smurfs

There are 17 posts tagged smurfs (this is page 1 of 2).

Smurf Review: #20431 Monk Smurf

The Monk Smurf is wearing a brown long hooded robe with wide sleeves. Held by a white cord tied around his waist. On his feet are a pair of brown sandals. One could say he is contemplating.

Schleich sold Monk Smurf between 1995 to 2000. You will find the markings underneath his feet. Just the one set of markings. Germany Schleich S 94 Peyo CE. Also sometimes with a black paint dot.

Like a lot of Smurfs sold in the 1990’s each one shows creativity. Each one is portrayed like no other, which makes them unique. Unlike Vanity Smurf for example. If you’re looking for Smurfs, these are worth serious consideration. Some may seem pricey but these Smurfs are less common, especially in Australia.  I have also found these are less played with by children. Typically only collectors will go after these ones.

Perhaps the thing I like the most is the Monk’s Smurf facial expression. A smile along with his eyes glancing to one side. Some say, looking sideways can demonstrate doubt. But I will let you decide on that.

Keep on Smurfin
Kath B

Rarity Guide

For Monk Smurf – I am going to give this 4 Papa Smurfs. Ultra Rare – requires skill to collect.
1 Papa SmurfNot really rare but still worth collecting
2 Papa SmurfsRare – but not too difficult to find
3 Papa SmurfsExtremely Rare – you’re lucky if you have this one
4 Papa SmurfsUltra Rare – requires skill to collect
5 Papa SmurfsVery Rare – a legendary Smurf

For all the things I enjoy about Smurf collecting……..

For all the things I enjoy about Smurf collecting…….. Is that every Smurf is different because of their hand painted touches, that makes each one unique. Especially with the older Smurfs and their eyes. A simple and small touch of difference.

Now it’s your turn, to share what you enjoy about Smurf collecting 

Can you spot a fake Smurf?

Can you spot a fake Smurf? We look at the differences between a genuine and fake #20541 Dracula Smurf, first sold in 2006. For example, we have listed 5 things to look out for with Dracula Smurf. Let me know if you of any other things to look out for!

  1. The genuine Dracula Smurfs have their eyes joined together. Where as the fake Dracula Smurfs have their eyes separated.
  2. Check the markings on the underside of the cape. The Schleich made ones are from Germany and not China.
  3. Inspect the quality of the paint colours. Genuine ones are painted with matte colours and not shiny colours.
  4. Similar to the paint colours above, check the edges of the moulding. If buying in person also feel the texture of the mould.
  5. Check if the cufflinks are silver, if not painted most likely it is a fake.

Recently I deliberately purchased a fake Dracula Smurf. It was very cheap and was in good condition. But what I like most is the misspelling of China. On these it shows as Chian. It’s a shame the markings aren’t on the back of head for everyone to see.

Keep on Smurfin
Kath B

Smurf Crossland – 1st edition

Across Clues

Row 2, Column 13: Likes to smoke a pipe
Row 4, column 17: Was also known as Rock n Roll
Row 7, Column 2: First Super Smurf
Row 6, Column 16: Likes to cheer for the Smurfs
Row 9, Column 10: Plays the drums
Row 8, Column 20: Sold in Australia by the name of Convict
Row 10, Column 2: Holds a handkerchief in hand
Row 11, Column 13: Bully super hero
Row 12, Column 6: Never happy
Row 13, Column 15: Won a gold medal at the London Olympics
Row 15, Column 2: Papa Smurf’s apprentice
Row 16, Column 17: Carries a thermometer
Row 17, Column 5: Gargamel’s cat
Row 18, Column 19: Creator of the Smurfs

Down Clues

Column 19, Row 2: Likes to wear a red or yellow scarf
Column 21, Row 3: Has been found with green lipstick
Column 3, Row 6: A Smurf never released in the UK
Column 13, Row 8: Wears a kilt
Column 16, Row 8: Was sold by the name of Soda Pop in the UK
Column 7, Row 10: Wears a green apron
Column 20, Row 10, Only female in Smurfland
Column 10, Row 12: Also known as money

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Answers will be provided in next week’s post.

