Princess

POEM

Like an angel, she came from above
She shared her compassion, her pain, her love
She only stayed with us long enough to teach
The world to share, to give, to reach.

All profits of Ty from this collectible
will be donated to the

DIANA, PRINCESS OF WALES
MEMORIAL FUND

SWING TAG (inside)

Note - see the in-depth article about Princess for additional information about all of the Princess tag variations and values.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

1. Princess was the first Ty Beanie Baby used to raise funds for charity.

2. In May 1998, Ty donated $2,004,850 to the Princess Diana Memorial Fund. In November 1998, he donated an additional $8,039,513 to the fund. -Source: Beanie Mania magazine, September 1999 edition.

3. The Princess Beanie Baby is frequently misrepresented to be very rare and valuable. It is not. Ty produced millions of Princess Beanie Babies and even the "first China version" sells regularly on eBay for less than $50. The "first Indonesia version" is more difficult to find and sells on eBay in a range between $65 - $175. For more information about Princess values on the secondary market, plus a look at the Princess history and production timeline, read our Princess Versions and Values page.

* The swing tag attached to Princess has a 4th generation design on the front, but a modified 5th generation design on the inside. There is some question as to whether this should be considered a 4th or 5th generation swing tag. Princess has a 6th generation tush tag which was only seen with 5th generation swing tags. 5th generation swing tags were first used in early 1998, but the Princess swing tag appeared in late 1997. Early Beanie Baby value guides list the Princess swing tag as 5th generation but "tag logic" suggests that based on the "construction" and "front side appearance" of the swing tag (as with all of the other Beanie Baby swing tag generations) and the unique 4/5 design of the tag; this tag should be classified as either a 4th generation swing tag or a "transitional" or "special" tag without a generation designation.

KNOWN ODDITIES

1. Princess with a Bones tush tag.
2. Princess with an Erin tush tag.
3. Princess with a Halo tush tag.
4. Princess with an Iggy tush tag.
5 Princess with a Puffer tush tag.
6. Princess with a Quackers tush tag.
7. Princess with a Smoochy tush tag.
8. Princess with a Spike tush tag.
9. Princess with a Stretch tush tag.
10. Princess with a Wrinkles tush tag.
11. Princess without the embroidered rose.
12. Princess with rose on wrong side of chest and upside down.

MAGAZINE COVER CREDITS

The Princess Beanie Baby appeared on the following magazine covers:

Collecting Figures magazine, January 1998 edition
Mary Beth's Beanie World Magazine, Vol. 1 No. 3

COUNTERFEIT ALERT

Counterfeit versions of Princess exist. Check for the following common indicators before purchasing this Beanie Baby:

1. The counterfeit Princess mimics the same "made in China" no-space swing and P.V.C. tush tags as the authentic Princess.
2. The fabric on a counterfeit Princess can be lighter or darker than the fabric on an authentic Princess, which makes it difficult to identify a counterfeit solely based on fabric color. The fabric on a counterfeit Princess is normally less vibrant than the fabric on the authentic version.
3. The counterfeit's ears have more of a square shape than a round shape.
4. The counterfeit's eyes and nose are larger than the eyes and ears on the authentic version.
5. The fabric on many counterfeit Princess Beanie Babies looks more like flannel than the normal plush fabric used for Beanie Babies.
6. When you run your finger against the nap of the fabric on a counterfeit Princess, it feels rougher than the fabric of an authentic Beanie Baby. When brushing lightly back and forth across the fabric of an authentic Beanie Baby the fabric is smooth and gives little resistance.
7. The neck ribbon of a counterfeit Princess is well made but only finished on one side. The other side is dull. The ribbon on an authentic Princess is finished on both sides. The ribbon on some counterfeit Princess Beanies is also slightly wider than the ribbon an an authentic Princess.
8. The stem of the rose embroidered on the chest of a counterfeit Princess may be slightly wider and fuller than the stem of the rose on an authentic Princess.
9. Some counterfeit versions have an aqua-colored stem on the embroidered rose. The stem should be light, sage-green color.
10. The swing tag on a counterfeit Princess can have several flaws including uneven width of the gold border around the tag, incorrect red color and incorrect or off-center spacing of the writing inside the yellow star.

Note 1: Apparently there was more than one producer of counterfeit Princess Beanie Babies, so it is possible for a counterfeit to have some of the characteristics listed here, but not others.

Note 2: It is possible for a Princess itself to be authentic but to have a counterfeit/replacement ribbon and/or counterfeit swing tag. Since the value of a Beanie Baby decreases so markedly when it has no swing tag, counterfeiters have been known to acquire authentic Princess Beanie Babies without their swing tags and/or ribbons and then add the counterfeit ribbons and tags to bring the value back up.