Disney Pin and Pizza Party

If you had to think about what goes best with Disney pins, you might say binders to put them in or maybe a database to catalog them in - bet you wouldn't say pizza, though.

But that's the right answer!

Vicki Scott-Huerta knows. She organizes bi-monthly Disney pin trading events at the local Straw Hat Pizza franchise in Tracy, California. The event draws a few dozen pin collectors from as far away as San Jose and Sacramento for a few hours of pin trading, pin chatting, and pizza chomping.

Vicki's next event is Saturday, January 22, at the Straw Hat Pizza on 3228 Tracy Blvd. The event starts at noon and admission is free. While there, you can (and should) order lots of pizza.

Let Vicki tell the story...

Every two months you host a pin trading event for collectors in northern California. How many folks typically show up? Does the event draw mostly collectors or do dealers set up shop there, too?

Vicki: The event will usually draw anywhere from 20 to 40 people.

These are just collectors who enjoy collecting Disney Pins. No dealers, as this is not for profit, but for fun.

What motivated you to begin organizing these events?

Vicki: The need to trade! We can't get to Disneyland as often as we'd like, so we wanted to put something together locally for ourselves and the nearby pin traders.

Tell me about your upcoming event on January 22. How do you advertise it? Is it a for-profit event or more of a hope-we-break-even affair?

Vicki: The event is free and open to the public. We are fortunate to have a great location to meet, Straw Hat Pizza, which is free to us. We try to encourage everyone to come hungry so we can help the owner out as well.

How long ago did you start collecting Disney pins? Do you remember your first one?

Vicki: My husband and I started collecting over 20 years ago, but did not know anything about trading until our nephew introduced us to it in July 2009. Ever since then we have been hooked!

I can't recall the first pin, but know it was something special, as we only purchased pins that meant something to us.

You now own over 5000 Disney pins. That's a lot of pins! How do you keep them organized? Are there containers or other holders for them? Do you use a database to keep inventory?

Vicki: Actually, we use baseball card holders and keep most of the pins in binders. Disney also sells pin bags that we also use for storing and reviewing pins.

Usually, we store and organize our pins by character or event.

A great way to inventory them is a website called PinPics. It helps you keep track of your collection, the pins you're still searching for, and the pins you want to trade.

Another popular website with pin traders is Disney Pin Forum. It has information about upcoming pin releases, pin events, pin trading, and pin selling. It's a great way to learn and to stay connected with other pin traders around the world!

Can you give me an idea of how big Disney pin trading has become?

Vicki: Well, we make trades with people in Hong Kong, France, and basically all over the world.

Disney puts on their own trading events as well at Disneyland and at Disney World, usually every other month or every quarter.

It's a pretty popular hobby!

I buy a few pins every time I visit the parks, but I don't consider myself a collector. What advice would you give the person just starting a collection?

Vicki: It depends on whether you're collecting for fun or for profit. Those are usually the two things that motivate people.

We collect for fun and for what we like.

We tend to collect Cinderella, Pooh, and Stitch pins because we like those characters. We do, however, also collect other pins that please us.

If you're collecting for fun, like what you buy or trade for!

If you're collecting for profit, you will need to do research and know what will be popular with most traders.

And finally: can you recommend any good sites for Disney pin collectors?

Vicki: As mentioned earlier, Disney Pin Forum is great! It allows you to keep up on everything and stay in contact with other traders and sellers!

Also, PinPics is good for keeping track of your inventory and for getting an idea of what your pins are worth.

All in all, pin trading is really fun and you end up meeting some very nice and helpful individuals!

Our next event is this coming Saturday, the 22nd, in Tracy. We also have another event in Sacramento on February 26.

Anyone who wants information on either event is welcome to email me and I'll add you to our mailing list for all our upcoming events.

Thanks very much, Vicki! And good luck with the event.

Stuff Not to Skip

• Disney's Official Pin Trading site
  http://eventservices.disney.go.com/pintrading/page?id=getStarted
• More about Disney Pin Trading from Wikipedia
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney_pin_trading
• PinPics
  http://www.pinpics.com
• Disney Pin Forum
  http://www.disneypinforum.com
• Vicki Scott-Huerta profiled in the Tracy Press
  http://www.tracypress.com/view/full_story/11015269/article-Her-heart-on-a-pin?instance=home_news_lead_story
• Straw Hat Pizza in Tracy, CA
  http://www.strawhatpizza.com/franchise/index.php?franchiseID=38