How do you describe your collection?
I collect all things The Nightmare Before Christmas, with a focus on officially licensed merchandise that really spans decades, from action figures, plushes, Hallmark ornaments to Disney Park merchandise. My collection ranges from early 1990s releases by NECA and Applause to modern figures and accessories from Diamond Select, Funko, and Loungefly.
My oldest piece is a 1993 Jack Skellington doll with a removable head by Hasbro. My newest is the GITD Zero Hot Topic Exclusive Funko Pop that came out a few weeks ago. I document as much as I can on my YouTube channel, NightmareNando, which showcases what I believe to be the world’s largest The Nightmare Before Christmas collection.
The collection includes 1,026 items worth a little over $30,000. It’s quite an investment. My credit card reminds me of that regularly.
When and why did you start your collection?
I’ve always loved the movie. I officially began collecting in 2005 when I was a teenager. It all started with the Lock, Shock, and Barrel plushies released at the Disney Store. That was the first time I saw something attainable. I surprisingly did not have action figures as a kid growing up. I missed out on all of that. Once I had my own money and started going to the mall, I realized how much was available.
My collection really exploded in growth around 2018. My husband and I were on a quest to complete the Hot Wheels collection of The Nightmare Before Christmas 25th-anniversary vehicles. My husband is my hunting partner. I’m extremely lucky to have someone who supports my passion, or addiction. Whenever we travel, we stop at antique toy stores and resale shops. We’ve been lucky enough to pick up items from all over the world, including London, California, and New York City. More than once, we’ve had to FedEx boxes of toys back to our house or buy extra luggage to bring things home.
How do you display and store your collection?
My collection is displayed in my office, which we call The NBC Lounge, where I film my YouTube videos.
I prefer keeping toys in their boxes because it feels like a complete piece from the past. With Nightmare merch,the colour and design of the packaging also help identify the year it was released.
I organize the collection in several ways, including by year released. I have a shelf dedicated figurines that come in coffins, Funko Pops arranged in numerical order, and several character-based shelves featuring the Loungefly backpacks, the Geekie Tikis, Disney Park pins, and Doorables.
Cataloguing the items is just as important as the collection! I use Airtable to track all 1,026 items. It works like an interactive online spreadsheet and allows me to sort and filter by character, year, brand, and more. I even have a shortcut on my phone that lets me add a new item and photo via a form. It is very helpful when I’m out and need to confirm what I own. I can also tag items to their corresponding YouTube videos.
There’s an embedded version of my catalogue at the bottom of my website. Visitors can keyword search, filtering by item type, check what I have, and what I’m missing, and explore AI-generated descriptions. It’s an amazing resource.
What do you consider to be the Holy Grail of your collection?
My grail items would have to be the Jack and Sally Be@rBricks by MediCom Toy Store. They are part collectible and part art piece. They are from Japan and are very rare.
An item I would love to own is a six-foot Jack Skellington plush from NECA. It was a 10th-anniversary release from 2003 and limited to only 600 pieces. I have never seen one in person, and since I prefer finding items in the wild rather than purchasing online, it continues to be elusive. I have learned through experience that not every seller is trustworthy online.
My ultimate dream item would be an original piece from the film set or a sketch of Jack and Sally on the spiral hill by Tim Burton himself!
What advice would you give to someone interested in starting a The Nightmare Before Christmas collection?
Collect what you love and what brings you joy. Don’t worry about monetary or resell value, especially when brands and companies make everything limited or special release. People try to hold on to the monetary or trade-in value of things, and that shouldn’t be the main reason for collecting something.
What many people see as a huge collection, I see as a worldwide collection of adventures and memories with the people I love. That’s what I hope to share to a growing community of The Nightmare Before Christmas fans of all ages.
My dream is to open a museum of The Nightmare Before Christmas collectibles where people experience the joy created for us by Tim Burton.
The Nightmare collecting community has a very positive vibe. If I had to give the community a Harry Potter house, I think most of us would be Hufflepuffs. We’re joyful and always lightening up the mood. We’re not afraid to be ourselves.
The community is super supportive. We always share where we got things or where to find items. I’ve got a few friends that I’ve made in France and Mexico since I started YouTubing. And, all over the United States. We look out for each other, and if something is released in another country that we can’t find in our own, we’ll grab two and ship it and do an exchange. It could be anything from a toy or a pack of stickers.
I’ve also had a really great response from fans of the movie who see me on YouTube and social media. I have moms of kids who really enjoy the movie, and they’ll tell me that they enjoy watching my videos together, because the parent really likes the movie, and the child goes crazy for the characters. It’s amazing that it reaches such a wide range of ages. That’s why I like to give back to the community.
See more of Fernando’s collection on his website, YouTube channel, Instagram, and TikTok.
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