Celebrations Vinylmation Explained

WDWNT on April 6, 2011

Update: 4/6/11 Turnaround pictures of all ten 3″ and 28 Jr figures have been posted.

Update: 3/28/11 We have added pictures of at least one of the 3 randomly packaged Jrs with each 3″ Vinylmation. A big thanks for our French friend Aranya for the pics!
Update: Disney has officially stated an April 8th release date for the Celebrations series. It will originally be available at D-Street. No word on an online release date. Thank you to J for pointing out the update.
Vinylmation Celebrations is a 3″ + Jr combo open window set that will be released in the US at a future date. This set is similar to Occupations in that you purchase the 3″ of your choice and it comes with one of 3 random Jrs associated with that specific figure. Meaning there will be at least 40 figures in this set.
According to the Hong Kong Disneyland Facebook page, where these pictures where found, this set will be released in Hong Kong on March 17, 2011.
1st Visit

Represents the button 1st time visitors to
WDW or Disneyland are handed
to wear around the parks. Commemorates a 1st visit to a Disney Theme Park. Its a balloon in the head with a Mickey face. Great detail there. And a clear blue body to represent the sky. 
There are 2 versions of this figure. One sold at Disney World and the other at Disneyland.
Fast Pass Jr.

Looks like the 1st Visit balloon will come with randomly packaged Jrs depicting items you find at the theme parks.
Mickey Ice Cream Bar Jr


Very similar to the Urban 2 Mickey Chocolate Bar 3″ figure. I like it. It makes me hungry!
Character Autographs Jr.

Simply amazing! I would actually like a 3″ with this idea. Mickey, Pluto and Goofy signatures cover this figure.
Blue Ribbon

Give this Vinylmation out to
celebrate the best of the best.
Gold Jr.

Only the best of the best get this gold medal.
Silver Jr.

Not everyone can be the best. Take this 2nd place silver medal with
red, white and blue ribbon on back and go home happy.
Bronze Jr.

3rd place isn’t too bad.
Baby Boy

A blue teddy bear in celebration of
the birth of a new boy! I like the detail in the design here with the stitching. It really does give it a stuffed animal look.

Baby Blue Bottle Jr.

Perfect to feed your 3″ Vinylmation. This design fits a bit odd onto the Jr. body.
Baby Blue Rattle Jr.

Look at all those not so hidden mickey around the head! Very cute. Makes you wonder if any of the Baby Girl’s Jrs are just “pink” versions of a Baby Boy’s Jrs.
Baby Girl

A Pink teddy bear in celebration of
the birth of a new boy! I like the detail in the design here with the stitching. It really does give it a stuffed animal look
ABC Blocks Jr.

The blocks are set against a blue head and pink body. This figure is paired with both the blue and pink bears.
Baby Pink Bottle Jr.

Perfect to feed your 3″ Vinylmation. This design fits a bit odd onto the Jr. body.
Baby Pink Rattle Jr.

Look at all those not so hidden mickey around the head! Very cute. Makes you wonder if any of the Baby Girl’s Jrs are just “pink” versions of a Baby Boy’s Jrs.
Bride

If you can talk her into it, this wedding
dress is probably cheaper than the
one she just picked out.
Bouquet Jr.

A colorful representation of a Bride’s flowers.
Women’s Wedding Ring Jr.

Look at that diamond! A clear Vinylmation with a gold ring around the head.
Fancy Lace Jr.

A pattern that goes with the Bride figure.
Bridal Garter Jr.

Looks like there is a fourth Jr with the Bride and only two for the groom… but I suppose this could go with the Groom as well. An interesting choice for a design here, but nicely done with the garter wrapping around the head.
Groom

This tuxedo looks similar to the
business suit in the Occupations series.
Men’s Wedding Ring Jr.

A clear Vinylmation with a gold ring around the head.
Ball and Chain


Love it! LOL. Great for all my married friends. And really well done too!
The Graduate

Looks like this guy is getting ready
to join the workforce. We recently
caught him checking out the
Occupations Series for his options.
Mortarboards Jr
How you celebrate. Nice
use of the clear blue Jr
representing the caps
against the sky.
Diploma Jr
What you get. Really cool piece. I like the seal on the front and the Diploma font on the back.
Cash Jr
This dollar sign represents
the money you hope to
ear when you get out into
the real world.
Happy Birthday

Make a wish!
Looks like a layered Birthday
cake with some candles.
Happy Birthday

Make a wish!
Looks like a layered Birthday
cake with some candles.
Gift Tag Jr.

