What Are The Most Popular Disney Pins?
Disney Pin Popularity
By: Jennifer Romano
What are the most popular Disney pins? This is a difficult question to answer because it is completely based on your own subjective opinion. Every Disney pin collector has a very different style with which he or she collects pins. Some people start out by collecting every letter of the alphabet with some of the Disney character/alphabet pins that are out there. Some collectors like to focus on one character and base their whole collections on that one character. Another strategy could involve a particular favorite attraction. Regardless of your collecting style, there is no one right way to collect Disney pins, and what you collect should have some meaning to you.
With regard to collecting pins, I started when I was a junior in high school in 1998. My first pin actually came with a hat that I bought at the Chapeau on Main Street in the Magic Kingdom. I also purchased pins from each of the theme parks to mark my visits there. After these pins, I was hooked, and I really started spending all of my hard earned souvenir money on pins whenever we took a trip to WDW. I really did not get into pin trading until I was in college, and I had more pins from which to choose for trading.
Even when I was in high school, I started enacting some basic pin purchasing rules for myself. I would never buy a pin for an attraction that I had not ridden. For example, I was too afraid to ride Space Mountain, so no pin for me! It wasn’t until a few years later that I took the plunge and rode Space Mountain and Tower of Terror; only then would I allow myself to buy the pins. As for other pin rules, I usually stick to limited edition pins. Every year for New Year’s, we go to Walt Disney World, so I always buy the limited edition New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day pins. These types of pins are fun to buy because you have to stand in line with other pin aficionados and wait your turn maybe to get a pin. This is exciting, and even though I may not get a pin, I still enjoy it.
As for my favorite pins, I am a huge fan of Mr. Toad, and I have a decent Mr. Toad collection. I also have New Year’s pins from almost every year dating back to 1998. Lately, I have been collecting pieces of the Casey Junior train from Disneyland. I just recently completed that set. Also, I love to buy annual passholder exclusive sets. Every year, Disney releases a set of annual passholder pins that all connect if you keep up with purchasing them throughout the year. I also enjoy the vinylmation pins that have recently come out. The various park series vinylmation pins have interesting artwork, and I have tried to collect as many of them as I can.
In addition to the other pin sets I have mentioned, WDW has created some pins of Duffy the Disney Bear wearing different hats from memorable attractions and characters. For example, there are pins with Duffy wearing a conductor’s hat, Peter Pan’s hat, etc. Since I have become enamored with Duffy, I can’t resist collecting these pins. Basically, I do not have too strict a criteria for deciding which pins to collect. I just trade with castmembers or purchase pins that call to me.
You might be wondering, where do I find pins to trade? Well, I have been interested in pin trading for a while now, so I have accumulated quite a lot of doubles and extras. For every occasion, family members give me Disney pins. This is how I have amassed my vast array of trading pins. If you are just getting started, purchase a pin trading starter kit or a box of mystery pins and take it slow. Over time, you will have lots of extras and repeats, and then you too will have many pins to trade.
There is no one answer to which pins are the most popular. It is up to you to decide what you are interested in and which pins will make you the happiest. Pin trading is most enjoyable when you do not take it too seriously and just use it as a way to interact with other pin traders and castmembers. So, decide what your pin quarry will be and go out there and start trading!
-DPB
