SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — Janice Holz loves wearing pins.
Buttons, lapel pins, she wears them all.
“I was just buying them to wear them. I like to throw on like, five or 10 a day,” said Holz.
“Over the last couple years it grew kind of exponentially.”
Holz’s collection had grown to more than she could wear, so when she moved to P.E.I. a few months ago, she decided to sell some of her collection to support herself.
Pins sell online for anything from $2 to around $20. So far, she has sold a couple of hundred.
“Usually some sort of brand or logo is more popular, like an old Coke pin,” she said.
Tim Horton’s-themed pins are also popular and, of course, anything that is sports-related.
Personally, she prefers to wear vintage pins that are colourful, quirky and a bit strange, but everyone’s tastes are different.
Her advice for new collectors is simple: “Buy what you like, and go from there.”
NOT ALONE
Holz isn’t the only one selling pins online, said avid collector Normand Dumoulin.
He sells around 10 pins per day on eBay.
He and his wife, Elaine Caponi, have been collecting for years. They recently bought a collection of 50,000 pins and are members of the Club des Collectionneurs d'Épinglettes Inc. (Pin Collectors Club).
“When you go through pins like this, you realize that this is history, this is heritage,” he said.
“There’s a lot of history that goes through your mind when you look at different pins."
The most popular pins, according to Normand Dumoulin:
- Disney - “Probably number one in terms of value.”
- McDonald’s - “Because everybody knows McDonald’s … very recognizable, colourful.”
- CocaCola - “Easy to sell.”
- Harley Davidson - “There’s a lot of very big collectors of Harley Davidson.”
- Lion’s Clubs - “They’re very well sought among Lions members.”
It took Caponi around three months to sort them into 125 themes, said Dumoulin.
Rare sub-themes are interesting to collect, said Dumoulin.
“I have a tough guy in my club, and he’s collecting pandas,” said Dumoulin.
Another collector has specialized in hot air balloons.
“If you find one in a month, you’re so happy to find it and to buy it,” he said.
Anything older than 1970 is a real gem, said Dumoulin. The back will give a clue to the age - the backs with clips are newer, round backs that twist on and off are the older pins.
“Anything vintage, colourful, with a real theme,” said Dumoulin. “The pin by itself will ring bells to different people.”
NEW FRIENDS
A lot of relationships are built on collecting, said Dumoulin.
“Pins maybe a little bit more, people have themes they’re looking for and if you have what they’re looking for, well they’re going to be so happy,” he said.
The new friendships were a pleasant surprise to Holz when she entered the pin dealer scene. While still in Montreal, she visited with Dumoulin and Caponi.
Now on P.E.I., she’s still in touch with the couple, and they trade tips and ideas back and forth electronically.
Holz is hopeful to find some Islanders who are keen on pins like she is. She has already noticed Islanders are neighbourly.
“I think people are friendlier here. It’s a slower-paced lifestyle which allows people to be nicer to each other and make more positive connections,” said Holz.
That said, Holz has found Island pin collectors are modest about their stashes.
“When I bring it up to people they’re like, ‘Oh yeah, I actually have a collection, I’ve been collecting since I was a child'."
Catch them online:
Janice Holz has a dedicated Instragram account for her pin collection.
Normand Dumoulin and Elaine Caponi belong to the Facebook group Épinglettes par thématique - Lapel Pins by themes
