Frequently when looking through the Precious  Moments figurine section of eBay, shoppers will notice that there are AVON figurines listed in the category. Over the past few years, Precious Moments has released some Precious  Moments product through Avon, including nativity play sets, waterglobes with angels, etc.

However, there are also several items listed which have NOTHING to do with Precious Moments, although they are labelled as such, and EVERYTHING to do with AVON, which is where these items should be listed. These items were given for achievement by Avon to their reps, and they are porcelain shiny bunnies in various poses.

The "skinny" on this situation is that Avon produced these figurines in the early 1980's, and swiped the "Precious Moments" logo to use on them (as did some Hallmark lines, etc.), and immediately received a "cease and desist" order from the attorneys representing Sam Butcher, the Precious Moments artist and owner of the "Precious Moments" trademark. Once they received this legal notice, the titles of these figurines were changed to "Cherished Moments" to avoid any further problems with copyright infringement.

It appears that there are five pieces in this collection - at least that is what I have been able to locate afte keeping an eye out for them here on eBay.

The pieces are:

"Which shade do you prefer?" with a bunny in a pink dress showing an Avon book to a bunnny in a blue dress. They are seated on a couch, sharing tea. (Copyright infringement - says "Precious Moments Collection Created Exclusively for Avon.)

"My first call." Features a new Avon rep with her flyer, standing at a wooden door. (Copyright infringement - says "Precious Moments Collection Created Exclusively for Avon.)

"Ready for an Avon Day" has a bunny in a pink outfit, holding a mirror and putting on lipstick. (Copyright infringement - says "Precious Moments Collection Created Exclusively for Avon.)

"The day I made President's Club" features a bunny in a green and yellow outfit being presented with an award from a bunny wearing a blue outfit with pink flowers, holding a jewelry box. The decal on the bottom also includes the words "President's Club Luncheon 1980. (Copyright infringement - says "Precious Moments Collection Created Exclusively for Avon.)

"Collector's Corner" - shows a bunny in a blue dress and white pinafore and a cap, holding a plate . Behind her is a curio cabinet with another plate and a couple of pieces of glassware. This piece is not a copyright infringement - it was changed to read "Cherished Moments" instead of "Precious Moments.

If you have these pieces to list, they belong in the AVON department of eBay, NOT in the Precious Moments department, where chances are slim to none that they will ever sell. They are of no interest to a serious Precious Moments collector, because they are not the artwork of Sam Bucher. However, they should be of some interest to a collector of Avon glass, because since these items had to be earned - were gifts for achieving certain things - it's probably a good guess that there aren't a lot of them around.

So - for best sales, put them in Avon figurines - category number is 39577. Happy selling!