Disney Traditions Archives - Journeys Are My Diary

My 37th Birthday

May 30, 2016 by Bel

On the whole I avoid putting the actual age I am, on my blog. It’s not that it particularly bothers me (turning 30 never did) but I have to admit that inching closer to 40 does somehow make me feel old. However I’m sucking it up this year and trying to embrace it – and I’m going to let you know what a great birthday I had!

For a start, it was a Saturday (May 28th). Amy and Olivia came down to visit for the weekend, Chris was off work and even Amy’s O.H. was coming to spend the day with us! Though technically my birthday had started at midnight where Amy and I were still up and sitting in the dinning room, we soon headed to bed and started again properly in the morning. Chris sadly woke me at 7am when he got up and though I had hoped for a lie-in, it wasn’t to be! I got up and was greeted by many “happy birthday”s and Amy kindly made me a cup of tea! I sat down on the sofa to open cards and gifts from them all, which was really lovely.

The girls got me the Evil Queen from Snow White, in hag form. This is a Disney Tradition that I’ve been after for a while and I’m not sure why as she’s ugly as hell, but I love it regardless! Chris got me Seven Dwarves on a Log – again another Disney Tradition that I have loved for literally as long as I can remember. It was always far too expensive to consider getting but now it’s mine, yay! Finally Amy and Liv got me a box of goodies, including an Ursula decoration, Regina in Pop Funko, an art print of Belle and the Beast and a Tinker Bell scarf (I put it on straight away, so forgot to photograph it). There was also a limited edition print that Amy had found in a charity shop, which is literally amazing!

After this we sat around for a while relaxing, but the kids started to get hungry so I put on some breakfast. We had freshly baked croissants and pain au chocolat, along with margarine, nutella and chocolate/peanut butter spread. We actually didn’t even manage it all which was a surprise between six of us.

Everyone went off their separate ways then, to get dressed, to have another cup of tea etc. My mum arrived around lunch time to give me her gift and then Amy’s O.H. arrived too. After a while we headed out to Nottingham with the plan to play mini-golf but it actually turned out that we went shopping and ate at Five Guys. We headed home, got the girls to bed and then my friend Nat and her O.H. came around. We spent the evening chatting, laughing and drinking wine until about 1am.

While it maybe doesn’t sound like the most spectacular of birthdays, the evening was everything and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Thankfully its a whole year now until the next one but I’m glad this one turned out pretty great.

20 Facts About My Disney Life Tag

May 5, 2016 by Bel

Amy over at Cocktails in Teacups tagged me in something called 20 Facts About My Disney Life and although its taken me a week or so to get around to it, I didn’t want to forget altogether! The idea is really simple – no questions, just list 20 facts about your life that are connected to Disney! Here are mine…

1. Every single room in my house has something Disney in it. Some rooms have more than others but there is at least one Disney item in each. Even my car has some Disney on its aerial.

2. I have collected Disney Traditions for the last 7 years and I have almost 30.

3. I have collected Disney Pop Funkos for the last 3 years and I have 14.

4. Amy is the cause of me starting both the Traditions and Pop Funko collections, as she bought me the firsts.

5. To be honest, I would collect pretty much anything if its related to Disney. We have so many Tsum Tsums, both plush and vinyl, I went through a phase of buying Disney t-shirts, I find it hard to resist Disney at Primark and most recently I started collecting Disney Lego Minifigures.

6. Tinker Bell and Belle have always been my favourite Disney characters. I don’t think it’s because of being called Bel (or “Bel”inda) myself, because I only shortened my name during my 20’s.

7. I started Closet Geek, largely to sell Disney inspired dresses. Though I’m happy to make anything, the inspiration for Disney related ones comes the easiest. 98% of my store is Disney.

8. I absolutely love making adult cosplay, especially Disney. All the people I would love to dress as are Disney characters but sadly once I’ve made them and put them on, I don’t really feel that great about myself in them.

9. I’m sad to say that I’ve tried hardly any Disney Park food. Despite visiting DLP a few times and Florida for 2 weeks, we hardly eat in the parks. I’ve never had Dole Whip, Mickey shaped ice cream, turkey legs or whatever else that Disney Parks are famous for serving!

10. Beauty and the Beast is my favourite Disney movie of all time. Not only is Belle my favourite princess, I love the Beast, I cry every time I watch the movie and I really love all the characters. I even have a BATB tattoo.

11. I own nearly all the animated Disney movies on DVD but I pretty much never watch them. I’m sad about this really but I just hardly ever but dvds on.

12. Over the last two years I’ve started to buy a lot of Disney artwork. I think it started with the Disney Kinkade pictures being released (and I bought one at LFCC) and ever since then I’ve noticed artists at cons and online a lot more. This year I have discovered lots of new favourites and I made a post called Artist Spotlight.