Do you like our work? Please provide comments. Don’t like our work? Let us know by making contact with us

Keep on Smurfin
Kath B

Put a little Smurf in everyone’s Christmas

If you are still looking out for the ideal Christmas gift cast your an eye over this advert from BP Australia that appeared in the Victorian TV Week, 22 December 22 1979 to get some inspiration. 

 

Keep on Smurfin

Kath B

The Lost Village Review

Buckle yourselves  in, the smurfs are back with their new movie Smurfs – The Lost Village. It has been four years since the last smurf film and this time it was going to include no human characters – hooray! So other than watching an odd preview here there I really had no expectations with this film, which was probably a good thing. 

This fully animated story is mainly focused around Smurfette and her quest to know who she is. We are gently reminded that the all the other smurfs are given their name by their personal trait. We are also reminded that Smurfette was made by evil wizard Gargamel until Papa Smurf saved the day.

 

The real adventure begins upon the discovering of a mysterious map that sets Smurfette, Brainy, Hefty and Clumsy on a journey through the Forbidden Forest to the find the Lost Village, with Gargamel close behind. Like all good baddies Gargamel is the one that keeps the movie rolling with his silly antics. 

Then within the Forbidden Forest, Smurfette and her three friends come across the Lost Village, that contain only female smurf like creatures. But danger is never far behind…….

It is fair to say that the film is aimed for people who are ‘more than three apples tall’ (as tall as a smurf) and adore pop sings with all the right moves and bright animated colours. The film is also aimed for people who are happy to go with the flow of the movie and not worry about the predictable storyline. 

Without the juggernaut of merchandise that comes with these kind of movies, it is fair to say that these films would never be made in the first place. Perhaps to a small degree we should be happy for this as it gives us new smurf things to collect or for some to rediscover the smurfs from their childhood. 

Keep on Smurfin

Kath B

 

 

 

Smurfette – my hero

It’s hard to imagine a world without Smurfette. So imagine a smurf collection without Smurfette. By today’s standards the original Smurfette created first by Schleich in 1972 may look a little average, however this does not stop some collectors in their interest in this figurine. 

Smurfette (Ref# 20034) was first released by Schleich and is one of handful of smurfs that have the Schleich Emblem under their feet. When Schleich lost their licence to produce smurfs around 1973, Bully started to produce Smurfette with red or white high heeled shoes. It is not unusual to find this with the markings W.Germany © Peyo and the Schleich emblem blocked out.

Around 1975 Bully produced their own version of Smurfette who is more affectionally known as Flirting Smurfette. With one hand on golden blonde hair and one on her white dress, red lipstick, this version of Smurfette was and still is highly sought after by avid collectors. 

 

When Schleich started to produce smurfs again in the late 1970’s for companies like BP Petrol and National Petrol in the UK, Smurfette was one of the first smurfs to be made. These were commonly made without any markings and only a cavity number. It is important to remember many smurfs have been produced without markings in the early days as they were given away as promotional items by companies. 

In Australia, the majority of our smurfs were being produced in Hong Kong. You will tend to find Hong Kong made smurfs will have  darker blue skin than ones made in Portugal or West Germany. Smurfette is no exception to this. 

Depending if you are stickler for details, you can find Smurfette with different styles of her smile, eyes, with or without eyelashes and most importantly high heels. In the Der Schlumpf Katalog IV published in 2003 there are 12 different variations listed. Who am I to argue with this?

Schleich last produced Smurfette in 1986. Though since then a number of different versions of Smurfette’s have been produced. From a cowgirl, mermaid, baseball batter, to just about everything. The interest in Smurfette continues to grow especially as she is the only girl in the Smurf Village. Imagine 99 boys to 1 girl in a whole village.

Keep on Smurfin

Kath B 

 

 

 

 

Smurf Tags – on or off?

When you buy new smurfs, do you like to keep the Schleich tags on or take them off?

  • What are the pros and cons of leaving the tags on?
  • Lastly what are your reasons?

Whatever your feelings are on this, there is no wrong or right answer to the question. But dig a little deeper and it may tell you a little bit about what type of collector you are.

