Gift Keychains

It may just be that my parents knew or were related to a lot of nice, generous people. But when I was a kid, and someone found out during a family visit that I collected keychains, their first reaction was always to head for the household junk drawer, to see if they had any spare keychains to give me. It didn't seem to matter whether the person in question was a grandparent, my father's uncle, or my mother's cousin. It seemed like everybody wanted to help me grow my collection. Even now, people will still save keychains for me, or will pick them up on their travels.

One of my sisters, my third sister A., has done a lot of traveling while working for conservation corps, farms, and even the park service. She'll typically be away for months at a time. But whenever she comes back to the area between jobs, she always has at least one keychain for me. She brought back the two souvenir keychains pictured below from a stint in Ecuador.

I have no idea if the pan flute musical instrument keychain actually works, since I don't know how to play a pan flute.

This next group of souvenir keychains are ones that my sister A. picked up while she was driving back from a job in Texas.

As you can see, she made stops in several other states along her route, including New Mexico and Missouri and Colorado, though I’m not sure in what order.

When I was still in grade school, my father brought back this assortment of souvenir keychains from a business trip to England. The stuffed, fabric bear has a label from Liberty Of London, a luxury department store in London, England.

The Siegfried & Roy spinner keychain pictured below was a souvenir from Las Vegas, a gift from my paternal grandparents.

It's become even more special to me now that my grandparents have passed away.

My Mom's cousin in New Jersey, S.R., gave me these two keychains.

The piggy bank design keychain is from the Bottom Dollar Food grocery store chain, while the Christmas keychain features Santa Claus as a crescent moon. I don't get the chance to see my Mom's cousin very often. But she still saves keychains for me, for those times when I do see her. I return the favor by picking up the occasional Boyds Bear for her collection.

Not every keychain gift I've received has been from a relative, however. This Army National Guard vehicle keychain was a gift from a family I used to babysit for. The father had served in the military.

As you can see, my family, my extended family, and even random acquaintances have been very generous with their keychains. I think this generosity is partially explained by the fact that keychains are relatively inexpensive and relatively easy to find. Not everyone can afford to spend the time and money needed to get that perfect, high-end collectable for a friend's or relative's collection. But a keychain is something that almost everyone can find and can fit into their budget. In fact, there might still be some businesses that give away promotional keychains for free, though the practice is not as common as it used to be.

So, my collecting tip for the day, to any other keychain collectors out there, is that it pays to let people know you collect. Even if you're not comfortable asking people directly for their unused keychains, sometimes just telling someone you collect them is enough that they'll think of you the next time they clean out that junk drawer.

Signed, Treesa

Shop 'Til You Drop (Tips For Buying Secondhand Keychains)

Here are a few shopping tips I'd like to pass on to anyone buying keychains on the secondary market. I already mentioned yard sale shopping in my introductory post. Now I'll be discussing flea markets, thrift stores, and online shopping.

Flea markets can vary widely in price, depending on the market and the seller. If the seller is a professional dealer who makes his or her living buying and reselling, he or she may be more informed about the current market and might take more time to research items. If this is the case, then you can usually expect to pay a little more. There are some amateur sellers who will look stuff up on popular online auction sites, to see what other people are charging. But in terms of keychains, they usually will only bother if the keychain looks 'vintage', or if it was a "big ticket item" that someone paid a lot of money for in the first place, such as a designer brand.

Also, flea markets that are held once or twice a year by a school or a house of worship will often have lower prices, because they tend to attract fewer professional dealers. The pros seem to prefer setting up at larger markets that are held one day a week at a designated location, and they will likely have a reserved spot that they return to week after week. Some dealers will travel on a circuit from market to market, seeking out large, well-known venues that attract the most customers.

Prices at thrift store can also vary a lot, depending on the store. I've noticed the larger chain stores tend to have higher prices than the smaller shops run by local charities or houses of worship. Of course, if the smaller shop bills itself as specializing in "antiques and collectables", then that's a whole different thing. Adding the word 'antique' to anything always seems to up the price. Something else to keep in mind is that some larger thrift stores only sell keychains in bulk lots.

Shopping online may be convenient for many, but you tend to pay for that convenience in the form of added shipping and handling costs. Many online sellers will market their keychains in lots, and one downside of collecting keychains is that, in bulk, they can get heavy very quickly. This means that it can end up costing more to ship the lot than you paid for the lot in the first place. For this reason, I tend to do very little of my keychain shopping online.

I'm hoping these tips will be helpful to you in growing your own collections, whatever you happen to collect. However, keep in mind that these are just generalities based on my personal experiences as a longtime 'thrifter' and keychain collector. There are exceptions to any rule, and your own shopping experiences may differ somewhat from mine. As they say, your mileage may vary.

If you have any secondhand shopping tips of your own that you'd like to share, feel free to leave a comment.

Signed, Treesa