Memory Triggers

I'll be the first to admit that my memory is not the best. I'm lucky if I can remember what I did yesterday. But my keychain collection has sometimes been helpful to me in recalling memories. Now, I won't pretend that I can remember when and where I got every single keychain I own. Given the size of my collection that would be impossible, unless I was one of those more organized collectors who wrote that stuff down. However, it does sometimes surprise me what I can remember about the various keychains in my collection.

For example, I remember that I bought the rocking horse keychain pictured above from the 'trading post' at a girl scout camp. I also remember that I wanted it because I liked the amber color. I had a fascination with amber back then. I think it was because in the American Girl book series that I read growing up, the pioneer girl character wore an amber heart necklace.

There are other keychains in my collection that I bought specifically to help me recall certain memories, memories that may have nothing to do with where or how I got the keychain. One example of this is pictured below, a little red bell keychain advertising Babybel cheese.

I got this keychain from a flea market, but that's beside the point. The reason I have it is because when I was a kid, Babybel cheese was always a very special treat. It wasn't so much the taste of the cheese that I liked. The really fun thing about Babybel was taking the red wax wrapper off the mini cheese wheel. My parents didn't buy Babybel very often, but that just made it all the more special when we did get it. I acquired this Babybel keychain specifically to act as a reminder of that childhood memory.

Another keychain that's linked to a childhood memory is this silver gorilla 'key' from the Philadelphia Zoo.

The Philadelphia Zoo used to have boxes at various animal exhibits where guests could insert a plastic 'key'. When the 'key' was turned, a pre-recorded message gave information about the different animals. The earliest keys were made in an elephant shape. My mom still has a vintage, green elephant key, and I remember her letting us use it in the early 1980s. The boxes were taken down for a time, but they were brought back in the 1990s. When this happened, the zoo began selling keys in other animal shapes. The shapes chosen were usually tied to a special exhibit that was being featured at the zoo, and they were only available while supplies lasted. There was a lion key, a bear key, a lorikeets key, and a white alligator key, among others.

My family was very excited about the new 'zoo keys', and my parents ended up buying a number of them. I think my mom was even more excited about the boxes return than us kids were, and that's saying something. Sadly, the boxes rarely seemed to be in working order, and in the early 2000s they were taken down again. But I still remember some of the excitement we felt whenever a new key shape was announced. So when I found a silver gorilla 'zoo key' second-hand, I picked it up for my keychain collection.

Almost anything can be a memory trigger, whether it's a certain smell in the air, the opening notes of a song, or a physical object. I just happen to use keychains to help me recall and preserve my memories.

Signed, Treesa

(Update: While this post was in draft form, The Philadelphia Zoo decided to reinstate the 'zoo key' activated 'storybook boxes'. Judging from archived news articles that I read online, there was a lot of anticipation built up for the relaunch. But I don't know how well the new 'zoo keys' sold.)

World's Smallest Hot Wheels 'Blind Box' Keychain (A Review)

Let me start by saying that this review might be a little dated. While I'd seen other World's Smallest Hot Wheels products in stores before, I'd never seen the Hot Wheels blind box keychains until recently, when I spotted a case of them on a shelf at a Target store in Delaware. However, I'm not actually sure when these keychains hit the market. The copyright date on the blind box is 2018, so there's a possibility that these keychains were actually released last year and that I just never saw them in my area before. Whatever the case, I'm going to post this review in the hopes that it's still relevant to somebody.

I love the World's Smallest line of products, and I wish more of them were available in keychain form. They remind me of the old Basic Fun keychains, with their miniature representations of classic toys. So when I saw a case of World's Smallest Hot Wheels blind box keychains at Target, I was thrilled. I know I stated in a past post that I usually have bad luck with blind box items. However in this case, the blind box factor wasn't something I was concerned about, since it didn't really matter to me which of the mini diecast Hot Wheels cars I ended up with. What really piqued my interest was the 'retro' replica packaging that made up the bulk of the keychain.

Here's a photo of the blind box itself. A sample keychain is pictured on the box, as well as a photo of one of the mini diecast cars sitting on a stack of coins to show the scale.

