What a Catch!
Written: Jun 17 '01 (Updated Jun 20 '01)
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Pros: Very colorful, soft, high quality fabrics, well-constructed, eyes securely attached, tight stitching
Cons: Unreal looking fish, lips too prominent, hard-to-find originally, now retired, may cost more
The Bottom Line: If you haven't already acquired Lips the Fish, pick it up on the Internet. Surprise some fish lover you know with this zany colorful well-made gift.
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| glomarrone's Full Review: Lips the Fish |
Ty, Inc made a surprising announcement on its web site. There was going to be a new policy change in their marketing of Beanie Babies. Through a Newsflash, Ty said that new Beanies were going to be introduced at gift and trade shows throughout the summer months. Only retailers visiting the Ty booth would be permitted to order them. And further, only attendees could place re-orders of the newbies. It brought much excitement as well as distress to retailers not attending the show and to collectors as well. This would make these Beanies exclusive and in more limited supply. The rush was on to get these Beanies quickly. The Newsflash was on June 11, 1999.
The Trade Show Trio (or Summer Show Exclusive Trio) as collectors began to call them were a big hit. Of the three, Flitter was the favorite newbie. Flitter, a beautiful and very elegant butterfly, attracted the greatest interest and admiration. The second favorite was Lips. Her zany, bright colors and prominent red lips attracted children's attention. While bears were always exciting, the third member of the trio, B.B. Bear the birthday bear was ordinary looking. He looked just like all the other cute Ty bears. What only made him stand out was the colorful button he sported on his pastel Ty-dye fabric. Another interesting thing about this bear was that he did not come with an official birthday. You could personalize the bear by writing the birthday of the recipient on the bear's tag. This would make the bear have everyone's birthday. So, he was special, also. However, if you did write in a birthday, the bear was no longer worth anything as a collector item. On B.B. Bear's button is one lit candle and the words "Birthday Bear."
The three Beanies, B.B. Bear, Flutter and Lips quickly became very hot commodities. Some avid collectors spent big bucks to get the first releases of these three Beanies. Store owners in the UK, however, soon began receiving 12 each of the trios in their initial shipment regardless of whether they had attended the Harrogate Gift Show. Eventually, all retailers here in the USA received their shipments. To compound the problem, merchants began bundling the Beanies together. Collectors had to buy 4 older styles to be able to buy one of the trio. It was policies like these that caused many collectors to stop collecting Beanies. I think Ty Warner sensed that the Beanie Baby Craze was losing steam and he wanted to energize the product line; create some excitement. I think it backfired. It created initial enthusiasm but also turned away many collectors.
Listed below are some basic facts about Lips the Fish.
Style Number - 4254
Introduced - 7-14-99
Status - Retired 12-25-99
Date of Birth 3-15-99
Tush Tag Generations 7th & 8th
Hang Tag Generation - 5th
Recommended for children 3 years and older
Surface wash
Poem
Did you ever see a fish like me?
I'm the most colorful in the sea
Traveling with friends in a school
Swimming all day is really cool!
I have to admit that when I first saw a picture of Lips in a magazine, I thought she was ugly. I hated the prominent lips, most of all. But then I saw her at a Street Festival in NJ and I was hooked. Lips is so colorful and fancy that I no longer cared that she didn't look like a real fish. She didn't have to look real; she was cute just the way she was. Since the Beanie at that point was scarce, I grabbed Lips the Fish along with Flitter and B.B. Bear for $5.99 each. Usually, I pay only $4.99 for my Beanies. I was so happy just to find them that I didn't mind spending the extra dollar for each one. Was I foolish! Only a few months later, the trio was everywhere. But, I do have the earlier Tush Tags which makes them slightly more valuable.
Lips the Fish is 8" long and 6" tall. She is made from several different colored soft fabrics. Lips' head and tail are a pastel Ty-dye color. The larger anterior dorsal fin is purple and the smaller posterior dorsal fin is a brightly colored pink as is the fin below. The pectoral fins are a vivid blue. Her body is a colorful bright orange with purple polka dots all over it. Put on your sunglasses to gaze at this vivid plush toy. All the fabrics are tightly and evenly stitched together. They match up exactly right.