This yellow wrapping paper with blue ribbon goes nicely with the
Birthday Vinylmation. It even has a to and from tag.
Party Time

Next time you celebrate anything,
bring this guy along. His colorful
streamers make him the life
of any party!

Well done. Simple, but effective.

Colorful representation of confetti and streamers.

Like those plastic and paper party favors you blow into, this noise maker stays rolled up. I don’t think blowing on it’s feet will change that!
Thank You

If we had a larger budget,
Destination Vinylmation would send
one of these to all our loyal leaders
(listeners/readers).
Xie Xie Jr
(sheh sheh)
Chinese for Thank You
Merci Jr
French for Thank You
Gracias Jr
Spanish for Thank You


The ad for Celebrations on the HK Facebook page

Muppets 2 Chaser

WDWNT on April 6, 2011

Spoiler! Well it was predicted with the rest of the set so it shouldn’t be much of a surprise, but here is the Muppets 2 chaser (front and back). The photos are from eBay seller lindogcatbird. Thanks! (Before the reveal people thought it could have been Gonzo, or another Kermit, or Waldo, or Skeeter)

Muppets 2
Chaser (front)		 Muppets 2
Chaser (back)

Stormtrooper of the Week #10

WDWNT on April 6, 2011

This week I, Nick, am taking over the Stormtrooper of the Week. Several days ago I went to Megacon. Look who I found there….

On some weekends Sheldon puts on his favorite superhero’s costume and poses for pictures at the local Con.

Spotlight On: Custom Artist Justin Marshall

WDWNT on April 6, 2011

Recently we received an email from Justin Marshall, and inside it contained a whole lot of pictures of his customs. There were a whole lot of good ones, but the one I wanted to talk about today was the Haunted Mansion.

I really like the look of this figure. He does a great job of getting a lot of details with his paints. The hitchhikers on the front, and the shadow on the back. I also enjoy the wallpaper eyes all over the front. This makes me look forward to the official Haunted Mansion set coming out this fall!

I got a chance to ask Justin more about this figure.

MC: How long have you been creating custom Vinylmation?
Justin Marshall: I have been creating them since July 2010.

MC: In that time how many pieces have you created?
JM: Close to 20-30.
MC: What piece that you have created is your favorite?
JM: I think my first creation that started it all, Captian EO.
MC: Do you collect the Vinylmation created by Disney artists?
JM: Of course, I love them!

MC: What is your favorite official Vinylmation figure?
JM: That’s hard, Haunted Mansion Wallpaper, but also love Mr. Toad!
MC: Well that makes sense, especially since you made your own version. How did you come up with the idea of a Haunted Mansion piece?
JM: The original poster you see at the entrance of the magic kingdom (under the railroad track).

MC: Can you describe this figure? The inspiration. What detail went into it?
JM: I love the original conepts when WED was creating this attraction. The park has so many characters, but when it comes to the Haunted Mansion, in the early years, there weren’t any characters, just a large creepy structure. So the hitchhikers have grown to be the memorable characters ove the years and people love at the end of the ride when one of the 3 hitchikers jumps into your doombuggie following you home. So gathering what a vast population of Disney visitors know was the key. They can relate to it.

MC: What is your favorite aspect of it?
JM: Painting those odd shaped hitchhikers on the front. One’s tall and skinny, one’s heavy and wide, and then you have the little guy that’s holding the ball that probably weighs more than him! I picked a pale blue just like you see when you’re in the graveyard. I wanted the precise color.

MC: I think you did a great job on them. What was the hardest part in creating this figure?
JM: Trying to duplicate the wallpaper! I was going to do a wallpaper head, but if you really look deep into the design, it’s complicated, especially when painting on a rounded surface. I ended up with just the eyes, but have plans in the future to conquer the wallpaper design!
MC: So when you’re finished with that wallpaper one, or if anyone wants to see your other work; where can people go to find out more about your pieces and see your work?
JM: I am working on a dedicated page solely for my vinylmation creations. But I am on Facebook, just look up my email, jchad1000@hotmail.com, or people can email me a request for something they would want to see put on a vinylmation.

