Magical Merchandise: Joey Chou Disney Parks Collection

Happy Monday Everyone!  I hope that you had a wonderful holiday weekend.  Eliot and I had a great long weekend and really enjoyed ourselves down in Boston!

Today, we're taking a peek at a new collection that just dropped this morning over on Shop Disney.  Some of these items started showing up at the parks over the past week, but it was all released online earlier today at 3:00 AM.  Eliot and I didn't stay up for the drop, but I was anxious to check everything out this morning!

You might recall that Disney released the Jerrod Maruyama Home Collection last year around this same time.  At the time, the collaboration of a full product collection with one of their Disney artists was a newer concept.  You can imagine how excited I was when I discovered that they had done it again... this time with artist Joey Chou!

Joey has a completed different style than Jerrod, and I love this about art.  Eliot and I are fans of both artists.  I loved how Jerrod's designs were more cute and cartoony in nature.  Joey's designs are similar in that they're park characters, attractions and icons, but the style of the characters is totally different.  And I love the colors he chose!

The other big difference is that this isn't just a home collection.  The Joey Chou Disney Parks Collection has items for the kitchen, but it also has clothing and accessories!

So before I keep gushing about it, let's just dive in and check everything out!

We're starting off small with this adorable little Disney Parks Pin.

There's also a Mickey and Minnie Fantasyland Pin.

If you're into puzzles, this Disney Parks Puzzle looks like a fun challenge!

Now we're switching gears to the kitchen stuff.  I really love this Disney Parks Drinkware Set and how it features different park attractions!

The Disney Parks Pitcher is perfect to fill your cups with some magic!

The Disney Parks Melamine Bowl Set matches the cups perfectly!

There's also a Disney Parks Melamine Plate Set.  I think these would be perfect for serving plates as well as decorative plates for the wall.  (Thinking gears are turning...)

I would really love using this Disney Parks Mug as a way to start off the day!

And you can use all of these dishes when you have a picnic using the Disney Parks Picnic Blanket!  This blanket looks warm and the turquoise blue nylon side would be perfect to keep you dry if the ground is a little bit damp.  It even has a little bag!

If you'd rather use your picnic blanket to cuddle up and lounge around on the couch, you can do it in these matching Disney Parks Adult Sleep Pants.

The Disney Parks T-Shirt for Kids has a really cute design on it.  I wish it was also available in adult sizes!

I love this Disney Parks Dress for Girls.  (I'm having little girl dress envy again.)

There's also a cute Disney Parks Polo Shirt for Kids that I'm sure Eliot would love in his size... especially since it has Space Mountain and Stitch on it!

The Disney Parks Pullover Sweatshirt for Kids is really cute with the train graphics.

I am obsessed with this Disney Parks Denim Jacket for Adults.  I must get one!

I'm also 100% in love with the Disney Parks Spirit Jerseys.  I love the colors, the style of the characters and placement, and it has glittery white text!!!  Love!

The Disney Parks Woven Shirt for Men is really cute and is perfect for Eliot.

I also like the Disney Parks Reversible Bucket Hat!  Check out both sides!

Naturally, there is a Disney Parks Ear Headband in the collection.

And of course there's a Disney Parks Loungefly Backpack!  It's love at first sight!!!

The Disney Parks Dooney and Burke Satchel is a gorgeous purple with icons on it.

There's also a matching Disney Parks Dooney and Burke Wallet.

Finally, I've saved the best for last yet again.  The first thing that hinted at the collection was the Disney Parks Dooney and Burke Tote bag on display in a store about a week or so ago.  (I saw someone post a photo in one of my Facebook groups.)  It was very well received and it's already sold out online, but it should still be available in the parks!

What do you think?  I am 100% in love with pretty much all of it.  Hopefully things will stick around so Eliot and I will be able to grab them once we get our tax refund!  I've got my eye on all of the kitchen stuff as well as the jacket, Loungefly Bag, bucket hat, Spirit Jersey and the button down for Eliot!  I just wish they had also made a matching dress for women.  However, Joey Chou himself posted a link to the collection and he did say that more was to come.... so, a girl can hope!!!  °o°

All photos from Shop Disney and the Disney Parks Blog.

DIY: Wood Mickey and Minnie Easter Egg Decor

It's been a while since I took the time to work on a DIY craft that was just for me.  I keep setting craft supplies aside, and then I never seem to find time to get to it.  So when I saw some wooden Easter eggs at Michael's a few weeks ago, I knew I needed to get them and find the time to make something for Easter.

