Customer Reviews

Hallmark Keepsake Ornament Value Guide, Second Edition: 1973-2006

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My wife and I do have quite a few Keepsake Ornaments that we've bought over the years for each other to be placed on our Christmas Tree but we're not collectors in the true sense. But I found out full well the value of Hallmark ornaments when I found five pieces in the Frosty Friends collection at a garage sale a couple of years ago for a few bucks. These were numbers 3 through 7 in the series and those few dollars resulted in quite a tidy profit when sold at eBay. Since then we've made it a point to look out for Hallmark ornaments at garage sales and flea markets but the problem was that we really didn't know which ones were really valuable. That all changed when I got this fantastic book by Bangzoom. I have owned a lot of collectible price guides in my life and this is easily one of the best. Their fantastic original price guide has now been updated with a second edition that goes through 2006.

What makes it so great? Simple...how about a picture of every Keepsake ornament from 1973 through 2006...in full color, with the ornament name, retail price, item number, and current value. Add to that the pictures are color coded if they happen to be series or club/event releases. Add to that are outstanding articles on the history of Hallmark, special issue ornaments, protecting and insuring your collection, and an excellent article called "Hallmark Collecting 101" which is a valuable resource whether you are a veteran or novice collector. There's even a list of Hallmark related websites that provide even more resource material.

While the bulk of the book is dedicated to Keepsake ornaments, Bangzoom doesn't stop there. You'll also find sections on the Miniature ornaments introduced in 1988, ornaments for other holidays like Easter and Halloween, special issue ornaments such as the Ambassador Holiday House Collection, and Tree Toppers. There's also a comprehensive, alphabetical index that can double as a collector's checklist, and finally profiles of the Hallmark artists and sculptors. It's truly a complete package and one-stop source for Hallmark collectors. I had a lot of fun thumbing through the book and finding out just how much all of our ornaments were worth. Of course, my wife won't let me sell any of the ones we bought for each other, but now when we hit the garage sales, we'll have the perfect, take-along resource. My highest recommendation!

Reviewed by Tim Janson

This guide is very useful for determining insurance values for a person's ornament collection. It is not as useful for determining sale prices as sale prices almost never equal value guide prices. It is easy to use and has good pictures of virtually every ornament and merry miniature Hallmark has produced. I highly recommend it to any serious collector.

I think this book is very well put together, but I somewhat question the values assigned.

I purchased the book when I had an opportunity to buy a large collection of Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments, and I wanted to assess their value.

The book helped immensely with identification, but I'm not sure where one could expect to get the kind of money for the pieces that were given there.

I know that eBay isn't the only game in town, but it's MY only game--I'm eBay seller texpert2 (for a wide variety of vintage collectibles) AND eBay seller texpert99 (where everything has a starting bid of 99 cents, and NEVER a reserve). I do not sell at trade shows, gift shops, etc. When I compared the prices given in this book to prices obtained on eBay for similar pieces, there was a HUGE difference. The pieces often sold for 75 to 80% LESS on eBay.

So, if you want the book for identification purposes, it will fill that role nicely. Where you plan to resell--if you do indeed PLAN to resell--will influence whether the values shown therein are of any VALUE to you.

Thanks for the opportunity to review this book.

Jayni Mosher

This guide is a must for everyone who seriously collects Hallmark ornaments. I was very surprised to find out just how valuable my collections is!

Color phots of every ornament! Listed alphabetically by year! with an index in the back! then a second index by series! WOW! As it is this is a near perfect work and a godsend. Some possible improvements:

An update? 1st edition, 2005. 2nd edition, 2006. 3rd edition....unknown.

Inclusion of the original issue prices. Available in other, less user-friendly works, but it would be nice to have them here.

A THEME index. There is a series index, but only for "official" series. Which mean there are no lists of all "dog" ornamants, or those relating to football, or a master list of the various Star Wars issues (a list of the character ornaments, because it was a Series, but no list of the various ships, etc. no list whatsoever of the numerous and varied Star Trek issues, etc.) Again, this info is available elsewhere, but why not include it for completeness? I suppose it could get out of hand, or seen as redundant, but certain themes are highly collectible.

as it is, still worth more than every penny... 7500 ornaments for the price of one!

The Hallmark Keepsake value guide was vary informative and well laid out
it is a pleaser using it. I would not hesitate buying another value guide for the year 2010.

Thank you for providing such a product.

I think this book is a great way to keep track of my Hallmark Ornaments and give me a current value of each one. However, because values change from year to year, it could be a lot of work transferring them to a new book each year. I think every couple of years would be fine to keep track of what you have unless you purchase numerous ornaments every year. I would, however, like to know where the values come from. If the values listed are to sell, I don't think you could get the amount stated. However, if it's for insurance reasons, I think it would be a great book to have.

I just love this book. It gives you a picture for all ornaments, including miniature ornaments too. Plus, other specialty hallmark products. The book also gives you a market value of the ornament and is nicely organized. I would recommend this book for the novist collector and the serious collector!

This book lists all Hallmark ornaments in pictures and prices. It is
helpful to find some of my ornaments and know their value. I would
recommend it to any collector of Hallmark.

WOULD BUY THIS BOOK AGAIN.AMAZON.COM SENT IT ALL IN ONE PIECE.VERY HAPPY WITH THERE SERVICE.