Disneybounding Part 4: Bounding at the Parks, February 2019
This is the fourth installment of our Disneybounding Series by Mother of All Figments
You can read previous posts here:
For this recent trip, I knew I wanted to do some more overt Disneybounding as well as some more subtle outfits. I had some absolutely amazing experiences this trip because of Disneybounding!
The first day going to the parks, I knew we were going to EPCOT and I knew that there was a Meet & Greet with Joy and Sadness from ‘Inside Out’. It was the perfect day to wear my Joy ‘Bound from part 2. I was definitely recognized in the parks and while I thought that the characters would get a kick out the outfit, I was completely unprepared for what happened.
When Joy saw me in line, she began to leap up and down and pointed at me...I pointed back...and she then ran over and gave me the biggest hug! Sadness did the ‘heart’ hand-sign and hugged me and then Joy wanted to know if my dress twirled. Sadly, it did not, but that didn’t seem to matter. We took many pictures together, posing and playing and hugging. Even after the photo time was done and I was going to give Tracie and Ed a turn at the pictures, Joy and Sadness pulled me back and had me pose with the Memory Orbs. I know that these are people in costume but I genuinely felt that they enjoyed the interaction and the Disneybound of them. I don’t think they recognized Ed’s Bing-Bong Disneybound though.
This was probably the best character interaction that I’ve had to date. Joy really lived up to her name and Sadness was just adorable. I was glowing for the rest of the day with Disney Magic!
The next day I bounded was Saturday after the 10K. This was a very subtle ‘Bound for me, but Tracie did a fantastic Cricket bound (from Mulan) with the ears that she made (and wore for the 10K). Her shirt was purchased from Box Lunch (as a birthday present) a few months back.
My medal is blocking most of the shirt’s saying, but this was my Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold Disneybound (from ‘Once Upon A Time’) and the shirt says ‘All Magic Comes With A Price, Dearie’, purchased from Etsy. I’m wearing gold earrings, gold lipstick, and gold eyeshadow...not that it can be seen. Ed is actually doing a very subtle ‘Buzz Lightyear’ bound with his grey shorts, lime green t-shirt, white button-down, and Star Command hat. The White shirt is from the GAP, his Star Command hat was from BoxLunch, and the t-shirt was purchased previously at the parks.
The next day was the Magic Kingdom and once again, the Bounds abounded!
Tracie was the Mad Hatter with a sweater, t-shirt, and shorts from her closet and a Fascinator that she made and decorated with Alice In Wonderland Pins (sadly, the hat blew off on the People-mover and is now lost to the aether...or someone now has a new fascinator). Alice seemed thrilled to have someone to be silly with.
Ed had a Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride theme going on with a shirt and hat purchased at the parks. I was doing a subtle Mermaid Lagoon Bound with a top from Hot Topic and skirted shorts from Bettie Page/Zulily. The hat was actually purchased at Disney Springs the night before and I decorated it with a rhinestone, starfish hairpin that I brought along.
Our final day was spent Park Hopping between EPCOT and Hollywood Studios. We wanted to get our 10K medals signed by Mulan, so EPCOT was our first stop. I also decided on a slightly-less obscure Disneybound for this day knowing that we were going to try to meet the original Princess herself: Snow White.
Last year’s Half-Marathon medal was Snow White-themed and we were able to get all our medals signed except for her’s so both Ed and I brought our’s along hoping that we’d be able to catch her at her spot in EPCOT’s Germany. Thing was, we actually managed to get a coveted Slinky Dog Coaster FastPass so we booked it over to Hollywood Studios. As we were about to head back over to EPCOT, one of the cast members at the entrance complimented me on my Disneybound and said ‘There’s someone over there who would love to see your shirt’. Who knew that there was an impromptu Princess Meet & Greet spot right outside of the entrance to Hollywood Studios!
That was news to me! We ran over to get in the very small (2 person) line, but realized we didn’t have a Sharpie for the medal-signing. So back to the Cast Members we went and both managed to find one to bring over (Cast Members for the win!). We were able to get our medals signed and pictures taken with Snow!
Pocahontas came out next with Meeko and since I had never met either, we stayed to get our picture taken with them. Meeko was very afraid of my shirt and ran away, but we finally convinced him that it was just a picture of a poison apple and not an actual poison apple.
Ed wore his Lightning McQueen button-down purchased from Box Lunch a while back and I purchased my t-shirt from Etsy as soon as the first image of the ‘Comfy Princesses’ from ‘Ralph Breaks the Internet’ was released. The Disney Store also made its own version of the shirt shortly thereafter. The skirt was from a consignment shop.
This was actually a rather interesting lesson for me; I love my really subtle Disneybounds (Rumplestiltskin and Mermaid Lagoon), but the ones that Cast Members and guests commented on the most were the ones that were really recognizable (Joy and Snow White). Granted, a few folks complimented me on my hat and my ‘beachy look’ at the Magic Kingdom. As someone who loves dressing up and wearing costumes any time I get the chance, the attention from the more overt ‘Bounds was a lot of fun for me. I think going to the parks in the future, I’ll try to be a little more ‘obvious’. Closet-bounding is still prefered, but I will admit to purchasing ‘staple’ items that I’ll be able to wear on an everyday sort of basis as well as Disneybounding.
The key, however, is comfort. I know that I, personally, have a fairly high tolerance for wearing layers and more formal clothes, but the fact is that when you’re in the Disney parks, you’re there to have fun! Being itchy or hot or uncomfortable doesn’t tend to help with all of that unless the attention trumps comfort. My only real unknown this trip was the Joy dress as I hadn’t worn it besides trying it on when it arrived. Special events aside, I think that it’s easy and possible to Disneybound in both your own personal style and comfort.
There’s no rule that says Disneybounding is only for the parks; Disneybounding really can be for everyone and can fit every type of style and budget whether you go really subtle like Ed, or more overt like me, or fall somewhere in the middle like Tracie. If you’re crafty, there are endless options for accessories or clothes, and many mainstream retailers have begun embracing the Disneybounding Love. My favorite method, however, will always be digging around in a consignment shop and finding that one accessory or item of clothing that sparks inspiration for a Disneybound. After all..
One little spark, of inspiration
Is at the heart, of all creation.
Right at the start, of everything that's new.
One little spark, lights up for you.