The result were these cute Mickey and Minnie Mouse Easter Eggs that I'm going to use to decorate our master bathroom!  The best part, is that this was really easy to do.

Here's how I made them!

Materials:

Two Wood Egg Shapes (I got these from Michael's)

Paint Brushes

Black, Red and White Acrylic Paint

Pen or Pencil (not pictured below)

Round Object to Use for Stencil (not pictured below)

Sealant Spray (not pictured below)

1.) Prepare the Wood Eggs

Before I started with anything else, I used a pen to draw a line across both of the egg shapes to show where the black and red paint would meet.  (For mine, I went a little bit above the half way mark.)  Make sure the lines are at the same location on both eggs!

2.) Paint A Base Coat

I started with a coat of red paint on the bottom of both eggs.  After that dried, I painted black on the top half of both eggs being careful to make a clean, as straight as possible line where the red and black paints met in the middle.

3.) Paint More Layers

Depending on what brand of paint you use, you might need to do another coat or two to properly cover the wood.  I had to do a second coat of the red paint, but the black paint I used covered the wood after one layer.  Thankfully, acrylic paint dries pretty quickly so I set a timer for 15 minutes in between coats and jammed out to Disney Hits on Spotify while I waited for each layer to dry.

4.) Add White Details and Touch Ups

Once you are happy with the coverage of red and black paint, you need to add the details.  For Mickey, I drew two large ovals for his buttons and then filled them in with white paint.  For Minnie, I used a round 3D printed piece as a stencil to draw dots all over the red part of the egg.  Then, I filled them in with white paint.  You might need a few coats of white to cover the red paint.  If you make a mistake, this is the time to do touch ups to your red and black sections.  Let the entire thing dry for a while; you want to make sure that it's completely dry before you move to the next step.

5.) Seal the Paint

Once your acrylic paint is dry, you want to seal it.  Acrylic paint can get damaged with water, so you want to give it a spray of acrylic paint sealant to make sure that it doesn't get damaged.  I gave mine two coats of sealant since my decoration is staying inside, but it'll be in the bathroom with lots of moisture.  (If you're putting your eggs outside, I would give them at least 2-3 coats of sealant to protect them from the elements.)

And there you have it... simple and easy Mickey and Minnie Easter Egg Decorations that you can place pretty much anywhere!  These were definitely an easier project for me, but I'm happy to have spent some time doing something for myself and not just for the businesses.  Plus, they'll be really cute to display each Easter and give our master bathroom a little touch of Disney Easter magic!  °o°

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial!  If you make one, please comment below, send me pictures over on Facebook or tag me in your photos on Instagram! 

Magical Merchandise: Bradford Exchange Disney 100 Collection

Happy Monday!!!  Whew this month is flying right by isn't it?  It's hard to believe that it is already time for another Magical Merchandise Monday!  Today, I'm continuing my Disney 100 theme for the month of March.  Last week I focused on clothing, so we are switching back to focusing on home decor and something new for our latest edition!

In this post, I'm highlighting one collection like I did for my Hallmark collection entry a couple of weeks ago.  The Bradford Exchange is known for their quality collectibles and they usually make products for major events like the Super Bowl.  I don't know why I didn't expect them to make a Disney 100 collection, but when I discovered it a few weeks ago (while mindlessly scrolling online) I was surprised and couldn't wait to see what they made.  So let's check everything out!

Coin collecting has been popular forever, so naturally they have a special Disney 100 Years of Wonder Coin that you can display for the celebration.

I really love this Disney 100 Years of Wonder Commemorative Clock.  The details on it are amazing and I love all of the characters in it.  Plus it looks shiny and sparkly!

Another shiny thing that caught my eye was the Disney 100 Laser-Etched Globe with Color-Changing Lights.  The LED lights change and it looks like it's so much fun!

If you're looking for something to tuck in with your other treasures, this Disney 100 Years of Wonder Hand-Painted Sculpture would be perfect.  I love the 3D Mickey, Minnie and Pluto with the silhouettes of other Disney characters across the bottom.  

Speaking of characters, we're going to be switching gears a little bit to something else with a lot of character!  One of my favorite things that the Bradford Exchange makes is their jewelry.  They have quite a large selection of it, and I was pleased that they have some for the Disney 100.  First, we have this Disney 100 Bangle Bracelet with Stamp Art From Movie Scenes.  I love how there are so many movies represented on it!

