Disney-inspired home decor helps fans bring home the magic

The Mickey Mouse-shaped topiary in front of Kelsey Hermanson’s home is visitors’ first hint at what’s inside.

“Did you know that when you walk through a Disney park, you have the option of going to Tomorrowland or Fantasyland, and there are different worlds that you can walk through and feel like you’re there?” Herman, 37 Mr. Song said: “My house is exactly like that.”

That means each room in Hermansson’s 3,300-square-foot Seattle home has its own Disney-inspired theme.

For example, the stairwell features star-shaped pendant light fixtures, vintage window treatments reminiscent of Captain Hook’s galleon, and wall decals of Wendy and her brother Peter climbing the walls, reminiscent of “Peter Pan.” It shows respect.

Hermansson’s living room, with its ocean blue sofa and shadow box coffee table, evokes “Lilo & Stitch.” There are character figurines, coastal accents, and thrift store oil paintings adorned with character stickers.

The dining room is reminiscent of the stories of Beauty and the Beast and Lumière. warm hospitality — etc. “Our house is by no means subtle,” Hermansson, a stay-at-home mom and content creator, said of the home she shares with her husband, Eric, and their two children. “But I think the styling is a little more elegant.” That means Disney characters aren’t always prominent in her rooms, and she doesn’t have her house filled with merchandise.

The desire to bring home the work of the Walt Disney Company, which celebrates its 100th anniversary on October 16, dates back to the company’s earliest days. Walt Disney himself began selling Disney merchandise in the late 1920s, and his Disney memorabilia sold for high prices at auction, including the original Space His Mountain vehicle, which sold for $40,000. there is.

Now, fans are looking beyond collectibles to fill their homes with Disney, and the company itself is embracing Disney through partnerships with Ruggable and wallpaper maker Sanderson. For some adult Disney evangelists (also known as “Disney adults”), adding a few little Donald or Mickey touches isn’t enough, they want to cover their entire home in Disney decor.

One of the reasons why Disney decorations have become so popular is because of their success on social media. For example, on TikTok, the hashtag “Disney Home Decoration” has over 42 million views, and “Disney Home” has over 275 million views. Hermansson has grown his Instagram following to more than 150,000 by sharing photos and videos of his room and his DIY projects.

Although Mr. Hermansson receives income from time to time, When it comes to sponsored posts (not for Disney) and affiliate links, she insists that her designs are first and foremost for her enjoyment. “If social media disappeared tomorrow, I’d still be happy and think, ‘Oh, I’m so happy to be able to take my little idea and reach so many people,'” Hermansson said. “I’ll probably be 80 years old and still be decorating.”

Hermansson first noticed Disney during her childhood, when she watched and loved the 90s animated movies. Her affinity for Disney grew even stronger as she and her future husband dated while vacationing there. “We really love Disney’s history and the way they create alternate worlds for Imagineers to experience,” Hermansson said, referring to Disney’s research and development department. “It’s a departure from reality.”

Disney meets dopamine

Bringing Disney into your home isn’t one-size-fits-all. Nashville blogger Ginny Phillips takes cues from Disney parks and adds dopamine-like embellishments. “It’s just a very happy, bright rainbow explosion. I think it’s really uplifting,” said Phillips, 39. She shares the home with her husband and her three children (all of whom, she said, are happy with the Disney-style decor).

While my daughters’ bedrooms have long had Disney-themed decor (my 6-year-old daughter had a nursery inspired by the “It’s a Small World” ride), the park has been decorated in a pandemic-era style. She was Phillips’ muse. “I couldn’t go to the park because it was closed,” she said, adding that her extra down time allowed her to focus on other rooms in the house.

Phillips, who occasionally posts promotional posts in exchange for Disney merchandise and tickets, painted a pattern in the second-floor hallway reminiscent of Spaceship Earth, Epcot’s geodesic dome. “I posted a step-by-step tutorial and people are still recreating it four years later,” she said. Across the hallway is a gallery wall featuring Disney artwork.

