Disney Vinylmations Jingle Smells Series 2 and 3

By: Nick

In 2011, Disney released a set of scented Vinylmations, called Jingle Smells, that could double as ornaments. They were nice, but, as they didn't feature any character, I only bought one initially, marshmallow, but did wind up with chocolate when I found it at the local flea market.

The following year, Disney released Jingle Smells Series 2, and I couldn't resist any of them!

To be honest, none of them smell very much like what they say they are supposed to smell like.
They all smell like vinyl, with one exception, which we'll get to down the line.
But the smell isn't the reason I bought these. It's because they are awesome!

These come with a ribbon for hanging.

Mickey "smells" like Gingerbread.

Goofy is peppermint. He is perpetually in this pose, as these Vinylmations are non-articulated.

Donald is chocolate. Looks like he's had a bit of a spill there.

 He sports a pair of novelty reindeer antlers and a scarf.

Last, but not least, we have Minnie, who smells like pie. She actually has the best scent, which is reminiscent of the smell of the pie that is wafted into the theater in the  Mickey's PhilharMagic attraction at Walt Disney World!

Last year's Jingle Smells Series has Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Donald as Nutcrackers. 

Mickey smells like chocolate, and Minnie is strawberry shortcake scented. 

I bought Goofy and Donald.

Donald smells like a sugar cookie, Goofy like Peppermint.

Disney Crafts: Mickey Head Wreath

by Lisa Green

If you want to make one of these fun and festive wreaths for yourself, here are the deets:
What you need:  (if I had to guess, I’d say I spent about $35-$40)

• Wreaths and/or wire garland (one big circle, two smaller ones)
• Two big cylinders of shatter-proof round ornaments – preferably two different sizes.
• Craft/Floral wire – I just used what I had at home…a couple different kinds, in fact.

Let’s get started:

• One large wreath will be Mickey’s head – very little of the greenery will show, buy the cheapest one you can find and it’ll be great.   
• You’ve got a couple of options for the ears.  If you can find small wreaths, those would probably work.  I couldn’t find any at the 50% off Christmas decoration section at my favorite craft store (yes, you’re right, I bought a lot of stuff while that sale was going on!).  So I found these inexpensive wire garlands (on sale, two for $5) and shaped them into the size I wanted for the ears.  Initially, I tried to make them too big, so be careful. 

Here’s what they looked like once I figured out the size I liked best.

• Now break out the floral/craft wire and wire the ears onto the head – as usual, no need to measure, just do what looks good to you.  They’ll be a little floppy, but will stabilize once the finished product is hanging on the door – mine’s been outside for several days now, and is doing just fine.
• If you find two different sized ornament, use mostly big ones on the head and mostly smaller ones on the ears – to me that helped with the overall look/scale/proportion of the finished product.

• Wire the ornaments onto Mickey.  I did then entire head before starting on the ears.  Here’s the shortcut – you can put 2-3 ornaments on one piece of wire before attaching them.  Saves time!
• Once you’re happy with the number of ornaments you’ve attached, that’s it!  Finished!  Totally awesome, delightfully Disney-fied door decor for your own Disney home. 

Portions of this article were originally posted on the Living a Disney Life Blog

Jingle Smells : Series 1

In 2011 the Disney Store released a Vinlymation set that really stinks.

Vinylmation: Jingle Smells Series 1 comes in 4 designs, each with it's own special aroma. And these Vinyls double as ornaments if you are so inclined!

Gingerbread



Peppermint




Chocolate



This was the only one that really caught my fancy at first, for the figure design more for the scent, marshmallow.
The packaging is beautiful, and even comes with a little scratch and sniff patch.









I've since picked up Chocolate, and got him at the Columbus Flea Market.

I need a snack. For some reason I'm in the mood for S'mores.

Disney Movies, a Thanksgiving Tradition

by Lisa Green

I’m sure we’re not alone.  I bet a bunch of you go to the movies on Thanksgiving.  At our house, it’s a very long standing tradition.  So much so, it just wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a trip to the movies.
I’ve done a little research and am pretty sure the list below is correct.  If a year is missing – we did not see a Disney movie – either because we had already seen Disney’s most recent release OR there wasn’t a new Disney movie available (we still went to the movies, but probably didn’t have as much fun).

Today I’m thankful for family, health, happiness, and Disney Movies! 

Did you see any of these on Thanksgiving?

