A love of Halloween and a love of horror are not interchangeable appreciations. Some people enjoy the thrill of mystery and make believe associated with Halloween, but may not enjoy the scarier aspects of the holiday or the genre. For those folks, collecting vintage Halloween decorations from Beistle Company is the perfect hobby.
The Beistle Company partnered with the Paper Novelty Company and pioneered the honeycomb-style tissue decorations. Beistle branched out into holidays like Valentine’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, but their most popular was also their first seasonal decorations: Halloween.
Since 1921, the company has provided over 1,000 designs on decorations and party pieces, featuring Jack-o-lanterns, black cats, witches, skeletons, spiders, bats – anything typically associated with the fall holiday. Beistle’s paper decorations have had a significant influence on Halloween decorating in the U.S.
Popular forms include honeycomb, die-cut, jointed figures, and party items. Honeycomb items are spherical, three-dimensional decorations, typically made with tissue paper and cardstock. Die-cut designs, which are simply flat images cut into preferable shapes, are some of the Beistle collectibles that are easier to find. Jointed items are typically full-bodied characters on flat cardstock pieces fastened together at extremities to make them poseable. Party items include banners, favors, and games.
These collectibles fit into most collectors’ budgets, with vintage items from the ‘20s to the ‘70s available for purchase for around $500 or less.
The cat on honeycomb design can realize $35 to $275.
The 1929 cauldron honeycomb can fetch up to $350.
An 18” embossed die-cut witch with white mice from the 1950s averages $60 to $90.
A 1960s die-cut owl is valued at $20.
A 1970s die-cut ghost sells for $20.
A jointed lightning-style dragon from 1929 and 1931 realizes up to $540.
To read more about Beistle’s Halloween decorations, order a copy of The Overstreet Guide to Collecting Horror, available at gemstonepub.com.