In some instances the Schleich tags used in the early 2000’s would leave a nasty sticky residue on the smurf after removing the tag. This would then require you having to wash your smurf in soapy water. Some collectors found that it would also leave a yellow mark on the smurf but I never found this.

I recall reading about one collector who stated that a real collector would never remove the tag. This same person also believed that by leaving the tag on preserved the collectability value of the smurf. The theory was that by trying to keep the smurf as near to its original condition would increase its value.

If you are a keen on taking photographs of your smurfs, you may feel that the tags get in the way and are distracting when trying to capture the perfect shot.

For the majority of my smurfs I have in my collection, I have removed the Schleich tags. I have kept random tags on some of the smurfs over the years more out of curiosity than anything else.

In my opinion smurfs were created to be disposable toys for children to play with. So this is why Schleich have probably designed the tags to be easily torn off and without damaging the smurf.

Then there are always those collectors who buy two of the same figurine, one for display purposes and one to be stored carefully away until it becomes a highly valuable.

Keep on Smurfin

Kath B

 

Smurf Masterpiece

I have always wanted to go to an auction that is offering something for an avid smurf collector, like myself. So next week, on Saturday 19th November Christie’s Paris and Daniel Maghen will offer their second ‘Comics & Illustrations’ auction of 2016.

This comprises a wonderful selection of great European comic masters from the past and present. It will feature artwork by the likes of Herge (Tintin); Albert Uderzo (Asterix) and our beloved Peyo the creator from The Smurfs. Along with this will be artwork by Piece Gibrat.

Though I have large admiration of Herge and Albert Uderzo due to my husband’s enjoyment of reading the comics over and over, my main interest is in a piece by Peyo. This is the original cover for the Journal de Spirou comic of 6th January 1966 featuring ‘ The Egg and The Smurfs’ estimated US $38,000 to $43000. © Dupuis 2016 Delporte/Peyo

peyo-the-smurfs-2262iepv-04-1-16

For those of you who are interested in the actual listing by Christie’s Paris I have added a link to this – The Egg and The Smurfs’

For those who are wishing to place a bid on this wonderful piece of artwork, I would like to wish you all the best. Geez, I hope my husband is reading this (hint! hint!)

Keep on Smurfin

Kath B

 

 

 

Spotting a paint error on a Smurf

Have you ever found a paint error with a Smurf? Sometimes something goes wrong at the painting stage, which results in some weird looking smurfs.  To find a smurf with a paint error, is pretty amazing when one comes to think about it. Considering how much quality control measures are out there. But for me, nothing beats finding a smurf with a paint error.

So what is a paint error? A paint error can be anything that has not been painted or painted in a different colour. In my opinion these are not variations, these are just genuine mistakes. For example it is not all that uncommon to find smurfs with unpainted tails, smiles, legs or something on the mould.

It should be noted though when smurfs were first produced back in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s there were a number of smurfs that did not have any eyebrows. This was not a paint error, this appears to be deliberate thing. However it is not uncommon to find some of these early smurfs where people have drawn on their own eyebrows. Good examples of these include the small moulds of Sitting, Thinker and Coin.

Some paint errors are quite obvious. Others are a little harder to notice at first glance. Some collectors feel that without having doubles of a smurf, they cannot see the differences. Other collectors deliberately look out for paint errors on smurfs to add to their collection. I must have confess I am occasionaly  guilty of this.

Take for example Teacher Smurf, Schleich Ref# 20059. It was first produced with a brown book cover with ‘abcd’ written in black on the pages. The brown paint used for the cover can vary but this is not paint error just different batches of brown paint used.

Later it was produced with a red book cover with ‘abcd’ written in black on the pages. The black writing can vary from thin to thick. This is not paint error just a different style used by the painter.

Now I have Teacher Smurf that I am not sure if you call this a variation or series of paint errors. There are no letters in his book, his smile and eyelids are also unpainted. It is also mentioned in the Der Schlumpf Katalog IV published in 2003 and is for sale on the Toy Dreamer website so it must be variation and not a paint error. Right?

Keep on Smurfin

Kath B