• 1991 Beauty and the Beast
• 1992 Aladdin
• 1994 The Santa Clause
• 1995 Toy Story
• 1996 101 Dalmatians
• 1998 A Bug’s Life
• (Christmas Day) 1998 – Mighty Joe Young
• 1999 Toy Story 2
• 2000 102 Dalmatians
• 2001 Monsters Inc.
• 2002 The Santa Clause 2
• 2003 Brother Bear
• 2004 The Incredibles
• 2005 Chicken Little
• 2006 The Santa Clause 3 – The Escape Clause
• 2007 Enchanted
• 2008 Bolt
• 2010 Tangled
• 2011 The Muppets
• 2012 Wreck it Ralph
• 2013  Frozen

Hope your Thanksgiving is a happy (and entertaining) one!

Portions of this article were originally posted on the Living a Disney Life Blog.

The Little Things

by Gaylin

Something that always impresses me when I am at Walt Disney World are the small details. There seems to be thought put into everything, including bathroom floors!

In the women's bathroom by the Cirque du Soleil Theatre at Downtown Disney, it has a great tiled floor, small circles have been cut out and wee tiles put in place. Circles within circles, a lot of extra work for a bathroom floor.

But wait there's more!!!

If you look on the floor near the bathroom door . . . one of the best hidden Mickeys, set in tile. Love it!

Disney Christmas Decorating: 2014 Edition

By Nick

Each year, I try to switch up our Christmas decorating. We have reached the point where it is impossible, space wise, to put out every ornament and random decoration we have. I have, however, made an effort to put out all of our ever expanding Disney ornament collection.

In the past I have hung them on a 7 foot tree that I put on a rotating base. I switched it up this year by using a garland, 2 smaller 3 foot trees, as well as a small wall hanging tree in one of our bathrooms. Yes, a tree in the bathroom.

The garland has Disney ball ornaments, primarily from the Disney Parks and Disney Cruise Line, as well as ornaments from the Disney Store and a few random gifts and acquisitions. I decided to go with some old school large bulbs, where usually I use small white lights.

The 2 trees are mostly Hallmark ornaments, with a few Walt Disney Classic Collection and a few miscellaneous pieces.

I put our Grolier ornaments in the bathroom, keeping them together as they are stylistically similar. The Robin Hood and Maid Marian are early Christmas gifts this year from Barbie.

Do you have a Disney Christmas collection?

Do You Remember When Dinosaur was Countdown to Extinction?

By Nick

One of my favorite rides at Walt Disney World is Dinosaur, located at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Dinosaur is a dark ride that takes us back to the Cretaceous Period, aboard a Time Rover, to bring back a live dinosaur, dangerously close to when a large asteroid is going to hit the earth. Along the way we encounter many species of dinos, and come very close to getting hit by meteorites.

Did you know, however, that the ride was initially called Countdown to Extinction? It was changed to Dinosaur to promote the film of the same name, released in 2000. At that time, there were several changes made to the ride, including toning down some of the more frightening effect elements, and making the ride itself less intense.

I was not fortunate enough to ride the original, but do have a few items from that period, including this button.
The button is lenticular, starting with the Carnotaurus in the distance…

…and, suddenly, he is upon Mickey!

I also have a book, “Countdown to Extinction, A Hologram Adventure to the Age of the Dinosaurs”,
from Disney Press, by A. J. Wood, illustrated by Chris Forsey.

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From the back cover:

Catch the mistakes in the Dino Institutes Files on a holographic adventure through the prehistoric past.

The Dino Institutes Files have been corrupted by a computer error and there’s only one way to find the mistakes. Climb aboard the Time Rover and explore the age of the dinosaurs, but be careful: the past is filled with a hungry Carnotaurus, meteor showers, and erupting volcanoes. With vivid illustrations and holograms on every page, this exciting book ties into the knew Countdown to Extinction attraction at DinoLand U.S.A., part of Disney’s Animal Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort, and brings the dinosaurs back to life.

Throughout the book, we are asked to find the mistakes in the Time Rover Files.

For instance, we are asked to look at the picture and find 2 mistakes. The files state that these tiny chicken sized dinosaurs, Compsognathus, were 98 feet big. That would be a big chicken! So, error number 1. The file states that the Compsognathus has five fingered hands. Clearly the picture shows they have three, so we have mistake number 2! I feel so smart!

Can you tell which is the T-Rex and which is the Triceratops?

YOU are smart too!

We are getting the Time Rover files all straightened out!

Speaking of Time Rover, I’ll be featuring MY very own Time Rover in a future post, so please stop back.

Mickey Through the Years Mug

By Nick

I’ve had this mug for a long time, probably bought at the Disney Store. I also have a glass ball ornament with this wonderful illustration.



This mug makes me happy, because Mickey is dreaming of 80 years of a magical career, making the world happy.

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Many of my favorite Mickey’s are represented.

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Do you see your favorite Mickey?