And here's a picture of the actual keychain I received. In my opinion, the 'retro' packaging is what really makes this keychain. It just looks cool. However, I get the impression that this keychain was designed more as a collector's item than as a functional keychain, since the details on the front and back are printed on stickers. Stickers don't tend to hold up well over time, especially if they're subjected to heavy wear and tear.

The main problem I have with this keychain, however, is the small access panel in the back that is supposed to open so you can remove the car. I had a lot of trouble getting that panel open. I ended up having to use way more force than I was comfortable with, and during the process I was worried the plastic hinge was going to snap. Once I had it open, I decided to just leave the car in there, rather than trying to pry out the small plastic shell that was holding it in place. But when I tried to close the panel again, I had some trouble getting it to go back in and stay closed. As you can see in the photo below, the black plastic at the corners is sort of ragged looking.

The whole access panel feature seems poorly designed to me.

As a side note, the keyring part of this keychain isn't like any keychain 'finding' I've ever seen. It's round, like a split ring, but it actually functions like a carabiner. I've never seen a circular carabiner before. Also, there was something else in the box that sent my nostalgia factor through the roof.

A mini product catalog, just like the ones Basic Fun used to put out back in the day! Unfortunately for me, most of the products shown in this catalog aren't keychains. But on the plus side, this catalog was a lot less tricky to refold than the old Basic Fun product catalogs.

Below is a list of what I see as the good points and bad points about the World's Smallest Hot Wheels blind box keychain, along with my final verdict.

Good Points:
If you miss the old Basic Fun keychains as much as I do, then these World's Smallest Hot Wheels keychains should be right up your alley. For once, the blind box aspect wasn't an issue for me, although it might be a problem for people who are planning to buy more than one keychain.

Bad Points:
While using stickers for the details was probably the easiest and most cost effective option, it might take away from the long term durability of the keychain. Also, the access panel in the back was poorly designed and is difficult to use.

Final Verdict:
Although there were a few issues with this keychain that disappointed me, these issues didn't completely detract from my overall enjoyment of the product. However, the fact that I bought the keychain as a collectible and not to use as a keychain makes it easier to overlook certain things. It probably also helped that the price was what I consider reasonable.

Signed, Treesa

Brick By Brick (Lego Keychains)

I've been on a bit of a Lego kick recently. I'm not exactly sure why. I mean yeah, my siblings and I played with Legos when we were growing up. (My one sister, K., was especially good at building Lego floor plans for houses.) I even had one of the larger pirate ship playsets. Though if I remember correctly, my parents had to do a lot of the assembly work on it.

But lots of kids grew up playing with Legos. I wouldn't consider myself an AFOL, as grown-up Lego enthusiasts sometimes refer to themselves. (AFOL stands for Adult Fan Of Lego, and I only know that term because I borrowed a DVD copy of the Lego Brickumentary from my local public library.) Anyway, I think my current interest in Lego keychains can be linked to two main factors: more licensed minifigures and easier accessibility.

For some reason, I'm really drawn to the licensed Lego minifigures. There's just something appealing to me about seeing a human film character translated into Lego form. However, since I need another collection like I need a hole in my head, I've been trying to limit myself to buying the minifigures in keychain form. After all, I've been collecting keychains since childhood, so it's not like I'm starting a new collection from scratch. (Although I did pick up a few Disney Lego blind bag figures for my box of Disney collectables, but that's another story.)

In the past, I have purchased a few Lego keychains here and there for my general collection.

For example, these two holiday themed keychains, representing Santa Claus and an angel respectively, were bought secondhand at different times.

And this Lego minifigure keychain of Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter franchise was found at a thrift store for a fantastic price.

Every once in a while, I've even purchased a clearance priced Lego keychain or two from one of the official Lego Stores, if my family happened to be at a mall that had one and they wanted to stop.

The purple Lego brick keychain and the Lego minifigure of Indiana Jones' father pictured above both came from The Lego Store.

These next two Lego keychains, of Luke Skywalker and R2-D2 from Star Wars, were also bought from Lego Stores, at different times.

The Yoda minifigure keychain pictured above actually came from the Lego Store connected to the Legoland Discovery Center attraction at Plymouth Meeting Mall in Pennsylvania. I purchased the Discovery Center souvenir keychain shown below as well.

