So, have you personally been impacted by the CPSIA yet?
I have. We went to what used to be one of my favorite thrift stores last weekend, and they had an old school Fisher Price Little People playset marked $45. They also had another smaller one which was water and fire damaged, priced at $25. This is the same store where I got the FPLP parking garage for $5 a few years ago. When I asked the manager about it, he told me they were "collectibles and not toys" and were priced accordingly. I asked if that was his way of getting around CPSIA, and he said it was.
Now, that may seem trivial. Boo-hoo, Katie can't get cheap toys anymore. But consider this: the thrift stores have also pulled ALL of the old Little Golden Books off the shelves (because they were printed before 1985, and are intended for kids). My friend Michelle used to make a decent chunk of her income taking old kids' books and remaking them into blank journals. Her finished product is NOT intended for children, but for nostalgic adults. But hey, now Michelle can't get any old kids' books to use as materials for her journals, because all the thrifts are playing it safe and will not sell to her, even when she explains what she does with them. So she's just SOL and can't make journals anymore. And there went part of her family's income, poof!
Now, that may seem trivial. Boo-hoo, Katie can't get cheap toys anymore. But consider this: the thrift stores have also pulled ALL of the old Little Golden Books off the shelves (because they were printed before 1985, and are intended for kids). My friend Michelle used to make a decent chunk of her income taking old kids' books and remaking them into blank journals. Her finished product is NOT intended for children, but for nostalgic adults. But hey, now Michelle can't get any old kids' books to use as materials for her journals, because all the thrifts are playing it safe and will not sell to her, even when she explains what she does with them. So she's just SOL and can't make journals anymore. And there went part of her family's income, poof!