MC: Thanks for dropping by! Again, love this figure.
Pictures of Justin’s customs by Justin

Episode 016 Graffitti

WDWNT on April 5, 2011

Ep. 016 Graffitti
Lots of stuff this episode. Nick and MC review Park 6 and the combo topper. They talk about the latest custom’s articles; Evilos, Celeste, and Cassie. Then they talk about the upcoming releases including Muppets 2 and of course take a questions of the Mystery Mailbag
Listen Now:
icon for podbean
Standard Podcasts [59:36m]: Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

More to Celebrate! More Jrs revealed.

WDWNT on April 4, 2011

Thanks to our twend @milkyjoe75 we have a look a a few more Jrs for the Celebrations Series that comes out this Friday, April 8th! Here the a few that we hadn’t seen before! (We have already seen Baby Bottle, 2nd Place Ribbon, Chinese Thank You, and Money from our French friend Aranya.)

Baby Rattle Jr.

Comes with the Baby Girl 3″

Look at all those not so hidden mickey around the head! Very cute. Makes you wonder if any of the Baby Girl’s Jrs are just “pink” versions of a Baby Boy’s Jrs.

Ball and Chain

Comes with the Groom 3″

Love it! LOL. Great for all my married friends. And really well done too!

Birthday Balloon Jr
Comes with the Happy Birthday 3″

Reminds me of that elusive Park 1 chaser! Well done I think. Simple, but effective.

Confetti Jr

Comes with Party Time 3″

Pretty straight forward.

Fancy Lace Jr
Comes with the Bride 3″

Um, Joe couldn’t really identify this, and we can’t really either. So, just a pretty bride-y pattern. Enjoy.

Mickey Ice Cream Bar Jr

Comes with the 1st Visit 3″

Very similar to the Urban 2 Mickey Chocolate Bar 3″ figure. I like it. It makes me hungry!
All photos by @MilkyJoe75

Pins Give Sneak Peak to Urban 7

WDWNT on April 4, 2011

Thanks to an email by Don that pointed us to the Disney Pin site, we have a sneak peak at two new Urban 7 designs. These two pack pin sets have held designs that represent the 9″ vinyl designs. So that seems like a good assumption here! Check them out:

Delightful Flowers Mean Old Dog

This pin set, LE 1000, will be released at Walt Disney World Resort on May 12th at a price of $44.95.

Spotlight On: Photographer Cassie Dyer

WDWNT on April 4, 2011

This Spotlight On segment is going to be a little different than normal. Usually we use this segment to highlight interesting Vinylmation artists. Today we will do that same thing, but in an “outside the box” way.

On twitter the other day we spotted a tweet about vinylmation pictures. We clicked on the link and found one of the coolest niche sites about vinylmation we have ever seen.

Cassie Dyer is a professional photographer from Ohio. Along with her husband, she runs a local portrait studio. In her free time she’s fallen in love with a little Park 2 friend: Poncho the Mouse by Randy Noble.

Cassie created the site ponchothemouse.tumblr.com and takes all the photos you can see there. We had a chance to “sit down” with Cassie and talk about her, and her site.
MC: How long have you had your site?
Cassie Dyer: My first Poncho picture was taken in June 2009. I would just post them on my Facebook, but due to his growing popularity I decided to create a blog site in June 2010 for a larger audience to see and enjoy.
MC: What’s your favorite picture so far?
CD: It was incredibly fun to take pictures throughout Disney World, but I think my 2 favorite pictures are “Poncho went rock climbing” and “Poncho went searching for dinosaurs.”
MC: The dinosaur one is pretty cool. How did you come up with the idea for the website?
CD: When photography became my career, I lost my passion to shoot anything that wasn’t portraiture. I wanted to take pictures outside of the business but I had to think about what my new subject would be. What did I love? Disney World was the obvious answer. At that time, my parents had fallen in love with vinylmations. I looked them up online and knew that one of those vinylmations would be perfect subject. Poncho seemed to have the most personality out of the bunch. It was love at first sight!
MC: He is cute. What reactions have you gotten from the site?
CD: Outside of the Disney fanatic world, I get some funny looks when I’m taking pictures of a toy mouse, but it’s very fun. My friends and family love the Poncho the Mouse series. He makes so many people smile. Now I’m really wanting to branch out into the Disney community.
MC: They are a great community to be involved with. Speaking of Disney, what is your favorite Vinylmation figure? (Or 2nd if the answer is Poncho)
CD: Aside from Poncho, I love all of the EPCOT vinylmations. I’m also really looking forward to my Disney World trip in July to buy park series 6! The EPCOT road sign and Norway troll vinyls are too cool!
MC: Are you working on anything else vinylmation related?
CD: We have about 25 vinylmations and I’m wanting to take pictures of them soon. Check out Poncho the Vinylmation Mouse on Facebook and I’ll be sure to post some!