13. I love this new movement that is “Disney blogging”. I honestly wish I could be a full time Disney blogger, but I don’t think I have enough interesting to say about Disney to do it all the time! Not that my life is any more interesting or anything, but I think I would run out of Disney stuff to say.

14. The only songs I know all the words to are Disney songs. When we were younger my brother and I would listen to VHS tapes over and over to write down the words and then learn the songs. We would even break them up into individual parts and we had a folder each with our own parts in it. I should probably be embarrassed about this but I’m not.

15. I’ve always worn scarves a lot but mostly it was just winter ones that I continued to wear once I walked back in the house. Over the last 2-3 years I’ve started buying lots of sheer scarves (I blame Hot Topic) and all but one are Disney!

16. I’ve been married (and divorce/separated) twice so I’m not especially keen to do it again. If I did though, it would have to be a really unusual or extravagant wedding. Ideally I’d like it to be either in WDW or Disney themed (where people dress as Disney characters).

17. Nearly all my mugs are Disney themed. At times they have got a bit out of control and Chris has now put a ban on any more mugs! However I recently moved a few to my display cabinet and tossed a few non-Disney ones out so hopefully I’m free to add a few more now!

18. For the first time ever, I’m seriously considering an annual pass to Disneyland Paris. This year I’ll have been at least three times and getting a pass might be a great excuse to go more. I would love to go during Halloween.

19. I can hand on heart say I have never wished to be a Disney Princess. To be honest, if I had a choice, I would be a sassy Villain or a character like Megara.

20. Before I started sewing, I had a couple of years where I made cakes for all my friends and family. Each person had at least one spectacular cake during that time. My all time favourite was the Tsum Tsum one that I made (with Megan’s help) for Lily.

I very rarely tag anyone in these things but if you’d like to do it then please let me know you have!

Birthday List Countdown – One Month to Go!

April 28, 2016 by Bel

Today marks one month until my birthday and I thought I would celebrate by sharing a few bits and pieces I would love to receive! Over the next month you might see one or two more of these, as and when I find other things I like. However for now, these are my (off the) top (of my head) items.

Birthday Wishlist – Disney Style

It’s probably no great surprise, that everything on my list is Disney. That’s not to say it’s the only thing I like, but its one of the few I’m passionate enough to want to own or collect. Another amusing thing about my list is that it’s pretty much half villains and half Beauty and the Beast!

While I’m not going to explain each and every thing (the list is done on Polyvore so if you click on each item it will tell you where to get it from), I will explain some bits. For a start the Beauty and the Beast traditions ornaments. These Mrs Potts, Cogsworth and Lumiere are all new and I love them all. As you can tell, Beauty and the Beast is my favourite so I would love these to join my collection. The “Belle” necklace is because “Bel” is what I go by so I would actually love this for a duel reason and the cushion, makeup bags etc are just because I like them.

For the villains side, I would really love Regina to add to my Pop Funkos (but I’m pretty sure Lily knows this so fingers crossed this year), also I have the Evil Queen in small but I would like her in the regular size. There are loads of other Funkos I like though so its hard to pick. The Ursula cover book, is the third in a series that I have the other two of. The villains bag I’ve wanted for ages and the colouring book is pretty new and I haven’t spotted it before. Recently I treated myself to the QoH plush and I seriously regret not getting Ursula when she was in store – so connected to that is this old hag plush which I don’t think is technically Disney but I’d like her. Finally that leaves a book called Never Never that’s been on my wishlist for ages (but is still too expensive to buy myself) and some DVDs which I’m still missing from my collection.

I’ll be keeping an eye on other things over the next month so keep any eye out!

Wednesday Wish List – Valentine’s Special

February 10, 2016 by Bel

Valentine’s Day by diaryjourneys on Polyvore

I’m not a massive fan of Valentine’s Day as for the most part I know it’s just a commercialised holiday. However I’ve always seen it as a day to show everyone that you love them, not just a boyfriend, husband, partner etc. For as long as I can remember, I’ve always bought the girls a gift, as well as my partner – now this year, we’re all buying each other gifts and having a romantic family meal for 4 in the evening. The following day is affectionately known as Galentine’s Day – a day to show your female friends that you care and although I’ll be a day late, I might well get my best friend’s some gifts too!

Anyway, despite the fact I don’t think I’ll get any of these gifts, I figured I’d share a few bits I’d like to get. Starting at the top is Lush. There aren’t many Valentine products I’d like from Lush this year, having previously tried both. However the Unicorn Horn bubble bar was a firm favourite last year and I’d like to give Lover Lamp bath bomb a go too. Next is a Disney Tradition – I have a whole ton of these but Minnie with a heart? Seems like a good one to get for V Day! Of course my wish list wouldn’t be complete without a Pop Funko and who better than Hook? If I had to pick someone to spend my imaginary Valentine’s Day, Captain Hook from OUAT would definitely be my top choice!

