(WXYZ) — Are you getting the feeling that everything is more expensive in 2021? Turns out you're not imagining things.
Walk inside O'Smiley's Dolls and Collectibles and you'll find a wonderland of classic toys. Owner Sherry Smiley has shelves of dolls that are in high demand these days.
"You are seeing a lot of interest in the '80s Barbies, you are seeing an increase in early Cabbage Patch Kids," she said.
According to Smiley, Gen X'ers are now seeking the toys of their youth.
"We come to an age where we start to reflect what the best times of our lives were. Those are the toys we go after," she said.
In the original box, some are worth hundreds of dollars.
They include:
- 1970s Barbies
- 1980s Cabbage Patch Dolls
- Early American Girl Dolls
- Crissy and Dawn Dolls
- African American Christie Dolls
USA Today said African American dolls, in general, are seeing a huge increase in value.
Melrose Cross is glad she kept her daughter's dolls.
"She left them here so that when she brings her little girl to visit, she gets to play with them," she said.
Margie Schultz, with DollClubs.com, believes people working at home all day have sparked the new interest.
"In the last year, prices have been going crazy, I think those that still have jobs are buying like crazy," Schultz said.
Toys for boys are hot, too. if you didn't tear the legs off your G.I. Joe or He-Man, they can be worth $50 or $100 now.
Meanwhile, Hot Wheels from the 1970s are another hot collectible.
The key with any vintage item is condition and scarcity. If it's a Harry Potter toy with millions of copies, it's probably not going to be that valuable.
The same is true for the hottest collectible of all right now, vintage cards.
Some early Pokemon cards from 1997-1999 have sold for thousands, and baseball cards are on fire.
"Some of these high-end cards, Mickey Mantle, Babe Ruth, they are five and 10 times what they were a year ago," Dean Hanley of Dean's Cards said.
He cautions that rarity and condition are key.
If millions were made, like Funko Pops and Star Wars toys, you may have to wait a long time.
