Fun with Pixar and Cars 2 as we peel into stickers from Panini

There is a lot going on this weekend, the aftermath of the 2011 NBA Draft, the ongoing 2011 NHL Draft and some classic MLB match ups.  But there is also the release of Pixar's Cars 2.

I've enjoyed every picture from the folks in Emeryville, California so in addition to coverage of the 2011 NHL Draft we will be having some fun with Pixar collectables this weekend.

The first item is a recent pick up from a run to Target for some supplies.   I'm not sure if there is any collector that can enter a Target these days without walking away with something from the cards aisle, so conveniently located near the cash registers.

It is a Panini Sticker book for Cars 2.  Some of you may not know this, but stickers are what put Panini on the map as a company.

We've already told you we will be filling a 2011 NFL sticker book this year just so there is football regardless of whether or not there is a NFL season.  This should be a good primer for what to expect coming this fall.

By the way, to the parents that might be reading this, these sticker books are excellent for teaching young children numbering, sequencing, matching and motor skills..  Just saying.  Besides that, they are flat out fun.

The Book comes with 12 stickers to get you started.

Go to the center of the book and you will find a fold out poster.

The poster is double sided.

 One side is ready to hang on your wall.

The other side of the poster is ready for Special X numbered Stickers.

I also purchased 5 sticker packs.

The packs contain 8 stickers each, 7 regular stickers and 1 specialty sticker.

The regular stickers look like this one of Mater.

 Front and Back

Here are the specialty stickers from our 5 packs.

 Special X numbered stickers

 Foil versions of regular stickers.

There are 198 regular stickers and 18 Special X numbered stickers

Putting the stickers into the book is really easy.  All 32 pages of the book have empty numbered slots.

Just find the sticker that matches the number on the empty slot and peel it.

 Place the sticker on the matching box.

That's all there is to it.

Besides the framed stickers, there are also stickers that blend into the page to complete a picture.

Eventually you will fill the page.

A great thing Panini has done is when you get to within 40 stickers of completing the book, you can order the exact stickers you are missing directly from Panini.   Wouldn't it be great if you could do that with sports cards.

These are a lot of fun to collect and complete.  More Pixar stuff tomorrow.

The Complete Results for the 2011 NHL Draft, Round 1, the top 30 picks.

Round one of the 2011 NHL Draft is complete.   Here are the results.  You'll find pick number, drafting team, player drafted, player position, and former team.