Next up is Ferrero Rocher, in a heart shape box of course. These are one of my favourite chocolates and even though I know Chris has bought some for the girls, I secretly hope I have a box too! Since we’re spending the day together as a family, a board game would be a great idea. I love Ticket to Ride and since the new United Kingdom version was released just before Christmas, I’d love a copy of this. Finally, last but not least, some Haagen Dazs. Strawberry Cheesecake is the big recommendation for Valentine’s Day this year but I’d happily take any flavour! Bailey’s has always been my all time favourite and I’d love to give Salted Caramel a try too!

My Christmas Wishlist 2015

November 13, 2015 by Bel

Over the next few weeks I’m going to be sharing some of my ideas for gift guides, including “for him”, “for her”, “for kids” etc. However I wanted to start off with a wish list of my own! This is my Christmas Wishlist 2015.

Christmas Wishlist 2015

As you will see, even at a glance, my wishlist is almost entirely filled with Disney. This is because Disney is probably my biggest fandom love, followed immediately by Harry Potter (which there are also several items for). Anyway, let’s get started!

On the left hand side of the guide, you will see an Inside Out board game and a Ticket to Ride board game. I absolutely love playing board games, both with my family and with my friends. Though we already own a version of both these games, I would love these versions (just like I would love Disney Villains monopoly still). Inside Out seems like such a great idea for Game of Life and a United Kingdom version of Ticket to Ride sounds fun! On that same side you will also spot two DVDs, Inside Out and Tomorrowland. Inside Out isn’t released yet but Tomorrowland has been for a while, I’d like both to add to my every growing Disney DVD collection. Finally on that side is a Thomas Kinkade Disney calendar. I had the mini version last year but I would love the full size version as my main calendar this year. I love the art work and even better when you’re done with it you could always frame the pages.

On the right hand side I have clothes. The dress is an Alice print dress from Hot Topic which I absolutely love. I have another dress from Hot Topic in this style and its my favourite Disney dress. I also have this exact print in a scarf (which I’m wearing now) and I love it. Not only that it’s black and I know I’d get lots of wear out of it, even in winter paired with a cardigan and tights. Secondly there is a set of PJs and these are Beauty and the Beast from Topshop. Last year I treated myself to a pair of PJs from Topshop and though they had cuff bottoms on the trousers (which I thought I would hate) I loved them and as such would love this pair for this year.

Heading for the middle of the wishlist you can see its basically an array of ornaments and Pop Funko figures. However there is a Harry Potter umbrella in there too. I love the Marauders Map print and I know I would get loads of use out of this – especially living in the UK where rain is our standard. Also not an ornament is the Disney Villains bag. This is from Loungefly and have I loved their stuff for a long time. In this style there is also a Disney Villains wallet but as it doesn’t have card slots I know I wouldn’t use it much. This bag however is amazing and I would love to use it as my every day handbag. Not technically an ornament, this candle is also on my wishlist. It’s available from the Disney Store and comes in a few different colours. I’m not a huge candle fan but I find myself more drawn to them this time of year. Plus it’s Disney. No brainer.

Finally, onto the ornaments in the middle. There are four Disney Traditions/Showcase ornaments and some of these are firm favourites while others are new to my wish list. I have loads of Beauty and the Beast ornaments already but since it’s my favourite, I’d love to have them all. The ornament of Belle with the Beast has been on my wish list since last Christmas so hopefully this year I’ll get lucky and manage to get it. The one of Mrs Potts is new (or at least I haven’t seen it before) and since I have one of Lumiere and Cogsworth together, I’d love to have this too. That then leaves the Villains. Maleficent joined my wishlist over a year ago, for my birthday last year when we watched the new Maleficent movie. I love this figure so much but sadly it went out of stock last Christmas and I ended up with the Evil Queen instead. It’s now back in stock in most places so I’d love to add it to my collection. Then there is the “hag”, who is the Evil Queen from Snow White. I’m not exactly sure what draws me to this ornament as it’s pretty ugly but I love it nonetheless. Next comes the Pop Funko and sure enough one is Disney (sort of) and another is Harry Potter. I started out my collection of Pop Funkos with only Disney and I’ve tried hard to resist branching out into other Fandoms as its a disaster waiting to happen. However we do have several others, including some Harry Potter. I love this Voldemort figure and it would definitely be my next pick to add to the collection, though I would happily take any I do have (which is only Harry and Dumbledore). Regina Mills aka the Evil Queen from Once Upon a Time is another figure I’d love. She is my favourite character by far and I hope to cosplay his exact outfit someday. While OUAT isn’t technically Disney, its definitely a branch of it and therefore adding the OUAT figures to my collection is a must! Finally that leaves Katniss Everdeen. Until a few days ago I didn’t even know Hunger Games existed as Pop Funko figures. Now I know, I sort of want them all. Katniss is available in several different variations but I think this is my favourite – like I said though, I would take them all.

