Pin trading is an interactive, face to face experience at Disney World and the Disney Parks. You can go up to any cast member wearing a lanyard or a hip bag with pins and ask them-politely of course-if you may look at their pins. They are always glad to oblige. Here I am on my very first day of pin trading. I can't wait to see how this works.
My husband needed a way to get me to interact with others at Disney World on my first trip with him. I can be extremely introverted when placed in new or stressful situations. He's one smart cookie. He brought home a bag full of Disney pins and a lanyard and told me to have some fun.
Some people collect series pins, some collect hidden Mickey pins-where there is a little "hidden" Mickey head on each pin (it's not really hidden), some collect characters; there's no end to what you can collect if you get involved. These folks from Belgium came up to me because they admired some pins on my lanyard from an old series they were collecting. They had some awesome Stitch pins from DisneyLand Paris I wanted and so we all walked away happy! Be careful, pin trading is addictive! Not only do you get to meet and speak with the most fascinating people, you get to trade pins with them as well. Each resort has a pin board, book or even a special persona you can trade with. Just ask!
Animal Kingdom Lodge has "King Pin," his appearances are scheduled, so make sure you get to see him if you are over that way.
I found one I was searching for! The thrill of the hunt is another reason this can be such an addictive past time! Trading with other park goers can be an especially rewarding experience. I once traded a Baloo Bear to a guy who got a tear in his eye, he was so happy to have the pin! I keep the pins I really love back at the room and wear all the traders on my lanyard, that way if anyone wants something off the lanyard, they are more than welcome to it! Everyone is happy. Another perk to going up to a cast member and interacting with them is that you may get more than you bargained for! In this instance, I asked to see this cast member's pins and when he didn't have what I was searching for, he asked if I would like to be in the Jungle Jammin' Parade! Can you believe that?
My husband and I showed up at the scheduled time and our cast member not only had the pin I had been looking for, he placed us in the first float of the parade with Rafiki! What a special day that was! All because of pin trading!
This little boy was walking past me one evening and craned his neck so hard to see my pins as they were hurrying by, I remarked, "I sure do love to pin trade!" He made his mother stop and I turned around and offered up my lanyard for inspection. He was so thrilled to be trading with a "regular person!" He told me his whole life story and gave me a patriotic Minnie which I will cherish. All his pins were of a patriotic nature-his father was serving in the Armed Forces.
Of course, in the parks you might see anyone from a beginning pin trader to an all-out collector; you can see that some people just love to wear their pins everywhere! These people love to talk about their pins and show them off, but rarely are they for trading, admire their collection and let the folks know how awesome they look!
Disney has pins for every occasion, you could really get overwhelmed buying pins. Make a plan and try to stick with it. Pick your favorite characters and collect them, collect events, holidays, rides, resorts, oh my, the list goes on forever...many of these pins are limited editions so you need to keep that in mind as well.
Does this cast member look familiar? She was in the third photo from the top. We kept running into her each time we visited the park! You were guaranteed to have fun with her and her friends if you pin traded with them. If you decide that this seems like fun, buy a "lot," a large grouping of pins, from ebay. You will significantly cut your start-up costs. You can also find some of the more rare and unique pins there as well. Happy pin trading!
Well Tink, I have succumbed to "Dear" pressure. Last weekend I picked up framed Disney prints and they now reside in the living room, where I originally kept an antique mirror and equally old framed print. For all those who are confused, please refer to the post entitled "Barely Reluctant Today," and you will see the living room as it used to be! I will get into the whole Disney tree thing in a later post. Including the fact that it is already up and fully decorated!
The second post I did was describing these 40th Anniversary plates. They are now hanging proudly in the kitchen, and I think they look great. This was an investment in Disney joy.
The first installment of "Disney Around the Kitchen" is to show you just how easy it is to slip Disney into the Reluctant Disney Lover's House! It starts off slowly, and then one day you open a drawer to pull out some tongs or a spatula, and to your horror, someone has replaced most of your utensils with their Disney cousins, and where were you? Yes, you let it happen! Even the cat isn't immune. (How many do you see in the drawer?)
I don't know what possessed me to pick these up years ago, I guess I thought I would make a little necklace or choker out of them. Unfortunately they have been languishing in the back of my jewelry box until now. Does anyone out there know anything about these little charms? They are plastic, embossed on both sides, and are dark copper in color.
Happy Halloween to all of you out there! There's nothing better than celebrating the holidays, any holiday, at a Disney Park. It doesn't have to be on the day of the holiday, Disney plans ahead and makes sure their parks are decorated well in advance. If you can plan to vacation at Disney during the holiday season, I certainly suggest it.