My family and I didn't visit the actual attraction, but we did take a look in the store. (There are a number of souvenir keychains in my collection from places I haven't actually visited. See my 'Armchair Traveling' post.)

However, the main problem I had with shopping for keychains at the authorized Lego Stores was that all of the stores closest to me were too far away to visit regularly. And forget about shopping for Lego keychains online. Once you add on the shipping costs it becomes very difficult to find many real bargains, though not impossible. The Lego minifigure keychain of Harry Potter shown below was purchased online to go with my Hermione Granger minifigure keychain.

However, ever since Andy's Brick Shop opened at one of the local malls it's gotten a lot easier for me to get my hands on reasonably priced Lego keychains, without having to worry about the shipping costs that I would need to pay if I shopped online. Andy's Brick Shop is an independent Lego store that sells mostly secondhand pieces and sets. I've mentioned the shop before in my 'February Shopping Spree' post.

This minifigure keychain was one of my early purchases from Andy's Brick Shop. I'm guessing it was originally sold in Orlando, Florida as a souvenir. There is a Legoland theme park near that part of Florida, as well as a Lego Store at the Walt Disney World resort. However, I'm honestly not sure which of those locations this keychain came from, if either.

I bought the keychain above at Andy's Brick Shop because my best friend and two of my sisters are fans of the Marvel superheroes film franchise, known collectively as the Marvel Cinematic Universe or MCU. This minifigure is based on the Black Widow character from The Avengers. Actually, I think the main reasons I bought her were because I just really liked her hairstyle and her facial expression. But thanks to my best friend and my sisters, at least I actually knew who she was. I can't exactly say the same about my next purchase.

Another Andy's Brick Shop find, this keychain is based on a character from the Disney live action film Prince Of Persia. I've never seen the movie, but this minifigure has sort of a 'Princess Leia' vibe to me, which I like. Granted, I might feel differently if I actually knew anything about the character.

When I found this keychain, I knew right away that it was a hobbit character, despite the missing tag. Lego hobbit minifigures have shorter legs than full sized minifigures. However, I wasn't entirely sure which hobbit this was. I was kind of hoping it was Sam. But when I looked this keychain up online, it turned out to be Bilbo. It's still an interesting figure though.

Not only is Andy's Brick Shop well stocked, the owner is also very knowledgeable. He was able to help me identify this Lego minifigure keychain that came in a grab bag I bought from a thrift store. Apparently, this figure was from the Lego Insectoids line.

Ok, so maybe I did go a little overboard on my 'Lego kick'. But I can stop anytime I want, honest.

Signed, Treesa

Update: Thanks to Andy's Brick Shop, I was able to get my hands on this Lord Of The Rings Frodo minifigure keychain. So now I have my second Lego hobbit. Although, not everyone seems to think this keychain bears a good resemblance to Frodo. Someone online compared the likeness to actor Michael Landon in Little House On The Prairie. I think it must be the hair, and maybe the suspenders.

Midway Classic Arcade Collectors Keyring

I'm hoping that the following post will serve as a lesson to other collectors to always know what you're buying. I purchased this keychain thinking that it was somehow connected to the World's Smallest Tiny Arcade product line. It turned out that this wasn't the case. The World's Smallest line is marketed by a company called Super Impulse, or Si for short. The Classic Arcade Keyring I'm about to show you was put out by Monogram International Inc., the same company that brought blind bag Disney Figural Keyrings to the market.

I've never been a gamer, but when I first discovered the World's Smallest Tiny Arcade keychains in stores I thought they were really cool. I have a strong sense of nostalgia for the old Basic Fun keychains, many of which were based on classic games and toys. I was thrilled when the World's Smallest line premiered and brought back the idea of mini versions of classic toys. Although I wish that more of the World's Smallest products were available in keychain form.

