Now that I’m taking a break from further online toy shopping, I await with eager anticipation of my expected incoming pony parcel each day.  This is the parcel containg my bulk purchase of MIB Twice As Fancy (TAF) Project Ponies (2005), a combined order I made with other pony collectors here.  They are just as excited to lay their eyes and hands on this gorgeous exclusive pony.  I hope the pony parcel arrives soon!

After my recent purchases of various exclusive My Little Pony figures over a short period of just a few months, I sort of ‘blew a hole’ in my Paypal account.  Therefore I need to take a break now from further online toy shopping to allow time for my ‘Play’ funds to ‘heal’.

My Want List of Exclusive My Little Pony are just left with 2 ponies (’07 Super Pony and Bay Breeze), 1 of which is a replacement for my current defective one, while the other is now too expensive to chase after.  If I even want to get a Bay Breeze pony, perhaps I’ll do a full or partial trade for her.  I don’t mind getting a loose one, as long as she is in mint condition! 

Meanwhile a replacement ‘07 Super Pony has been eluding me time and time again.  I missed out a couple of more affordable ones for sale recently on ebay and the pony forums.  Maybe I should find some yellow paint to correct the defective painting on mine and make do with her.  Hmmm, I’ve got to check if my local pony collector friends, who sometimes customize ponies, have the right shade of paint color.  Hopefully they do!

Rainbow Dash 2009 taken by magicfeuilledethé of MLP Arena at the Paris Toy Fair last month.

Yesterday I posted about ASMzine.com’s coverage of the Toy Fair 2009 and posted the links.  The Hasbro photos section  can be viewed here: http://toyfair09.asmzine.com/gallery/hasbro/index.html.

(Note: Just refresh the above ASM links if the pages do not load).

I came across ASMzine.com’s coverage of the Toy Fair 2009 on Sunday (15 Feb 09) when it was first posted on MLP Arena.  Since then it has gathered over 2000 views in just 2 days.  Many pony collectors do not like the 2009 regular pony series, and neither do I. 

The above photo of Rainbow Dash 2009 is the new look and mold for the regular My Little Pony figures with brushable hair.  The style of the Ponyville series have also changed.  There is of course the weird-looking Newborn Cutie Ponies.  The full preview photos of the My Little Pony toys for 2009 can be viewed here. 

ASMzine.com did a coverage of the Toy Fair 2009 and posted the photos online.  The Hasbro photos section is done and the Hasbro Toylines featured are:

G.I.Joe

Littlest Pet Shop

Marvel

My Little Pony

Star Wars

Strawberry Shortcake

Transformers/Press-kit

Enjoy viewing all the photos at http://toyfair09.asmzine.com/gallery/hasbro/index.html

(Note: Just refresh the ASM links if the pages do not load).

P.S. I’ve just finished viewing all the My Little Pony photos and sad to say, I do not like the pony toyline for 2009!

I’m taking a blogging break today.

Happy Valentine’s Day and Happy Friendship Day to all!

I got this pair of little bull figurines from a news vendor stall this week.  They measure about 4-inches long and 2-inches tall.  As the first 15 days of Chinese New Year are already over, these toys were on clearance sale at SGD 2.00 for 3 pieces.  I actually saw them on sale for a higher price at the same stall many weeks ago but I practised delayed gratification.

Only the lower halves of the bulls are gold in color while the top halves are transparent.  Each bull contains 2 pieces of those cheap low-grade chocolate wrapped in gold foil, to complete the overall golden appearance of the mini bull figurines. The bull containers are sealed with a red sticker containing the Chinese words “Jin Niu Bao Xi” (the Golden Bull reports Good News) and “Fu Xing Gao Zhao” (the Lucky Star Shines High).

It’s too bad that all the bulls the stall had were facing the same direction, that is they turn their heads to the right.  I was hoping to get a pair that face both directions for better display but alas only one mold was made.  

Anyway, I was told that we shouldn’t display bull figures that are lying or sitting down as that means that the bull doesn’t want to work, haha!  Luckily these bulls are standing.  A charging bull would be the best for business and career!

Remember the missing My Little Pony parcels that I had been expecting since November 2008?  The original parcels never reached me in the end.  Fortunately the seller offered to send me replacement ponies.  Those replacement parcels finally came last month and they contained 2 “Fantasia” ponies and 2 “Honey Bee” ponies.

It was so tedious for me to get these ponies during Nov-Dec last year because they all seemed to have vanished from the online pony sale platforms when I was looking for them.  You see life tends to make fun of you.  Way back then when you weren’t looking to buy certain things, they were like everywhere online in your face. 

The USD has also began to rise in value against our SGD in recent months.  Hence it’s now a better time to sell stuff in USD, rather than buy stuff.  I still have lots of My Little Pony and other toys to clear off.  After 1.5 years of active selling online and offline, my catalog list have shrunk a lot and it’s time to introduce some new sale items too!

If you are keen, I currently have 1 each of the above Exclusive Ponies for sale at my online toy store.  Feel free to check them out at ToyzToSell.com!

So what have I been up to in toy collecting lately?  Well these are my pony conquests so far in 2009.  In January alone, I managed to shorten my pony want list by acquiring and receiving the following exclusive My Little Pony figures:

This is the San Diego Comic Con 2007 Exclusive Pony.  Like most exclusive G3 My Little Pony, she doesn’t have an official name.  Because of her super heroine image, she’s affectionately known as “Super Pony” on the pony forums. 

Read more »

You love the appearance of the toy or the character it represents

Many toys are made after characters from comic books, cartoons, movies, TV shows etc.  They can also be based on animals (from the past, present and imagined) and everyday items (like cars). 

The toys are 3-D representations of things that are originally in 2-D forms, or things whose real versions are unattainable for most people, so they get the replicas.  Sometimes the sculpting of the toys are so top notch that is becomes like collecting ‘art pieces’. 

The thrill of the hunt

The harder to obtain and more highly sought-after the toys, the more exciting it is to ‘hunt them down’ and make them yours!  Looks like we like to spend our lives chasing after things.  If we don’t then we are better off being the hermits who detach themselves from the mundane world, haha…!

The targeted toy that is not yet ours, is the toy closest to our hearts till we get it.  After we acquire a toy, we feel happy with it for a while, then store them aside to chase after the next toy.  Haha, how typical of us but we just love this hobby anyway! 

Read more »

I went to a old friends gathering over the weekend.  A long time friend whom I had not met for many years asked how have I been doing and we touched on my toy collecting hobby.  Our conversation brought back some memories and thoughts about my toy hobby over the years.  Here are some of the questions that I was asked and my accompanying thoughts:

How long have I been collecting toys?

I formally started collecting toys as a hobby back in 1996, which coincided with the rise of the internet.  Convenient access to online stores allowed me to expand my knowledge and collection very rapidly.  Of course the existence of the then Clarke Quay flea market helped a lot too.  Today its successor is the China Square Central flea market.

How did it all actually start?

Read more »