This morning my husband asked me if I could print these out, from the Disney Parks Blog site, so that we could make them together. Yeah for Disney crafts day.
This morning, my husband, sitting on the couch declared, "We should take this artwork down and put up some more Disney artwork." Just like that. The lovely antique prints and mirror I've had for years, relegated to the attic, so the husband could have more room for Disney.
Disney's Animal Kingdom has a great restaurant called the Tusker House. It was at one time a quick service restaurant. I would look forward to our visits to that park because I knew we would stop at Tusker House for my favorite lunch, the vegetable pita sandwich. Heavenly!
Ingredients:
Holidays are a special experience at the Disney Parks. I'm specifically talking about Halloween for this post. Disney really knows how to put on a party, and if you get a chance to go to "Mickey's Not So Very Scary Halloween Party," I highly recommend it! The Magic Kingdom is cleared out at 7:00pm for official party-goers only. The Park stays open until midnight and there are two showings of the "Boo to You Parade," which I think is the best parade Disney has to offer. The music is catchy and fun, the characters are dressed up and you get to see many of the ghosts, villains and other assorted creatures that aren't allowed in any other parade!
Now the park has been decorated for the season with all of the Halloween trappings, pumpkins, scarecrows and the like. There is no end to holiday decorations and revelry. It's the guests and their costumes that make the party such a treat to attend. Many of them put a lot of time and effort into their looks. I have been lucky enough to attend a couple of the Halloween parties and I had a blast planning and dressing up for the events.
This is your chance to be a kid again, and did I mention the candy stations placed around the park where everyone goes trick or treating? Ah yes, this could certainly make a Disney Lover out of even the staunchest protester.
Here is our group. We definitely planned things better this year! The Big Bad Wolf, Red Riding Hood, Grandma, and the Huntsman, Shrek, Puss and Boots and our Belle.
Another option is to go to your local arts–craft store and buy a stretched canvas which you can hang on the wall. Poke your pins through the canvas and replace the backings. Here is my Pluto board and a close up of it.
Here is a side view of my Stitch board. If you like this idea, remember to get the stretched canvas with the wooden frames.
Pin trading is an interactive, face to face experience at Disney World and the Disney Parks. You can go up to any cast member wearing a lanyard or a hip bag with pins and ask them-politely of course-if you may look at their pins. They are always glad to oblige. Here I am on my very first day of pin trading. I can't wait to see how this works.
Animal Kingdom Lodge has "King Pin," his appearances are scheduled, so make sure you get to see him if you are over that way.
I found one I was searching for! The thrill of the hunt is another reason this can be such an addictive past time! Trading with other park goers can be an especially rewarding experience. I once traded a Baloo Bear to a guy who got a tear in his eye, he was so happy to have the pin! I keep the pins I really love back at the room and wear all the traders on my lanyard, that way if anyone wants something off the lanyard, they are more than welcome to it! Everyone is happy. Another perk to going up to a cast member and interacting with them is that you may get more than you bargained for! In this instance, I asked to see this cast member's pins and when he didn't have what I was searching for, he asked if I would like to be in the Jungle Jammin' Parade! Can you believe that?
This little boy was walking past me one evening and craned his neck so hard to see my pins as they were hurrying by, I remarked, "I sure do love to pin trade!" He made his mother stop and I turned around and offered up my lanyard for inspection. He was so thrilled to be trading with a "regular person!" He told me his whole life story and gave me a patriotic Minnie which I will cherish. All his pins were of a patriotic nature-his father was serving in the Armed Forces.
Of course, in the parks you might see anyone from a beginning pin trader to an all-out collector; you can see that some people just love to wear their pins everywhere! These people love to talk about their pins and show them off, but rarely are they for trading, admire their collection and let the folks know how awesome they look!
Disney has pins for every occasion, you could really get overwhelmed buying pins. Make a plan and try to stick with it. Pick your favorite characters and collect them, collect events, holidays, rides, resorts, oh my, the list goes on forever...many of these pins are limited editions so you need to keep that in mind as well.
Does this cast member look familiar? She was in the third photo from the top. We kept running into her each time we visited the park! You were guaranteed to have fun with her and her friends if you pin traded with them. If you decide that this seems like fun, buy a "lot," a large grouping of pins, from ebay. You will significantly cut your start-up costs. You can also find some of the more rare and unique pins there as well. Happy pin trading!
