Collecting & Displaying Willow Tree Figurines

No matter where you are in the world, you can find a great price on Willow Tree figurines for yourself or for a special gift occasion. This page explains the pros and cons of worldwide EBay sellers, other sources, information on the older pieces and tips on shipping without breakages. This will help you track down a good price and ship safely for a delightful gift no matter where you’re reading this from.

As well as the official stockists, wherever you are in the world there is bound to be an EBay seller who will ship to you. The beauty of this art is it is hand sculpted in clay then painstakingly reproduced in resin. This means it will ship more safely to locations worldwide, unlike the many risks associated with shipping traditional porcelain figurines. EBay now has an entire subcategory for Willow Tree figurines and also gives the choice to buy brand new figurines or pre-loved ones, perhaps further lowering your costs.

The downside of the strategy is obvious – you may not be able to find the full range online of course, in which case the official Willow Tree website carries details of official stockists in the USAS, Canada, the UK & Ireland, France, New Zealand and Australia. For lucky UK customers, there are more stores online selling the figurines. If you’re happy to carry on bargain hunting however, try local classifieds online – these are collectable figures and you may well find one on sale in your local area. There are also now even one or two enthusiast forums online that may be able to point you in the right direction.

Earlier figurines are now changing hands on specialist figurine collector sites and of course on EBay around the world. A snapshot of prices ranged from $30 to $5 for individual figurines, with sets coming in more towards (or over $100). We suggest you stick to searches with words like ‘collectables’ rather than ‘vintage’ as they’re too contemporary to have entered the antiques   – even though retired, these are firmly contemporary art pieces. Beware of anyone trying to pass one off as vintage – remember the line was started in 2000 and as such should not really be included in any credible vintage dealer’s figurines inventory.

One thing to bear in mind is while these superb gifts are not as precarious to ship as porcelain, they are sadly  still capable of breakages. When you are sending them try packing them with extra tissue paper gently around exposed fingers of any protruding features, with bubble wrap layers inside a strong cardboard box. Then place the cardboard box inside another one and fill in the spaces with bubble wrap or packing peanuts. Don’t’ use newspaper next to the figurines as the newsprint can run and ruin them. When you’re packing, imagine the box will be used as both a football and a table and you kind of have an idea of what sometimes goes on behind the scenes at shipping companies – despite your scrawled marker pen ‘fragile’ on the packaging!

Given that the figurines are all about universal appeal, its no suprise that people all over the world are falling in love with them. Whilst there are stores you can walk in and have a look at them up close in, its equally true there’s a roaring online trade, probably due to their less fragile nature than china, glass or porcelain. So don’t despair if you don’t live in a country with an official stockist,  a little reading here can help you check the shipper is packaging them properly before you buy and avoid getting charged unreasonable prices for shady resellers claiming they are somehow vintage or antique – these are more contemporary and you shouldn’t have to pay through the nose for one.

By Kathy Ponsonby & Phillip Jeffreys