We all know that feeling when you return home from a Disney trip. It’s called the “Disney blues” and we don’t like it one bit! Annual Passholders are able to visit the theme parks several times a year. If they are local, they probably frequent the parks on a weekly basis. But for those of us who have a lot of downtime between visits, it’s easy to get those Disney blues. If you are like us, Disney is a huge part of your life and you spend a lot of time obsessing about it. Disney is a hobby, a lifestyle of sorts, and most of us cannot get enough of it. Here are some of the ways we incorporate Disney into our everyday life and make our own pixie dust at home. (Post photo by Disney at Home on Pinterest)
Music: The music is a big part of our passion for Disney. It welcomes us into the park and takes us on a journey from one land to another. Catchy tunes accompany parades, rides and firework shows throughout the theme parks. It can be the best part of our favorite movies and we find ourselves humming as we work, cook and play. Music has a way of bringing us back to a moment and can elicit a memory without trying. We usually have our Disney playlist streaming through our echo dot smart speaker in the background as we go about our daily tasks. “Alexa, play Gaston again!” Another way to enjoy some Disney music is to play a WDW Today Channel or Disney music loop video on youtube.
Movies: Sometimes when nothing’s going your way, it’s nice to just sit back, relax and watch a little Disney. (I’m watching Hocus Pocus as I write this!) With the introduction of Disney+, we now have a large collection of movies, TV shows and documentaries at our fingertips. I love having it all there in one place without the clutter of individual dvds. If you don’t have Disney+, Redbox usually carries a good selection that includes new releases. Disney Movie Club or Black Friday is a great way to stock up on your favorites and grow your collection for half the price.
Social Media, Blogs & Podcasts: If the computer is on, there’s a good chance a YouTube video is too! When it comes to the topic of Disney, breaking news and rumors are a daily feed. It can feel like a part time job trying to keep up with it all. Thanks to the invention of the internet, staying up to date is a lot easier and a whole lot more entertaining. Besides writing for our own blog, facebook, instagram and pinterest, we follow more of each than we can count. I love podcasts for moving advice, trip planning and discussion groups. The podcasters have a lot of passion and desire to share information. We are avid pin collectors and traders so facebook is our go to place. It has a lot of private groups for collectors who wish to buy, sell or trade. A lot of enthusiasts take to Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat to share their love for Disney. Live streaming from the parks has become very popular on YouTube and Streamlabs. You can join in on the chat and meet like minded people who share your love for Disney.
Multimedia: A vacation to Disney usually means hundreds of photos and videos. Once home from the trip, we spend months editing and uploading those photos to share on our various platforms. It is fun to relive the magic as you go through them all. We have also created scrapbooks using our photos, which is a great hobby and creative way to make memories. With digital scrapbooking, it’s now cheaper and easier than ever to create these keepsakes. Video clips can be edited together to make a vacation film. All you need is the know-how and the right editing tools. As for essential gear, most phones offer what you need to take great photos and film clips. But if you want to invest in a good camera that will offer everything you need and more at a great price, we use the Canon EOS M50 Mirrorless.
Trip Planning: Obviously, the easiest way to cure those blues is to go back to Disney! We believe that having an amazing Disney vacation starts with planning. Comparing resort amenities and prices, booking restaurant reservations, picking park days, and developing some sort of touring plan are just a few of the decisions that go into a well planned vacation. Now with the new theme park reservation system and elimination of fastpasses, it is more important than ever that you have a good plan in place. Other things that add fun to the planning is putting together outfits and purchasing all the must have items for your trip.
Disney Hobbies and Collections: Most die-hard Disney fans have a collection or two that keep them in the magical mind set when away from the parks. Collecting Disney mugs is very popular and there are so many options with characters, attractions, and resorts. Our Disney pins fall into both the hobby and collection categories. We trade pins online and have created several collections that pay homage to our favorite rides, resorts and characters. Other fans collect Minnie Mouse ears, Funko Pop!, Jim Shore figurines and so many others. The multimedia opportunities mentioned previously fall into the hobby category, along with run Disney groups, blogging, making Disney ears and outfits, to name a few.