ROUND ONE

1. Edmonton Oilers - Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, C, Red Deer Rebels (WHL).

2. Colorado Avalanche - Landeskog, LW, Kitchener Rangers (OHL).

3. Florida Panthers - Jonathan Huberdeau, C, Saint John (QMJHL).

4. New Jersey Devils - Adam Larsson, D, Skelleftea (Sweden)

5. New York Islanders - Ryan Strome, C, Niagara IceDogs (OHL).

6. Ottawa Senators - Mika Zibanejad, C, Djurgarden (Sweden).            

7. Winnipeg Jets - Mark Scheifele, C, Barrie Colts (OHL).

8. Philadelphia Flyers (From Columbus) - Sean Couturier, C, Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL).

9. Boston Bruins (From Toronto) - Dougie Hamilton, D, Niagara IceDogs (OHL).            

10. Minnesota Wild - Jonas Brodin, D, Farjestad (Sweden).

11. Colorado (from St. Louis Blues) - Duncan Siemens, Saskatoon Blades (WHL).

12. Carolina Hurricanes - Ryan Murphy, D, Kitchener Rangers (OHL).

13. Calgary Flames - Sven Bartschi, LW, Portlan

14. Dallas Stars - Jamie Oleksiak, D, Northeastern (U.S. college).

15. New York Rangers - J.T. Miller, C, USA U-18 (Team USA).

16. Buffalo Sabres - Joel Armia, RW, Assat (Finland).

17. Montreal Canadiens - Nathan Beaulieu, D, Saint John (QMJHL).            

18. Chicago Blackhawks - Mark McNeill, C, Prince Albert Raiders (WHL).

19. Edmonton Oilers (From Los Angeles) - Klefbom, D, Farjestad (Sweden).

20. Phoenix Coyotes - Connor Murphy, D, USA U-18 (Team USA).

21. Ottawa Senators (From Nashville) -  Stefan Noesen, RW, Plymouth Whalers (OHL).

22. Toronto Maple Leafs (from Anaheim) - Tyler Biggs, RW, USA U-18 (Team USA).            

23. Pittsburgh Penguins - Joe Morrow, D, Portland Winterhawks (WHL).

24. Ottawa Senators (from Detroit) -  Matt Puempel, LW, Peterborough (OHL).            

25. Toronto Maple Leafs (From Philadelphia) -  Stuart Percy, D, Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors (OHL).

26. Chicago Blackhawks (from Washington) -  Phillip Danault, LW, Victoriaville Tigres (QMJHL).

27. Tampa Bay Lightning - Vladislav Namestnikov, C, London Knights (OHL).            

28. Minnesota Wild (from San Jose) -  Zack Phillips, C, Saint John (QMJHL).

29. Vancouver Canucks - Nicklas Jensen, LW, Oshawa Generals (OHL).

30. Anaheim Ducks (From Toronto via Boston) -  Rickard Rakell, RW, Plymouth Whalers (OHL).

2011 Bowman Baseball, An All About Cards Review

Last year “the” baseball card to pull was Stephen Strasburg, this year it is Bryce Harper.  Harper’s Bowman Chrome Red Auto #/5 cards have been selling at auction for between $5,000 and $6,000.  But what if you are a collector just looking for a set of cards to chase.   Are Bowman Baseball cards like an artichoke, a lot of peeling and discarding to get to a small morsel of goodness?  Not really.  For the person who purchases cards and actually plans on holding onto them, Bowman Baseball is more like a Smorgasbord, a buffet of different card types, colors and variations that will keep you coming back for seconds.

This set falls under our classification of trading cards. 2011 Bowman Baseball can be found in a variety of retail configurations and in Hobby Box form, which contain 24 – 10 card packs and features one autographed Bowman Chrome in every box.

We should also point out that last year’s Bowman was the winner of our All About Cards 2010 Sports Card Award for Best Baseball Trading cards

Here is a look at some of the cards we pulled from our hobby box.

From the base sets

 Evan Longoria base card, front and back

 Andrew Romine rookie Card, front and back

 Bryce Harper prospects base, front and back

 Brandon Belt Bowman Chrome, front and back

From the inserts

 Mark Teixeira and Ubaldo Jimenez Bowman's Best

 Michael Pineda and Dee Gordon Bowman's Best Prospects

 Topps of the Class

 Bowman's Brightest

 Finest Futures

Topps 100

The hits from the box

 Ian Kinsler and Yunesky Maya International Backgrounds

 Albert Pujols and Joey Votto Gold

 Adrian Gonzalez Blue #/500

Troy Tulowitzki Orange #/250

 Jurickson Profar International Background

 Bryce Harper and Dee Gordon Bowman Chrome

 Kyle Russell Bowman Chrome #/799

 Lars Anderson Bowman Chrome Auto #/500

Rick Hague Blue Bowman Chrome Auto #/ 150

Overall Look

Bowman has always had a straightforward design.  Chrome cards are sharp and inserts are where most of the design elements come into play.

Quality and Variety of Players and Subsets.

The best of the MLB and a variety of primed prospects and young hopefuls make for a good mix.

Do the hits hold up?

For the most part you are looking for autographs in a rainbow variety of numbered colors.  Hitting a Bryce is like hitting the lottery if you are in the business of flipping your cards.   For collectors with patience, in a few years you might have an as of yet undiscovered gem if you hold onto your cards.

Will you want to collect them all? 

Some might not consider this a set to build, but it is a nice group of cards to chase.

Rating

 4 1/2 out of 5

2011 Bowman Baseball delivers again, working on a bunch of different levels for a wide variety of card collectors.


Review box provided by Topps