Beanie Babies

A Beanie Baby is a stuffed animal made by Ty Inc., which was founded by Ty Warner. The Ty company's famous special "posable lining" is under stuffed with plastic pellets (or "beans") rather than stuffing (see PVC and PE), giving Beanie Babies a flexible and cuddly feel. A Beanie Baby is essentially a fancy bean bag in the form of a stuffed animal.

Ever since their introduction, Beanie Babies have been a hot collectible, and time has only improved their desirability. Toymaker Ty Warner introduced the original nine Beanie Babies to collectors at the World Toy Fair in 1993:

Legs the Frog Beanie Baby

Squealer the Pig Beanie Baby

Brownie the Bear Beanie Baby (later renamed Cubbie the Bear)

Flash the Dolphin Beanie Baby

Splash the Whale Beanie Baby

Patti the Platypus Beanie Baby

Chocolate the Moose Beanie Baby

Spot the Dog Beanie Baby

Pinchers the Lobster Beanie Baby

What made Beanie Babies different?

When Ty replaced traditional stuffing with beans, or small PVC pellets, it introduced a new style of easy-to-pose plush animals to the toy market. Beanie Babies favored simplicity with minimal detail, basic color schemes, and little facial expression.
Beanie Baby tags

Beanie Babies are authenticated by their hang tags. The first generation Beanie Baby tags were straightforward: double-sided with a Ty logo on the front and the animal’s name and style on the back. Locket-style tags with poems came in later generations. Beanie Babies also had white “tush tags” with black lettering. It’s difficult to find the original Beanies with tush tags because they were often removed for child safety.
Not just for kids: a collectible craze begins

Yes, children were the primary consumers for Beanie Babies at the start. The collector craze didn’t really begin until 1997, when Ty began “retiring” the original nine. In 2000, Ty announced it would stop making Beanie Babies altogether, but ultimately left the decision to consumers. They overwhelmingly voted for the continued stuffing of Beanie Babies.

Learn how to sell beanie babies