Some things that caught my eBay eye. For some reason, they all involve $25, which variously does and does not seem right:
Creative Playthings Wooden FireChief Toy Car Red Wood, opening bid $10+14 s/h? Good luck, Goodwill! Auction ends Oct 12
First up, this Creative Playthings police car is awesome, the bell's still attached, but it's a bit beat. Also, "Not all the wheels turn." Also, it's being sold by Goodwill of San Francisco, which leaves one less place you can go and try to score these things for fifty cents. Thanks, eBay! [result: two bids, it went for $24.50, shipped.]
Original Wood CREATIVE PLAYTHINGS Arithmetic Tangibles, opening bid: $15+10.55 s/h, auction ends Oct. 14
Montessori-esque. These are the same series as the counting chickens farm set that turned up last week. They appear to be in "unused" condition, though the fiberboard box has a stain or two on it. I'm guessing early 1950's.
Mid Century CREATIVE PLAYTHINGS PUSH WHEELS Wood Toy, opening bid: $20+7.93 s/h, auction ends Oct. 14
From the same seller as the math thing above comes an apparently unplayed-with Creative Playthings Push Wheels toy. The graphics on the package are probably from somewhere in the early 1970's. Didn't someone way that, with all the lead hazards, it's better to just let the kid play with sticks? Well, here you go: A painted stick from before the creation of the CPSC and the 1978 lead paint ban. A toy where the painted elements rub against each other as your kid plays with it. Holy crap, what have I been doing all these months, promoting all these toxic toys of DEATH??? [Note to self: look into Creative Plaything's use of lead-based paint. Also, call lawyer.]
After the jump, $25 madness continues with a whole slew of eBay stuff from an upcoming live auction in New Mexico, which is like going through your grandmother's attic if your grandmother was a Navajo. And if her hogan had an attic:
All these lots are part of a live auction coming Oct. 14 in New Mexico, which is being run by an outfit called Desert West Auction. Some interesting stuff, to be sure, but their $25 minimum bid, plus their 15% premium, plus their $15 minimum shipping charge, means that nothing can go for less than $43.75. Good luck with that:
3765: Vintage Creative Playthings Toys [left]
There's an interesting set of wood nesting boxes, some boring puzzles, and a near-complete CP-branded Colorforms set. Oh, and those crappy puzzles are heavy, so the shipping is $35. Forget it.
3141: 3 Vintage Hopi Wooden Kachina Cradle Dolls [above, right]
In the ancient Hopi tradition, two-sided cradle dolls were carved by male relatives of a newborn baby. The kachina or tihu was placed above the kid's cradle. These ancient cradle dolls are "missing some feathers," but the polyester yarn hair is doing fine. Lot 3517 has three more, very similar cradle dolls.
3576: Old Mexico Ranch Made Childs Chair
I've always wondered about these chairs. We had one when I was little, an old one. My grandmother's got an old painted one at her house. There's one pictured in Rachel Fields' Caldecott-winning book, Prayer for a Child [wow, that's only from 1968? It feels like 1938.] What's the deal with these things? Anyway, this one's "old," "ranch-made," and unpainted. Not bad, frankly. Also $25 to ship.
3002: Childrens Hand Beaded Denim Overalls [above, right]
You know, these overalls are why I posted any of this stuff at all. Someone's grandma added beading to overall from Faded Glory Jeans Company, the in-house brand of that old-time trading post, Wal-Mart. Which is funny, because from a distance, the design kind of looks like a mod target.
These recalls are getting out of hand. I'm afraid that this is only the beginning and we're going to see alot more as we get into the Christmas time. I now go to [the lead toy recall related url I hastily registered to make a buck off of parental panic.com] every day to make sure I have the latest news.
[I just go to the CPSC, which publishes the exact same information minus all the ads for useless lead testing kits. -ed.]