buy. I am really into this pin trading thing and would love to start a collection outside of cruise pins.

 

[mokehil]

On the cruise does pin trading take place at other times than the "pin trading" mentioned in the Navagator?
Are there CMs walking around with lanyards?
How am I going to know whether it is a good trade (value wise?)
Where do you learn about pin values?
I just like trading and don't expect to ever make money on it. I trade for pins I like and the theme usually changes from day today. It is always fun to see what is left at the end of a day.
Do we each get a cruise pin for just going on the trip, or must we buy or bring our own to start?

 

[lbgraves]

I don't keep track of the values either but do buy the pins that we trade on sale with discounts & free shipping so they end up costing me under 2.50 each. Most pins start at 6.50. You can find lots of Disney pins on ebay to get a batch ready to trade. You will get 2 Castaway club pins on your second crusie with DCL but do have to buy any other pins that you see in the shops.

DS did his first trade as we walked into the atrium when we boarded the ship. All of the CMs standing there clapping & welcoming you aboard had lanyards on & DS spotted a neat Mickey pin that he wanted. They stop and trade with you any time during the day after completing helping the person who might be ahead of you. The CMs at GS also had lanyards and most of the CMs in the shops had lanyards on. We never actually went to the pin trading events so IDK how crowded they were but found more than enough opportunities for the kids to trade. DS was a regular in the shops in the morning and the CMs there called him by name. They knew that DD was collecting princess pins and one CM had one to show her one morning that they thought she might like.

 

[DCLgodess]

oh why must i wait until dec '06 to try this. it sounds like a lot of fun. of course i will need to stock up on pins first because the ones i currently own are for me and me only. Sorry if i sound greedy, but they are all limited editions or special events ones I have bought off of ebay or actually cruised to buy.

 

[videogal1]

When I heard about the special edition pins being offered on the 2004 10-day holiday cruise I saw that I could finally purchase some pins that would have a value to me different from the sentimental value of the pins I had collected up to that time...The Mickey in a raincoat pin I bought on my first day back at the parks...it was raining...The Mickey Great and Mighty hunter pin I got on my first trip to AK, or the sentimental and esthetic values of my other Mickey pins. So I bought two of each limited edition pin and, that way, started my sub-collection of pins...those that my heart wouldn't pain at trading away or selling. I still see myself as an acquirer of pins rather than a trader...The pin that I ended up with after one trade is not one I would have purchased but I suppose someone might want it...Right now it is part of Cash's cat pin collection...a baby lion king...

 

[PoohJen]

My 3 boys (twins now 8 and eldest now 12) have been trading for a few years. They have fun just showing their pins to other pin-lovers, and looking at the other travellers' pins. We haven't experienced any hard feelings - my boys have pins they don't want to trade (just like to show them off! ] and expect that others have special pins too. I like that my kids feel comfortable having pleasant chats about the pins with kids and grown-ups alike.

We've paid from $2.50 (ebay) to 10.50 (parks, cruise) on pins. If I've paid 10.50, you know it's at least "special" to us and will go in the "no trade" pile. But I don't expect to ever retire by selling off my pin collection!

DH and I have both started trading too! I love trading with the CMs. I always have at least one pin on my lanyard that i'll trade (b/c i'm so sentimental, i want to keep them all!). ON my last trip, I would trade that same pin every day (i.e., trade Monday's pin for a new one on Tuesday, trade Tuesday's pin for a new one on Wednesday...). What was the point? I guess just to make sure I made a trade, just for the fun of it!

AND...this weekend DIS friends that we met on DCL are coming for dinner, lanyards in hand - rest assured there will be some pin-trading festivities after dinner!
HAVE FUN!!!!

 

[lbgraves]

I am going to make a shadow box using a piece of cork board covered with a nice piece of fabric and stick the kid's pins on it for them to hang in thier room. They can have a framed collection for each of our trips. I think that it will be nice to see how their interests change over the years. I only try to get the best price on the pins that we intend to trade to let the kids have as many as possible to last over the 7 days. I also have gotten the pins from the Kellogg's promotion that is run each spring. Send in 3 forms from the side of certain cereals & get a free official Disney pin. Each of the kids had 5 of those last year to start their trading with. Yes, they are trading for pins that would cost me more to purchase straight out but we wont be selling them for any profit. I couldn't afford to buy 15 pins for each of them at 6.50 a pop.

 

[LCTsMom]

We have traded pins in the parks for the last few years. My two boys (11 & 13) and 4 year old daughter collect different pins at any given time. The "value" is on a personal level, not so much monetary. I know there are books out there that serious pin traders use but we have never gotten into it that way. You can find pin lots on eBay where the prices ares pretty cheap when you break it down. At the parks, the pins start at $6.50 plus tax. We have a Disney Character Warehouse near us where they frequently mark pins down to as little as $2.00. We have acquired a huge pin trading book full of pins so at this point we only carry the pins that we want to trade to the parks with us (I'm sure we'll do the same on the cruise.) We have found many stray pins on the floors of buses and on the ground at the parks. The push on pin backs don't always hold securely. Make sure to protect your valuable pins with screw on pin backs or in pin trading books. It's a fun, (relatively) cheap way to commemorate our Disney trips.