Holiday Candy!

Yum! I get to cover the "good" stuff! Of course, there's so much out there I could show you, but I'll limit to a few.

Click on photos to be taken to links!

Have you heard about the Peppermint Pig tradition? 

I'm not sure I could eat this, it's just so pretty! Old fashion ribbon candy:

There's always the good old standby, candy canes:

Have you tried Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark? I have, it's awesome!

When I was a teenager, I was lucky enough to work in a factory called Shelly Bros. one summer vacation. They made the most amazing rock candy pieces. Both free standing and lollipops! The factory was bought out by Brach and is no longer in business but it brings back fond memories. I have never found rock candy made like they made it, in such wonderful shapes but you can still find a few others.

Another thing from my past is Slap Jack candy!! I can still get it today but I do have to travel for it since I moved north and it doesn't seem to make it up over the mountain! LOL! Here is the story regarding Slap Jack:

A newer one that I love are Christmas Dots! These aren't easy to find and are well worth the search! I find them at Walmart if you get there early enough!

What would Christmas be without Pez? Oh yes, I must mention Pez. You have Santa and snowmen:

Elves and reindeer:

And of course, Mrs. Claus:

Do you have a favorite holiday candy? Let us know what it is in the comment section!

We have one more post (dude's Friday post) for this year! I can't believe how fast this year has gone. After that, the crew of ACollectiveJournal will be taking the week off to spend time with our friends and family over the holidays. We'll see you next year!

Wishes to all our followers and readers for a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

VS/RWS

"A Day In The Life With Rob"

I’m really excited to bring this week’s “day in the life” to you.  I have to admit I had a little help with it.  But I’m sure that you will truly enjoy his story.  Rob Yarak has an incredible collection.  And he makes his own displays to show them off.  And once you see, I have a feeling some memories will come flooding through your minds:  memories from your childhood, teen years and adulthood.  So get your coffee and get ready to take a journey into the heart of a true collector ~ a PEZ collector!  Let’s go meet Rob.

AJC:  Rob, how long have you been collecting Pez?

Rob:  34 years, 6 months, 18 days.

ACJ:  (wow, that's a long time ~ AND great record keeping)  

What was your first dispenser?  Or what made you start collecting Pez?

Rob:  Croc, a gift from my girlfriend, now wife, for my 15th birthday.  It was placed on a cake she had made that was in the shape of an alligator.  Why an alligator, you say.  I had a baby pet alligator back then.  A gift from a crazy uncle. 

ACJ:  I know that first dispenser must be special to you, but do you have another favorite dispenser and why?

Rob:  Any Eerie Spectres.  Why?  I specifically remember purchasing them at the grocery store in the late 70's.  Good memories.  Nostalgic...why most people collect to begin with.

ACJ:  Where do you find dispensers?  Especially vintage ones?

Rob:  Mostly from hits on my website.  Finds in antique malls, for me, are as common as Hailey's comet.

ACJ:  If you come across a new collector, what advice would you give them?

Rob:  Buy the books.  David Welch's Collecting Pez is a wealth of information.  John LaSpina's price guide is also very helpful.  

ACJ:  Tell us about the conventions, mailing list etc. and include links and photos.

ROB:  The conventions can't be beat.  Place 500 crazy Pez collectors in a hotel and look out!  And a lot of good friendships have been made.  The best mailing list is the Yahoo Group, Pezheads.  It's got around 1,400 collectors that exchange e-mails.  Talk about a brain trust!

ACJ:  Do you have a special way to display your dispensers? 

Rob:  I enjoy woodworking so building my own displays was a natural.

ACJ:  How many dispensers do you have?  How do you keep track of all your dispensers? 

Rob:  Not sure exactly how many, but I'd guess around 8,000.  When I first started cataloging my collection, a bag that I had stashed away with dispensers collected from 1976 to 1991, I just used Microsoft Works.  Very simple.  Just list the dispenser's name, patent number, country of origin, IMC #, feet vs. no feet, stem color, etc...

ACJ:  Do you ever sell your Pez and how do you feel about parting with them?

Rob:  The only time I'll sell a dispenser is if I purchase a collection and I already have one EXACTLY like it.  Once it's in my collection, it stays, no matter what.  This holds true especially for the ones that I collected back in the day.

ACJ:  What is the most you ever spent on a dispenser or collection?

Rob:  I purchased a collection from Leland's Auction house for $32K.

