What’s something that you’re passionate about? Are you the kind of person that loves to travel and have new experiences, or do you spend days picking your perfect fantasy football league? Everybody has something that they love, and nearly everyone expresses that with some kind of collection. Think about it— nearly every movie buff you know has rows of blu-rays and DVDs lining their shelves, and people who love make-up have an impressive collection of brushes and compacts.
There’s one lively form of collecting that nearly everyone with a hobby can get into: pins. Pin collecting has been popular for decades, and nearly every hobby you can think of has a niche of pin collectors. There are some people that go nuts for pins, and you’ll be surprised to learn about some of the intense pin collectors that are out there.
Theme park pin collectors
How many of you had a great time at SeaWorld, Six Flags, or another amusement park? Theme parks are a universally fun place, and many visitors choose to commemorate their time with a collectable pin. By far the most fanatic theme park pin collectors have to belong to Disney World. Disney pins have been a much coveted item in the pin world, so much so that Disney pin collecting has evolved into its own subculture. People have devoted blogs and YouTube channels to their theme park pins.
Political pins
Pins and buttons are a seriously underrated part of America politics. The next time you see an important political debate, take note of the pin on the labels of the debaters. William McKinley was the first president that widely used metal buttons to promote his campaign, but photographic images attached to pins have been dated back to Abraham Lincoln’s presidency.
Olympic pin collectors
When the Olympics roll around most people are excited to witness feats of athletic strength, but there are a few that are happier to see the commemorative pins that are released with each version of the games. Trading pins have become as big a part of the Olympics as the actual sports. Olympic pin trading first came to be in the 1980s, and really came into its own when Coca Cola opened its first Official Olympic Game Pin Trading Center at the 1988 Calgary Winter Games. In its first year they were able to attract a whopping 17,000 people, and the crowds have only grown each year.