The prices being charged for the Tiny Arcade line were, unfortunately, more than I could justify spending for something that size on my current budget. Then, on a trip to the local mall, I decided to stop at a store that I hadn't been to in a while called Claire's. Claire's specializes in jewelry and accessories for young people, and I blew quite a lot of money there in my younger days on their 'ten items for ten dollars' clearance sales. While I've mostly outgrown the types of merchandise offered at Claire's, every now and then I'll stop in to check the clearance racks for inexpensive jewelry items that I can take apart for other projects. That day, I happened to notice a bin of the Midway Classic Arcade Collectors Keyrings near the register.

The price was quite a bit less than the Tiny Arcade keychains I'd seen at Walmart earlier. This should have tipped me off that they were completely different products. But I just assumed that the Midway Classic Arcade Keyrings were cheaper because they were a blind bag item, and maybe had fewer features than the keychains at Walmart. I ended up buying one blind bag, and then opened it as soon as I got home.

When I took the keyring out of the bag, I immediately noticed two thing. One: the 'sign' at the top of my keyring was severely askew.

And two: this keyring had no battery operated features. It was basically just a heavy lump of dense, rubbery plastic. It was still sort of cool looking, but not at all what I was expecting. To be fair, the packaging says nothing about any potential light up or sound or game play features. On the other hand, there is also no disclaimer saying that the keyring doesn't have these features.

So now I know: try researching an unfamiliar product 'before' I buy it. While it would be unfair for me to judge this keyring based on what I thought it was, as opposed to what it actually is, there are definitely some quality control issues that I think Monogram International Inc. needs to address. The 'sign' at the top is so far out of alignment that it's pushing out one of the side walls.

Also, the keyring is way too heavy to be used for either storing keys, or to accessorize a backpack or purse. It's a good thing I bought it as a collectible, and not to use. It's also a good thing that I didn't pay more for it. But then, maybe the old saying that you get what you pay for is true.

Signed, Treesa

February Shopping Spree: Disney Keychains

I think I mentioned in a previous post that my favorite 'vacation destination' is the Disney parks. Ever since my family's last trip to Walt Disney World in 2011, several family members (including me) have been putting aside money for a return trip. My third sister, A., has been lobbying for our next family trip to Disney to be during the winter holiday season. From what I understand, the Disney parks really go all out for Christmas. Well, it looks like A. might be getting her wish. Barring any unforeseen events or expenses, the next family trip is tentatively scheduled for the beginning of December 2019. I think I'll be riding up and down on that wave of anticipation for the rest of the year, especially since my birthday is also in early December. How cool would it be to spend my birthday in one of my all-time favorite places?

Being a keychain collector, I also started thinking about vacation souvenirs. Things are frequently overpriced at any popular tourist destination, but the Disney parks can be especially pricey. When my family was taking the shuttle bus back to the airport after our last Disney trip, the driver even made a joke about the price of a bottle of water at the park versus the price of bottled water in the 'real world'. Now that my family's next Disney trip has a more definitive time frame, as opposed to being at some undetermined date in the hazy future, I found myself wondering if I should start putting aside extra money for a souvenir fund.

That's when I came up with a crazy idea. What if, instead of buying keychains at the park, I tried to save myself some money in the long run by going online and searching for Disney parks souvenir keychains at a discount on the secondary market? I know I stated in a previous post that I don't buy a lot of keychains online, mostly due to shipping costs. However I figured there was no harm in looking around. Online 'window shopping' wouldn't cost me anything but my time, and if I couldn't find anything at a price I was willing to pay then I could just log off empty-handed.

I discovered something while searching online that other keychain collectors might find useful. If you're looking for keychains from a specific Disney attraction, then there will be fewer search results and the prices will be harder to justify, budget-wise. On the other hand, if you're looking for a more general Disney parks keychain, then there will be more results at a wider range of prices. I was able to find a number of what I consider good deals. In fact, I sort of went overboard. I can definitely understand why people say that online shopping is addictive.

The first keychain I picked up on my 'shopping spree' was this one. The words 'Disney Parks' and a small castle in the clouds design appear to be etched into the metal, which by the way was a bit tricky to photograph due to the reflective surface. Overall, I think the combination of the metal with the red leather or faux red leather strap (I'm not sure which) gives this keychain a very classy look.

