Pin trading?

[anne928]

what's the deal with the pins? this is our first trip, my ds's are 6 and 4. should I assume this is something they will want to do, or is it something kids get into when they are older and know the ropes? how do they get started?

thanks,
anne

 

[ilandrazdsw]

I ordered pins/laynard for each of my kids (DD3 & DS5) for our Christmas trip. I have given the them pins as behavior rewards so they will have them when we go. You can buy lots of them on Ebay or on Sale from disney online. Even if you children do not like the one you choose, they can trade for ones they want. I believe all pin cms have to make a trade for whatever pind the child wants. If you children are social/outgoing it may work better for them than a child who is shy. Be prepared (depending on kids age) to wear the laynard yourself b/c it can get heavy for a child.

 

[anne928]

i'm still not sure if my kids will want to do this, or if I'll just be starting them on an expensive hobby but I think I want to get them lanyards and pins.

where did you get their lanyards? did you buy some kind of starter set or a lot of pins from ebay? how many pins usually fit on a lanyard?

sorry so many questions, this is all new to me!

thanks!
anne

 

[stitcharoo]

Pins are awesome!! They are so fun to get and trade! you can get starter kits on ebay or at disney. at disney pins start out at $6.95. me and my sister by them on ebay in lots of twenty for $30-$40. You save so much money and its fun because you never know what you are going to get. think your oldest child will like it. I have read a lot of trip reports where smaller kids really get into it.

 

[Darcy03231]

I took my niece (4) for her first trip in October. She loved pin trading! It was one of her favorite things. I bought a bunch on ebay before we left. I averaged about $2.50 per pin.

 

[becca011906]

we didn't let any of the kids do this till the last trip. My oldest is pretty social so we let him trade pins since the girls did the BBB and he really got a lot of good expriences from it. He's looking forward to trading again and getting a few more pins but he likes to pick them out at Disney... i may get him some from ebay though and see if he like some of thoes.

 

[mejkjj97]

My DD had just turned 3 during our last trip and she had a blast trading pins.
She also got so many little things from all the cast members that she traded pins with- Stickers, Tattoos, Lollipops, etc.
I got pins on line for about $2.50.

 

[ilandrazdsw]

I hit a big sale on disneyshopping.com (not a big ebay person, although it can have some great deals) and bought the laynards (each came with one pin) and 24 pins (some in sets). There are 13 pins and the laynards are pretty full. If you can afford it give it a try...I think it will be a hit!

 

[anne928]

Thanks for all the info! now I just have to find them in time for christmas! I looked on disneyshopping.com but I only saw one lanyard, can that be right? I guess I'll have to watch ebay, they seemed to have a lot of options.

- anne

 

[MJAJmom]

For our october trip, we tried pin trading for the first time with my boys 6yrs and 3.5yrs. It was a lot of fun. It took a day to get used to it and get the courage up to seek out CMs with pin lanyards. DS6 was very into it. I carried the pins on a lanyard the first 2 days, then he got to wear his lanyard after that. DS3 just liked pointing out a pin he thought was cool to trade. For good manners, I made them say "may I trade please" and of course a thank you.

For starters, I bought 3 lanyards online at www.laughingplace.com for $6 each. I bought a random mix lot of 100 pins from www.mousepinsonline.com (pins were $1.75 each). EBay also has lots of pins but be VERY careful and read the descriptions (to avoid propins and sedoma ones) and also read the feedback scores if they've been a seller for a long time. I also got 2 small plastic pouches that I put the pins in from the dollar store (one for pins we traded that we liked, and one for pins still available to trade). I put about 12 pins on the lanyard and carried another 20 in my bag at the parks. Each day we traded more pins than the prior day.

I thought pin trading was great for the boys. It was almost like they got a small present several times a day. Now we have to find a way to display all our pins that we traded at home.

Have fun.

PS, for little boys, don't forget to bring lots of glowsticks for the boys to play with at night during parades and dark shows. Another fabulous dolloar store purchase I made.

 

[Dani C]

Pin trading can be a lot of fun for the kids. There are even CMs that can only trade with children. I think, unless they have changed it, that they are wearing green lanyards.

Just remember that only Disney pins can be traded and you cannot trade personalized pins.

 

[goofy4prez]

Our first trip to WDW was in Aug. We bought my dd(10) a lanyard and a set of pins. She was so into it. She had no problem asking a cm to trade. We're going back again the end of January and she can't wait to see what else she can trade for.

 

[daleswife]

We went in August also and I bought lanyards from ebay for $2.50. They had a little change purse on the end of it and it was wonderful for carring money, room keys, tickets, etc..... I also bought pins off ebay. I got 40 pins for $60. (I shared with my mom and my DH.)

When we got there, my DD, nephews, and niece wanted to do it so we had to buy them lanyards and a set of pins...but since we had so many, we gave them some of ours too. they had a blast. Their ages range from 5 to 11.

I will warn you though.....You trade off the pins you dont like and end up with pins you LOVE and dont wanna trade and you have to buy more so you can trade them....LOL

Its a blast...

 

[owensamo]

For starters, I bought 3 lanyards online at www.laughingplace.com for $6 each. I bought a random mix lot of 100 pins from www.mousepinsonline.com (pins were $1.75 each). EBay also has lots of pins but be VERY careful and read the descriptions (to avoid propins and sedoma ones) and also read the feedback scores if they've been a seller for a long time. .

Mousepinsonline says they include ProPins in their grab bags - did you have any problems trading those? Or can you not tell the difference?

I've read of people having problems trading ProPin and Sededsma pins, and would feel horrible if my DD tried to trade a pin and was told she couldn't!

Thanks!
Amanda

 

[MJAJmom]

Mousepinsonline says they include ProPins in their grab bags - did you have any problems trading those? Or can you not tell the difference?

I've read of people having problems trading ProPin and Sededsma pins, and would feel horrible if my DD tried to trade a pin and was told she couldn't!

Thanks!
Amanda

Technically, any pin that says Disney on the back can be traded with a CM including Sedesma (never sure how to spell it) and propins. Those pins can sometimes be a bit smaller or a little bit cheaper looking, but still OK to trade. If you were trading with other individuals at a pin trading event, they might krinkle their noses and not trade.

I just figured I be safe starting out the first time.

 

[Laurabearz]

what's the deal with the pins? this is our first trip, my ds's are 6 and 4. should I assume this is something they will want to do, or is it something kids get into when they are older and know the ropes? how do they get started?

thanks,
anne

To be honest, at 6 and 4, I dont think they will be all that interested in it unless you make it a focus of attention. The lanyards get annoying after a while and they will end up on you or in the back pack. And it takes time out of your touring.

This is your first trip and there is enough to do without messing with that. Have the girls pick out a pin or two if you like, but I would focus on just being there....