The fins contain no stuffing. Her head is softly stuffed with polyester fiber. Lips' body and tail are loosely filled with P.E. Pellets. The Beanie has a perfect shape without being overly stuffed.
Lips has prominent full lipstick-red lips and her big eyes have large black pupils surrounded by thin blue irises. Don't put this fish in water, though. I keep mine in a closed glass cabinet on a wooden shelf with my other Ty fish
Beanies: Bubbles, Goldie, Coral, Jester and Aruba.
Counterfeits of Lips have appeared originating in Hong Kong and China. Check your Lips carefully for inferior fabrics, poor construction, incorrect colors, overall size, or incorrect tags. Tush tags on Lips made before
September 1999 have a looping 7th generation tag with an embedded morphing hologram with the words inside the hologram reading "The Beanie Babies Collection." The Ty heart inside the hologram is directly underneath the words. Below the hologram is printed "Lips" followed by a small printed "TM" after the word. Under that is written "HANDMADE IN CHINA." On the other side of the loop is the red Ty heart logo in disappearing ink. Above it is written 1999 TY INC., OAKBROOK, IL. U.S.A. There is no Chinese stamp inside the looped tag. Later releases of Lips has the same information as given before but the tag is not looped. It is a single piece of material.
The HangTag for Lips is a 5th generation one. That means the font inside the yellow star is different from earlier styles. The type inside the heart is different as well. After the words "The Beanie Babies Collection" on the inside left, there is now a "R" inside a circle instead of a TM. On the inside right " Lips" is followed by "TM." There is no style number listed. The Date of Birth is now spelled out in words instead of just numerically. The Web Site, www.ty.com is written below the poem. The words "Visit Our Web Page" are not listed on the tag. If you Lips the fish has these details on its tag, the tags should be authentic.
Examine the tag, also, for incorrect brassy edging instead of gold or a red heart that is not the right color. Look also for cheaper paper material. Most counterfeits involve counterfeit tags since these are easier to reproduce.
Since each Beanie is handmade and fabrics come from different dye lots there are natural variations from one Beanie to another. This is what makes each Beanie unique. Since Lips has not greatly increased in value, and
probably won't, buy and enjoy her just because you like her. Don't purchase Lips solely hoping it will increase in value. You'll only be disappointed. Lips will make a colorful addition to a Beanie Collection. She will also make a special gift for the fisherman or fish hobbyist in your life. Unless you particularly want Lips for her birth date or are missing this style from your collection, a less expensive choice might be either Aruba or Jester. These are two newer styles of Ty fish Beanies.
Kids are attracted to the brightly colored Beanie. Some kids keep it in an empty fish bowl along with any other fish Beanies that they own. It's a great conversational piece for a child's room or family room. For a young child's room, I would suggest a plastic fish bowl for safety sake. Kids can cut sea plants out of construction paper or felt and add other personal touches. Fish Stores have lots of fun accessories like sunken treasure chests or mermaids that can be added for a few cents. On your next trip to the beach, pick up some
shells to place at the bottom. I have far too many Beanies to give each one a special home like this but it is a fun idea for collectors who only have a few styles. Use Lips to encourage children to read books about fish and other
aquatic animals.
Lips is also available in the larger Buddy size for about $9.99 retail, if you can find her. Or, pick the buddy up on Ebay for slightly more money. McDonalds had a teenie promotion of Lips in 2000 and you can acquire her for a few dollars on Ebay. She was given away free with Happy Meals.
I check on the Internet and found that the Beanie Baby, Lips is available for auction on Ebay at varying prices starting from $2.99-$6.99. If you have patience, you can pick her up in mint condition for about $7.00-$8.00. BillBam had Lips recently for $12.99. In mint condition, Lips is worth about $10-$15 today on the secondary market. I found her locally at Bunnies (Baby store) and Stu Leonard's (food chain in the NE) selling for regular price - so check around your local stores before you pay the higher secondary market prices. Good luck catching Lips for regular price at your local retail store or on the internet.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $5.99
Type of Toy: Stuffed Toy
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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Epinions.com ID:
glomarrone
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Location: Cocoa Beach, FL
Reviews written: 167
Trusted by: 287 members
About Me:
It's been fun for 2-1/2yrs. Now it's time to say goodbye. I'll miss you all!
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