The next keychain I ordered has a nice design of the Disney castle on it (though again, the reflective surface made it difficult to photograph) but it isn't actually for the parks. I knew this was the case before I bought it, but I just really liked the design. According to the lettering on the back, this keychain is some kind of advertisement or premium for Partners Home Mortgage.

I looked up Partners Home Mortgage online, and it seems to be connected to Partners Federal Credit Union, which according to their website 'provides financial products and services' for Walt Disney Company employees. I didn't know the Disney Company has its own private credit union. You learn something new every day.

This Lego Star Wars Princess Leia keychain probably didn't come from the parks either, although there was a Lego store located in a shopping district at the Walt Disney World resort the last time I visited. However, I'm fairly sure the Star Wars franchise didn't officially join the Disney 'family' until more recently than that. Still, now that the Star Wars films are produced by Disney, Leia should totally count as a Disney princess.

The fact is, I've wanted one of these Princess Leia keychains ever since I first saw them at a shopping mall based Lego Store a while back. The thing about this version of Leia that got my attention was that she has a second facial expression on the back of her head.

I liked the idea of having an option of going from smiling Leai to frowning Leia.

This letter T monogram keychain was originally made for the Disney parks. It says so on the back.

I also bought some theme park keychains that have my actual name on them. In a shocking twist that will surprise no one, my real name is...

The Harry Potter Gryffindor crest keychain obviously didn't come from the Disney parks. However, it is from another Florida theme park, namely The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando.

Next we have a Walt Disney World 25th anniversary keychain.

I picked out this keychain because it has The Genie from Aladdin on it. The Genie was one of my favorite Disney characters when I was growing up.

This next keychain depicts Disney's famous Partners statue, with Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse holding hands.

If you look closely at this photo of the back of the keychain, you can make out the words 'Walt Disney World'.

I'm not sure if this coin purse keychain is actually from the Disney parks, but I doubt it. Other keychains I've seen from the parks that have fabric labels will say 'Disney Parks Authentic', or something similar. The fabric label on the inside of this coin purse keychain says 'Mickey Unlimited'. According to the online listing, the seller attributed the design on this keychain to artist Andy Warhol. I'm not sure how accurate that information is, but I do like the design.

This last online purchase was sort of an impulse buy. By the time I stumbled across the listing, the auction was almost over. I quickly looked over the page and noticed that the cost was low, there were no bidders, and the seller had an excellent feedback score. I also liked the 'Mickey Mouse head' shape of the keychain. So I took a chance on it. The castle design on the keychain is a little more stylized than I would've liked with its heavy, black outlining. But overall I'm happy with my purchase.

While I was in a Disney mood I also picked up this item from my favorite thrift store. It's meant to be the rose and bell jar from Disney's Beauty And The Beast animated film. I found it attached to the zipper of an empty Beauty And The Beast themed art kit. Because the kit was missing all of the art supplies, the price on it was low enough that I felt ok with buying the case and then donating it after I removed the keychain. I suppose it's actually more of a zipper pull than a keychain. But hey, it's my collection.

I also picked up this Lego Star Wars landspeeder keychain while I was at it. This keychain was purchased from a store called Andy's Brick Shop that specializes in Lego items, mostly second-hand pieces and sets, but also old stock still in package. I'm assuming this particular keychain was used, since it didn't come with a tag or any other original packaging.

So, that about wraps up last month's 'shopping spree'. Like I said, I sort of went overboard. But at least I can own up to that.

Signed, Treesa

Oh My Disney Mystery VHS Keychain (A Review)

This post should have been up on the blog a lot sooner, but thanks to the holiday rush it sort of got lost in the shuffle. Unfortunately, this review is no longer very relevant, since the keychain in question is now sold out on the shopdisney.com website and is only available on the secondary market. I scanned Ebay to get an idea how easy these keychains would be to find, and while the supply online seems plentiful at the moment, most of them also have a list price that is over twice the original retail price. In spite of this, I've decided to post my review anyway, just in case there are keychain collectors out there who are still curious about the product.

