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Describe the PERFECT Card
mouschi
Posts: 687 ✭✭✭✭
Every now and then I'm asked "What is your favorite card?" I am split in my mind 6 ways. Is it my knob auto? Dynasty logo patch? Red Crusade? My custom that Jose personalized to me? 89 Topps gold border? Wood Museum auto? I've narrowed down my absolute favorite to a little under items in my collection seen here: EDIT: It won't let me post a link so you can go to www.cansecocollector.com and click the "my favorites" checkbox.
This got me to thinking. What would be the absolute perfect card? I guess for me, I don't really know. I have some ideas though.
Back story - A card with a fabulous back story is hard to beat. I love the stories on the 89 Blue Chips, 90 Aqueous, 88 Topps Cloth, 90 UD Buybacks - any card with a mysterious / good story & history can many times beat an autograph or patch card in my mind.
Design - While a story completely trumps this for me in terms of desirability, the design is huge for me. Ever since I have started creating my own cards, I've been more inwardly critical of cards that hit the market. I sometimes look at cards now and say "UGH! Why did/didn't they put foil on those cards?" or "What a horrible cropping job! What were they thinking?"
Photography - This is especially true for cards nowadays when retired players oftentimes have the same picture over the course of 20 different cards. A great, unique picture makes a card more appealing to me.
Scarcity - Having a feeling of being a part of an exclusive group (or the only person) that owns a certain card adds tons of desirability. Like it or not, knowing that a card is coveted by others helps.
Player - (DUH). It would be hard to call any card of Mickey Hatcher better than any card of Mickey Mantle....UNLESS you are a die-hard Mickey Hatcher collector. In that case, the perfect card for you could definitely be a Mickey Hatcher card, when put up against ANY Mantle.
Autograph - In a world where players are paid to pump out hundreds of autographs on cards and stickers, some can get sloppy and thus affect the sale value of a card. I've seen a wide swing of sales price between two cards just because a part of the signature was slightly off the sticker, (or heck, on sticker as some hate those), streaky, etc. A good, clean autograph looks great, while a junky one can ruin the aesthetics of a card.
Relics - A nice patch can really set off a card, as can a nameplate, bat knob, etc. These pieces can really make a card stand out nicely, compared to regular bat chips & plain swatches. The whole idea of having a piece of a jersey or bat embedded into a card gave us collectors a feeling of being closer to the game. When the market was flooded with them, the premium patches/knobs/etc. gave many of us the same feeling again ... though at a much heftier price tag.
To me, the backstory and relic pieces used are most important, I think. Unfortunately, these cannot be married together, as time is needed for a backstory and the premium relic pieces are fairly new to the game.
What is most important to you? What would absolutely make you melt? Describe your perfect card!
This got me to thinking. What would be the absolute perfect card? I guess for me, I don't really know. I have some ideas though.
Back story - A card with a fabulous back story is hard to beat. I love the stories on the 89 Blue Chips, 90 Aqueous, 88 Topps Cloth, 90 UD Buybacks - any card with a mysterious / good story & history can many times beat an autograph or patch card in my mind.
Design - While a story completely trumps this for me in terms of desirability, the design is huge for me. Ever since I have started creating my own cards, I've been more inwardly critical of cards that hit the market. I sometimes look at cards now and say "UGH! Why did/didn't they put foil on those cards?" or "What a horrible cropping job! What were they thinking?"
Photography - This is especially true for cards nowadays when retired players oftentimes have the same picture over the course of 20 different cards. A great, unique picture makes a card more appealing to me.
Scarcity - Having a feeling of being a part of an exclusive group (or the only person) that owns a certain card adds tons of desirability. Like it or not, knowing that a card is coveted by others helps.
Player - (DUH). It would be hard to call any card of Mickey Hatcher better than any card of Mickey Mantle....UNLESS you are a die-hard Mickey Hatcher collector. In that case, the perfect card for you could definitely be a Mickey Hatcher card, when put up against ANY Mantle.
Autograph - In a world where players are paid to pump out hundreds of autographs on cards and stickers, some can get sloppy and thus affect the sale value of a card. I've seen a wide swing of sales price between two cards just because a part of the signature was slightly off the sticker, (or heck, on sticker as some hate those), streaky, etc. A good, clean autograph looks great, while a junky one can ruin the aesthetics of a card.
Relics - A nice patch can really set off a card, as can a nameplate, bat knob, etc. These pieces can really make a card stand out nicely, compared to regular bat chips & plain swatches. The whole idea of having a piece of a jersey or bat embedded into a card gave us collectors a feeling of being closer to the game. When the market was flooded with them, the premium patches/knobs/etc. gave many of us the same feeling again ... though at a much heftier price tag.
To me, the backstory and relic pieces used are most important, I think. Unfortunately, these cannot be married together, as time is needed for a backstory and the premium relic pieces are fairly new to the game.
What is most important to you? What would absolutely make you melt? Describe your perfect card!
Tanner Jones, Author of Confessions of a Baseball Card Addict - Now Available on Amazon!
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Comments
The 1976 Topps Johnny Bench card to me always symbolized the perfect card. Loved the simple 76 design and with that image, he just looked so bad@ss!!
I have a fond memory of the 1976 Topps Bench myself!
1992.
Ft Gordon, GA.
1992 Fleer Rookie Sensations
Highly prized insert in cello packs only.
My son is nuts for them - 2 buck packs are going for 6.
I find a whole box at the Px with my wife and son. He can't wait till we get home and rips a few packs.
When the "first" RS reveals itself? He goes nuts! Wish we had cell phones back then to capture the moment.
Wish I could say it was Frank Thomas - we still have the card somewhere.
(file copy)
Scott Leius - you made my day for decades!
I personally really like the '64 Rose...the aesthetics, the balance between the rookie trophy, the pic (and its sizing), the location of Pete, and the block letters. It just looks right.
1953 mantle red white and blue painting just looks like americana from that era.
Action photos...Reese, Munson, '74 topps action shots,
1954 Ted Williams Wilson-Franks
...Did you ask for just one? oops
edit...80 henderson action shot including his autograph.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
Kiss me twice.....let's party.
Bowman Baseball -1948-1955
Fleer Baseball-1923, 1959-2007
Al