Inside the Thrill of Rainbow Collecting

Sometimes the last card can come in unexpected ways.

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Chasing rainbows isn’t just for Skittles. Card collectors have gotten into the fun of going after every parallel of a specific card.    

Some rainbows are easy to complete. I did it recently with 2002 Bowman’s Best Derek Jeter cards. There were just four cards.    

But in recent years, chasing a rainbow can involve dozens of cards.  

So many cards. All the cards.  

I completed a rainbow last year: Anthony Rizzo’s 2022 Topps Series 1 base card. It was his first flagship card as a New York Yankee and as one of my favorite players, one I felt like I needed to have.   

2022 Topps Series 1 Anthony Rizzo rainbow. Photo by Sooz.

But like anything in collecting, I had to give myself rules because otherwise, the chase could get crazy.   

I limited myself to only the cards found in packs of Topps Series 1. That removed Chrome, Complete Sets, 1st Edition, Mini and international releases. However, retail was fair game.  

Even then, it was still 18 parallels – including the Platinum 1 of 1.    

I wasn’t sure I’d ever get the 1 of 1. I was still going to go after the rainbow even though there was a chance I was never going to complete it.  

But one day in 2022, I got a Twitter DM.  

“So I know where the Platinum is…”   

It never appeared on eBay, where I mainly searched for the cards. And even worse, the person who had it hadn’t planned on getting rid of it.   

But there was a glimmer of hope. He’d be willing to part with it for the right card.  

I did not have the right card, but the Twitter user, who we’ll call Fan No. 1, did have a card the Platinum owner wanted.   

And I had cash.   

I sent Fan No. 1 money, Fan No. 1 sent Platinum owner a card, and Platinum owner sent me Rizzo 1-of-1.  

The rainbow was complete.   

It was such a crazy way to complete it. I was never expecting to get the card like that, but that’s part of the appeal of social media as a collector. Sharing your passion and your love cards, showcasing your collection and being kind to others leads you to places you may have never expected.   

When I got the card, I was elated. It wasn’t my first Rizzo 1-of-1, but it meant a lot more because not only did it complete the rainbow, but exemplified the good parts of the hobby.   

Platinum owner didn’t plan on getting rid of the card, but it was one of those moments where they realized someone else would appreciate it so much.   

And I did and still do.   

Now, I have a new card where I plan to chase the rainbow.   

2024 Topps Baseball Update Series came out a couple of weeks ago. There is a season highlight card showcasing Rizzo hitting his 300th career home run.    

The difference between this chase and my last chase is the number of parallels.    

Even keeping the same rules where only parallels found in Update packs are considered part of the chase, there are at least 38 cards to complete the rainbow.   

Thirty-eight cards feel like a giant number.  

I don’t need to complete this rainbow by any specific date. I do, however, have to be mindful of the retail-only Halloween parallels. Those get tougher to find as time goes on.    

The challenge with Topps Update is that there is usually less of it made than the other flagship releases and potentially fewer people opening it. In the week-plus since its 2024 Topps Update came out, I’ve only seen about half of the parallels.  

I have alerts set up, check eBay for new listings throughout the day and peek on non-eBay sites just in case a card ends up there.    

However, no matter how diligent I am, cards always end up in other collections without ever finding their way to eBay – as I learned with my first Rizzo rainbow.    

The good thing though is collecting is a marathon and not a sprint. 

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Recommended Collector Tool: Top Loader Binder

I recently got a binder I never knew I needed: a top loader binder!

I always loved having my Derek Jeter collection in binders. I could see the cards and flip through the pages with ease. At times, I’d leave spots for cards I knew I’d be chasing.

However, I do have a specific order to my collection and need the cards to be in that order. Unfortunately, it involved moving cards around too much and I hated that because of potential damage from too much handling.

Then, I put them in boxes, which was safer for the cards, but now I couldn’t flip through them easily.

Here came the top loader binder. I love them. I have three, so far, and will be getting more to add the rest of my collection to them. You get the ease of a binder with the protection of top loaders.

Perfect combo.

There are a bunch of different ones on Amazon, which you can check out here.

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