Books, eBooks, Magazines and Audibles: If you love to read, or be read to, there’s nothing like cozying up with a cup of tea and a good book. For many, love of the written word means a bookcase of cherished novels and how-to books. The smell of the ink, paper and binding is nostalgic of a simpler time. There are endless choices of Disney coffee table books and vacation planning guides. A few of my favorites are Walt Disney’s Disneyland, Poster Art of the Disney Parks, and Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind the Dreams Look at Making More Magic Real. These books are beautiful collectibles with gorgeous photos and great stories, but they are a little pricey. But in today’s world of ebooks and audibles, it’s easier and less expensive to enjoy all your favorite reads at the ease of any streaming device. If the latter is your style, I highly suggest you become a member of Kindle Unlimited or Amazon Audibles. There are so many titles available, including kids books. I honestly wish they had audibles when my kids were young so I could put a bedtime story on the echo dot and snuggle while someone else did the reading! In case you like the pictures, but not a lot of reading, there are some great Disney magazines out there. D23’s Twenty-Three and Celebrations Magazine will make going to the mailbox fun again!
Using Disney or Disney-Inspired Products: Maybe you can’t go back to Disney for a while, but you can bring Disney home! There are a lot of Disney and Disney inspired products that can make your home feel like a Disney Resort or theme park. We love Disney candles with scents that mimic smells from around the parks and resorts. Everything from the distinct scent of each resort to that famous Pirates of the Caribbean water. Wishes Candle Co. has some of our favorite candles, but there are a lot of others to try. Speaking of scents, you can feel like you’re on vacation every time you shower by purchasing official Disney Resorts bath products from h20+. They can be purchased from your Disney resort, but are also available on shopDisney. Another fan favorite is Basin products sold in Disney Springs or at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. They have bath salts & bombs, scented salt scrubs, soaps, etc. They can also be purchased at the Basin website or at select local Hy-vee stores.
Joffrey’s is the official specialty coffee and tea supplier of the Disney Parks. It is available in room, at quick service and kiosk locations, and signature restaurants. But you can enjoy it at home by purchasing in the parks or at home from joffreys.com. Our favorites are the Kona Blend, Aulani, and Sanaa. There are other great beverages for sale in the parks, such as Wonderland Tea and Mickey’s Hot Cocoa. All this talk about coffee makes me long for one of my favorite treats, the beignets from Port Orleans French Quarter! You can make homemade beignets with the same Cafe Du Monde Beignet Mix used at the resort.
Home Decor: If you want to incorporate a little Disney flair into your everyday life, it’s easy to achieve with home decor. Simple touches like kitchenware, picture frames or embroidered pillows can remind us of our happy place. A special piece of art or group of figurines can keep the magic alive all year long. Most Disney geeks have accumulated a lot of Christmas ornaments from special events, parks or characters. Some have even been known to theme an entire room or garden to a Disney movie or attraction.
Clothes, Jewelry and Accessories: Adding little touches of Disney to our ensembles is a creative way to feel like you’re at Disney all the time. There’s a plenitude of items available at the parks, resorts and shopDisney to spark your imagination, as well as so many amazing small shops and brand collaborations. Loungefly is one of our favorite brands for Disney backpacks, bags and pins. Alex and Ani bracelets are the perfect combination of pixie dust and positive energy, featuring beloved characters and icons. There are so many opportunities to add Disney items, and so many places to find what you love. Etsy is full of small shops offering jewelry, tees, hats and more. Amazon also offers a great variety of stores selling fun tees and hand bags designed after characters and attractions.
We realize this is a lot of information in one post, but this is just the tip of the sword when it comes to Disney products and ideas for everyday life. We will get more in depth in later posts that focus on specific categories so we can offer you more options and suggestions to add some pixie dust to your world.