The Disney 100 Platinum Celebration Crystal Heart Necklace reminds me of the Disney Crystal Heart necklace my parents bought me from the Bradford Exchange a few years ago as a birthday gift.  I love how it has all of the characters on it!

If you like that design, you'll also like the Disney 100 Platinum Celebration Cuff Bracelet with Crystals.  This also has a ton of Disney characters on it!

As you guys know, I love anything sparkly or shiny and this Disney 100 Celebration Ring Featuring a 100 Facet Crystal looks like it definitely fits that description!  Wow!

But I think my favorite jewelry piece from the collection is actually the Disney 100 Mickey Mouse Infinity Pendant Necklace.  I absolutely love how it has Mickey on it!

The Disney 100 Mickey Mouse Ring with Over 20 Crystal Accents matches the necklace perfectly and it also caught my eye.  (Mentally taking notes down for Santa!) 

I have to switch back to home decor for our last item in today's post since I saved the best for last!  The Disney 100 Celebration Glitter Globe With Color Changing LEDs is my favorite piece in the entire collection.  I am obsessed with how the bottom part looks like it's made of a faceted crystal.  I also love the swirl around it and how Mickey is inside the snow globe part.  I feel like this needs to live on my desk as a reminder of the 100th anniversary of my favorite company!

I hope you enjoyed this collection of merchandise from the Bradford Exchange!  I am interested in seeing if they'll add anything else since many retailers are adding more items as the celebration continues throughout the year!  But in the meantime, check back next week for my last Disney 100 merchandise post of March!  °o°

Magical Merchandise: Scentsy Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary

Well, Eliot and I were supposed to be home yesterday around noon.  But after pushing back our flight, flying into Providence, RI instead of Portland, ME, renting a rental car, getting caught in a snowstorm, and staying in a hotel in Woburn, MA... we finally got home and settled in this evening about an hour ago at 7:00 pm.  (It's still storming, we had to drive the rental car home to Maine, unpack our luggage, and then return the rental car to the Portland airport.)  Needless to say, it's been an interesting 36 hours!

I had planned this post though, so I'm going to go through with it.  Now that Eliot and I have (finally!) returned home from our epic two week trip during Walt Disney World's 50th Anniversary celebration, I'm looking to keep a little bit of that magic alive.

Photo Source

Thankfully, as you know, Scentsy created a special collection for Walt Disney World's 50th Anniversary, and Eliot and I have our warmer sitting at home waiting to be put on display.  These have been in the works for months, so you probably have already seen them.  I think we ordered ours back in March when I first told you about the castle. 

If you need a refresher, the main piece in the Scentsy collection is the Cinderella Castle warmer.  The castle is decorated in banners and a 50 medallion, just like the real thing.  It also has the same colors as the castle post makeover.  The iridescent wax dish is nothing short of stunning.  The entire pieces takes my breath away.

We also knew that they were coming out with a special scent of their wax melt Scentsy bricks.  It is called "EARaridescent" to go along with the 50th Anniversary theme.  It has a sweet smell, with notes of cedarwood, citrus, peony and apple blossom.  (Eliot's Mom got us the combo pack with the castle, so we got one of the giant bricks!)

What I wasn't expecting was anything else in the collection.  However, I was pleasantly surprised when they added these Mickey and Minnie Plush Scentsy Buddies back in October to coincide with the ship date of the castle warmers!  They are so cute!

Photo Source

Mickey has his classic shorts in a purple and blue pattern with gold buttons and a gold bowtie.  His face is white and overall body is a shade of purple instead of black.

Minnie also has a purple and blue polka dotted dress with a gold belt and a giant golden bow atop her head.  She's also made in the same purple/white color way as Mickey.  I absolutely love her dress and wish they made one in my size!

One of my favorite parts of both plush, is that they have the Walt Disney World 50th logo embroidered on the back of their outfits in a metallic gold thread. 

I love these guys so much that I might have to get a set to put in my office.  Their colors match the jewel tones I have in there, and they would look great on my shelf!

The Scentsy Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary Collection certainly adds a little bit of magic to your house.  I think it's the perfect way to keep the magic alive back home... and it will last well after the 50th celebration ends at the end of March!  °o°