I first found out about the Disney Mystery VHS Keychains in an email my family received from the shopdisney.com website, advertising new products. The keychains were part of a '90s Flashback Collection that Disney had launched, and some of the other items in the collection (like journals and clutch bags) also used the VHS case motif. However, the keychains are what really got my attention, partially because I collect keychains, but also because I have a thing for miniatures. This might trace back to my days collecting Basic Fun's mini board game keychains. Or it might be because I'm also a doll collector who knows the value of nice, doll-sized props. Whatever the case, when pictures of those Disney VHS Keychains appeared in my family's inbox it was love at first sight. So I clicked the link to the website for more information.

I'll admit, I was a little disappointed when I found out the keychains were a blind box item. I don't usually have very good luck with blind boxes. However, of the six different keychains that were available in the assortment, all four of the ones pictured on the website would've been welcome in my collection. The other two keychains were 'mystery chasers', and were supposed to be a surprise. However, by comparing the four known keychains to the full list of merchandise that was available in the collection, and by using process of elimination, I was able to make an educated guess what those 'mystery chasers' were. With the odds of getting something I liked in my favor, I decided that it would be worth taking a chance.  The $5.00 retail price also seemed very reasonable for an official Disney product. So at the next available opportunity, I took a trip to the nearest Disney Store.

The store had stocked a nice assortment of merchandise from the '90s Flashback Collection. However, I didn't see any sign of the keychains. I wondered if the store had already sold out, so I asked an employee for help. It turned out the store hadn't even gotten in any of the Mystery VHS Keychains. I was annoyed when I realized that the only way I was going to get my hands on one was if I ordered it online, because that meant there would be shipping and handling charges. In my opinion, online shipping often seems unnecessarily high. There are times when it costs more to ship an item than you paid for the item in the first place. But lucky for me, the shopdisney.com website held one of their holiday free shipping promotions, so I was able to place an order for one keychain. The website's review section was already packed with complaints from people who'd ordered multiple keychains at once and had received all duplicates.

When my package arrived, the brown cardboard shipping box was much bigger than it needed to be for a single keychain. I understand that there should be some extra room in a shipping box for packing materials, but this box could have easily fit the full assortment of keychains and then some. The blind box itself is pictured below.

And here's a picture of the keychain I received.

As you can see, I ended up with The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, which was one of the 'mystery chasers'. I'm not sure if this means it's rarer than the other keychains. There seem to be a large number of The Hunchback Of Notre Dame VHS keychains on Ebay. But I'm unclear if this means it's not rare, or if it's just not as desirable, or both. Even though The Hunchback Of Notre Dame isn't one of my favorite Disney films, I don't mind having it in keychain form.

In my opinion, the coolest thing about these keychains is that they really open, and each one has a pretend VHS tape inside.

However, the first time I tried to open mine I needed to use more force than I was comfortable with. I was actually worried that I was going to break the keychain. Also, the plastic seems a bit thin, especially in the hinge area. I can't help worrying that repeatedly opening and closing the case will put stress on the area, and that over time the plastic might crack. Not to mention, the sticker labels on the outside of the case seem like they would be very vulnerable to scratches and other wear and tear. For these reasons, I don't think I'll be handling this keychain a lot.

I'll wrap this review up with a summary of what I feel are the good points and the bad points about this product.

Good Points:
In my opinion, the Oh My Disney Mystery VHS Keychains are a fun idea. I love the '90s nostalgia factor, and the fact that the keychains are miniature replicas of full-size items. The retail price was also reasonable, especially considering how much Disney often charges for authorized merchandise.

Bad Points:
The Disney company loses some points with me for making these keychains a blind box item. I never fully embraced the blind box craze. While I appreciate that blind boxes are small and usually reasonably priced, the mystery factor drives me crazy. I like to know what I'm buying, and several times that I've caved and bought a blind box on clearance I ended up with something I didn't really want. I feel sorry for all those customers who posted reviews online after placing an order for more than one keychain and receiving all duplicates. I'm also annoyed that the Mystery VHS Keychains weren't available in store. Not to mention I have some concerns about the long-term durability of these items.

Final Verdict:
While I don't regret buying a Disney Mystery VHS Keychain at retail price, I also don't think it would be worthwhile to go scouring the secondary market for the rest of the assortment, at least, not at the current market prices.

I hope you enjoyed this review, even if it is late.

Signed, Treesa