MC: I will! How can people find out more about your pieces and see your work?
CD: You can go to Ponchothemouse.tumblr.com or become a fan of Poncho on Facebook by searching Poncho the Vinylmation Mouse.

MC: Thanks for joining me, and I encourage everyone in Destination Vinylmation land to click on the link above and check out all Cassie’s photos!

Park 6 Photo Shoot at the Magic Kingdom

WDWNT on April 3, 2011

Our Park 6 figures decided to take a trip to the Magic Kingdom. We said, OK, and documented the trip in pictures. A big thanks to Chris for helping us out with the shoot. You can find “variants” to many of these photos at our Facebook page: Facebook.com/DestinationVinylmation

 Look what Donald pulled out of a blind box!


Find the Wet Paint Donald “variant” photos at our Facebook.
Orange Monorail was pondering how to get his life back on track.
Space Mountain Paris visited Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom to spy on his competition.

Find the Space Mountain Paris “variant” photos at our  Facebook.
Abe Lincoln felt right at home in Liberty Square at the Magic Kingdom. Here, he addresses the crowed of red, white and blue Mickey Ear antenna toppers.

Find the Abe Lincoln “variant” photos at our  Facebook.
Needless to say, Pinocchio didn’t expect to see Monstro show up in Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom!

Find the Monstro “variant” photos at our  Facebook.
Everyone on the Ferryboat to the Magic Kingdom felt safe with the DCL Lifeboat on board.

Find the DCL Lifeboat “variant” photos at our  Facebook.
Sonny and Sonny perfromed many duets on Saturday to a packed house at the Starlight Cafe. Cosmic Ray was pleased enough to have a open toppings bar for the guests on hand.
DHS Clapboard voted to go to Hollywood Studios but was outnumbered. So he spent the day at the Main St. Cinema watching classic Mickey cartoons and trading Vinylmation with guests.
Tiki was shocked by his Adventurland counterpart’s size. He was also disappointed to find out that his designer Casey Jones didn’t equip him with the ability to squirt water.

Find the Tiki “variant” photos at our  Facebook.
Walt Disney World Road Sign wouldn’t stop pointing to stuff all day! It was really annoying, but I did capture this fun shot when he was showing us all where the castle was.
Troll of course wanted to visit his homeland at the EPCOT World Showcase, ride Maelstrom and have some good eats. Instead, he found himself at home in the brush just outside the Magic Kingdom train station.
No dinos at the MK, so Primevil Whirl hung out in the overgrown plants in Adventureland.

Spotlight On: Celeste’s 9″ Villains

WDWNT on April 2, 2011


One of our favorite custom artists here at Destination Vinylmation recently let us in on a little, well 9″ tall, secret. After receiving her Villains 1 9″ figures, Celeste thought, “I want to see my other favorite other villains in 9″ form”. So she did it herself! Check out Scar (Lion King) and the Queen of Hearts (Alice in Wonderland). You might remember Celeste from other figures we have showcased on this site. Her work with Adam Lambert for his charity auction was cool, but her Muppets’ Animal has spoiled us for whatever plans Disney has for their upcoming 9″ Animal.

Scar

When I first saw the picture of this figure I was amazed. Whatever Celeste has done to finish the paint on this vinyl makes it look like it’s straight from the Disney factory. Not only that, but the face is perfect, right down to the sideways glancing look in his eyes. Her use of space on this figure is wonderful, having Scar’s head fill most of the front. On the back is a nicely rendered tail, one that makes me not care that it’s not 3D.
Queen of Hearts

Wonderfully colorful, this piece comes alive with the queen’s mouth screaming “Off with their heads”. I love that Celeste uses Mickey’s nose as the queen’s chin. And check out the crown in the ear. Great piece, I’m sure it would look even cooler with a tiny Alice next to it!
Nevermind, Celeste already though of that idea!

We’d like to thank Celeste for letting us see these figures, and plead with her to continue doing exactly what she’s doing! For more of her custom’s check out Celeste’s site at celestecustomvinylmations.blogspot.com.