ACJ:  Do you have a web site that you'd like to share with us? 

Rob:  www.pezcandydispenser.com  Catchy, huh?   

ACJ:  Is there anything else you'd like us to know?  Like maybe what the most expensive dispenser is that you have in your collection or anything else?  Facebook page?  Twitter?  Blog?  Shop?

Rob:  I've got some nice pieces in my collection, including Donald and Pluto softheads, Obelisk A, Asterix A, Lions Club Lion, Alpine Man, Sparefroh, to name a few.  But the ones I really enjoy most are the ones that remind me of my youth, Eerie Spectres, Kooky Zoo, Circus.  The new issues out nowadays are really well done but still don't compare to some of the older dispensers.  Again, it's the nostalgia.

Wow, I’ve got a whole new appreciation for Pez and collectors.  If only I had kept all those things when I was younger, who knows what I might have in hidden treasures! Don't forget to check out his website.  It's pretty amazing!!!

Thanks Rob for taking time from your busy schedule to share with us your amazing collection.  (and thanks to my little “bird” for assisting with this interview).  And remember, it’s never too late to start “a collection”.

Enjoy your weekend in whatever you do!  

And see ya next week.

~~~Duuude~~~ 

We Have A Winner!

The Fall giveaway has ended and we have a winner!

 

There was 1733 Pez candies inside the bowl and with a guess of 1584, I'm pleased to announce that the winner is Mrs. Williams!

 

Congratulations to you!

 

Thank you to everyone that entered, you made the contest a great success.  And thank you to everyone behind the scenes that donated prizes!

Pez Collecting!

 

Yep, I'm a Pezhead!  Have been for a long time now.  I'm not sure "normal" people realize how big Pez collecting is! 

 

There's conventions all across the U.S. and around the World.  Three days of nutty stuff for Pez collectors.  Room hopping, where dealers open their rooms for sales to anyone that wanders in, Bingo on Friday night for some super awesome prizes and seminars throughout the day for information and then on Saturday, the main ballroom is opened up for the public for more sales and is usually followed by an auction to raise money for a charity.  There's a lot more going on depending on which convention you attend!

 

For the history of Pez, click on this link to be taken directly to the Pez web site:  http://www.pez.com/index.php

 

It all started in the United States with dispensers like these:

This is just a very small sample of them, there's hundreds of variations!  They were headless and used to discourage smoking, eat Pez "mints" instead type of thing!

 

When character heads were introduced, they were packaged in clear cellophane bags like these:

Somewhat boring, huh?  Packaging has evolved into a huge collectible in itself.  One of my favorite type of packaging is called a Halo card.  These are striped cards with a white cloud around the word PEZ on the package.  Here's just a few of my halo card collection:

Some more of my favorite packaging are the boxes that came out of Europe.

 Box cars that have two different characters in them and they look like they are sitting inside a car.

 

Holiday boxes where you can see the dispensers through windows in the boxes.    

 

These next dispensers are known as Cocoa Marsh dispensers because they were premiums from Cocoa Marsh and Cocoa Marsh is printed on the stems.  These are special to me because they are one of those times that collectors live for!  I found these at a flea market and paid $2.50 each, they are valued around $100 each!  I was lucky to find them!

Here's just a few of my favorite dispensers in my collection.

Doctor and nurse

psychedelic eye

The ringmaster

Some people take the stems from real dispensers and make them into what is known as custom or fantasy dispensers.  A friend of mine sent me this one that he made:

It's special!  It even lights up.

 

Pez makes all kinds of items!  These are known as Pez accessories.  Two of my favorites:

Vintage lunch box

Peter Pez cookie jar  

I could seriously go on for pages and pages!  Instead, I'll include some links and let you decide if you want to continue on or not.  My own Pez collection is shown here:  www.ThePezt.zoomshare.com   It's not my entire collection, but there's over 1300 Pez photos!  It shows my custom license plate, ThePezt.

 

My friend, Rob's web site, he's huge into collecting!  http://www.pezcandydispenser.com/  He helps with one of the larger conventions which is held in Long Beach, CA. and is one of the top collectors in the United States.

 

There's so much involved in Pez collecting, like footed or non-footed dispensers, learning about the patent numbers, variations and so much more.  If you are interested in starting a collection, I suggest you do a lot of online research, attend a convention or two and join the Pezhead mailing list!

Bet the next time you see these dispensers in the grocery store, you'll think of me!

 

ThePezt