I could have gone on and on but hey, Christmas is about giving not receiving – so instead of concentrating on what I’d like, I’ll soon be moving on to what you can get for others!

Hello May – a birthday wishlist

May 2, 2015 by Bel

I love May. It’s probably my favourite month of the whole year. Why? Well my birthday is in May for a start, but that’s only the initial reason to feel a connection to the month. I also love what happens outdoors – the flowers pushing through and blooming, along with the trees growing blossom. The picture above (Hello May) is actually a photo I took earlier today, of a tree in Saxilby on the way to the girls school.

Since it’s now 26 days till my birthday, I figured I’d share a birthday wishlist as my post for today. In all honesty, I don’t really want for anything (except a lottery win) but I guess if I was given a little money to treat myself with, these are the things I’d like.

So first let’s start with Lumiere. He was one of my “regret not purchasing” purchases, from Disney World. The whole time we were on holiday I was keeping an eye out for things I might like to buy – or things I might like as a birthday present from my mum and my sister. I saw a few things that I would have liked, but actually didn’t end up getting and Lumiere was one of these. Selling for $50 in the park, he is £60 on the Disney Store website. I truly wish I’d brought him home with me, though I just couldn’t justify the spend.

Next comes this beautiful Beauty and the Beast “Rose” necklace. It sells at TruffleShuffle for £25.99. I’ve never been one for gold jewellery so this is the first thing to have truly appealed, I also like the 14k version much more than its expensive counterpart. I love Disney Couture jewellery though and could easily have made a wishlist, solely of that.

This Daryl Dixon Pop Funko figure is really the only non-Disney item on my list. I love Daryl in Walking Dead and nothing is more representative of him than this motorcycle Pop Funko figure. He’s not easy to find in the UK though so places like Amazon.com and Hot Topic are really the only options for purchasing him.

Disney Villains Monopoly is another of my “regret not purchasing” items. I was so close to getting this game on at least 3-4 occasions, but I knew we’d be short of room in the suitcases, so just couldn’t justify it. Buying it online really isn’t an option, as its just so expensive. However I also found a cool version of this called “My Disney Villains Monopoly” which would be way cooler to have (but way more expensive too).

Again from TruffleShuffle comes this awesome Iron Man usb memory stick. I don’t really need any more memory sticks but how could you not want this? I love Iron Man and finally purchased a plush of him in Florida, so this USB would add to my ever growing RDJ shrine (yeah I know, that’s creepy…).

ANOTHER regret not buying item is this book “The Beast Within”. I saw it in a shop near Gaston’s Tavern and was so close to buying it, except that I didn’t really want to carry it around with me. I later saw another one called “Fairest of them All” in Hollywood Studios and would have loved that too. I have however found them on Amazon and they’re only £10 ish. To be honest I’ll probably treat myself to those, as soon as I get a little money free.

This second to last item is my big regret not buying item, but only because I can’t find it for sale anywhere (which makes me feel like I can never buy it, unlike the others which are just all expensive to buy elsewhere). I didn’t know what the design was called, which shop I saw it in, or exactly what it looked like – so even adding it to this wishlist took me a lot of research. The design is by Jerrod Marayama and the shop I saw it in was called D-Street at Downtown Disney. To be absolutely honest I loved so many of his things (a collection called WonderGround), even princess related ones, but this villain print (World of Evil) was by far my favourite. There was both an art print and a notebook that I liked, but I think the notebook would win out. I’ll have to keep my eye out on Ebay I think, though it’s not there at the moment.

Finally my last item is yet again Beauty and the Beast themed (running theme you might notice). I have so many Disney Traditions that are Beauty and the Beast and this is one of the few I don’t have. I do however love loads of Disney Traditions ornaments so I wouldn’t be fussy of which I got. This particular ornament just represents my love of them all, though it would be great to have this one too as its another step closer to owning all the Beauty and the Beast ones!

A complete (and constantly added to) wishlist of all the things I currently love, can be found on My Greedy Book. If you don’t know what “My Greedy Book” is, you should definitely check it out as I genuinely think it’s one of the best wishlist facilities I’ve come across. In fact, you can read all my thoughts on “My Greedy Book“, over at my personal blog.

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