For her office, Phillips painted a rainbow version of the Spaceship Earth design, incorporating retro accents such as rainbow-colored wood planks and a burnt orange couch set against a monorail print backdrop. “The park is really, really important to me and I feel very nostalgic because I went there when I was a kid,” Phillips said. “But my kids grew up there, too.”

Be our guest!

For those who aren’t Disney fans, this allegiance to a conglomerate can be puzzling. People choose Disney designs for a variety of reasons, but nostalgia often seems to be the driving force.

“Many of us have fond memories of watching Disney movies with our families, especially the Disney Renaissance,” said Adrienne Brown, an associate professor of gender, sexuality, and women’s studies at Augsburg College in Minneapolis. That’s the case with millennials who grew up in that era.” “Disney’s Renaissance” refers to his 1989 renaissance, when Disney’s animated films adopted a more Broadway nature and sharper animation, including “Aladdin,” “The Little Mermaid,” and “Tarzan.” Refers to his 10 years in 1999.What is noteworthy is the era in which it was created. “In 1991, Beauty and the Beast became the first animated film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

Millennials grew up in a time when Disney experienced growth beyond movies. The brand expanded into the cruise industry, acquired Broadway’s New Amsterdam Theater, and saw the Disney Channel become a center of youth culture.

“I think the nostalgia that millennials have for Disney in particular stems from growing up in a Disney-saturated media culture,” Professor Brown said. The television element was particularly helpful in introducing Disney characters to children in the household. “After Disney acquired ABC in 1995, characters from ABC’s sitcoms, especially the TGIF comedy block, which was popular with families, began visiting Disneyland and Disney World,” she said. “For a lot of kids in the ’90s, this was their first real look inside a park.”

house mouse

While there are budget-friendly DIY decorations, there are also high-end bespoke designs. In Golden Oak, a Walt Disney World Resort development in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, home prices start in the low millions of dollars (a 6,756-square-foot home currently for sale in the area is in the $1,200 available for just under $1,000). Decorations are not taken into account.

Orlando interior designer Toni Sims worked on the Magic Kingdom design team before opening Toni Sims Design Studio, which now has clients across the United States. Golden For her Oak clients, she designs immersive Disney-themed rooms. “It’s kind of a challenge of how can we provide a park-level quality experience in our clients’ homes,” she said.

One of her recent projects was an “Aladdin” themed guest bedroom. “We customized every piece she saw,” Sims said. This includes a magical carpet canopy over the bed and an acrylic and resin jewel-encrusted reading nook and divider separating the room. “It’s really nice at night because when you turn on the lights in the room, there’s a lot of light reflecting off,” Sims added.

In another Golden Oak home, hand-painted water ripples on the ceiling and starfish-adorned chandeliers create rooms and create an underwater illusion. The bottom of Ariel and Prince Eric’s boat also protrudes from the ceiling. Although there’s no mermaid in sight, the aqua-colored room with its oversized clamshell headboard definitely pays homage to “The Little Mermaid.”

Disney isn’t just for kids. Adults without children also incorporate mice into their homes. In Columbia, South Carolina, Laura Chatterton and her husband Chris Chatterton, both 36, have Disney merchandise all over their house to pay homage to the Hidden Mickeys found throughout the park. Chatterton, who grew up in Michigan, watched Disney movies and went to parks with her family throughout her childhood. She found that she and her husband enjoyed going to the park together, and she still goes once or twice a year.

“Disney is very much ours. It’s what we love. I think everyone has their own favorite passions and hobbies, but Disney just happens to be ours.” ,” Chatterton said. Their home now includes a large collection of mugs, Disney tableware, and some prints.

In 2018, I combined my love for Disney with my love for plants and started selling 3D printed planters. Popular items include Cinderella Castle and Spaceship Earth. “We were just blown away by the demand for it,” Chatterton said. The two now work full time at their own company, Galactic Garden Arts.

But for some, Disney decorations are iconic. Uriel Diaz, 35, grew up with Mexican immigrant parents and was one of four children. “Their idea of ​​the American Dream and the best thing they could give their kids was Disney,” Diaz said. “My crib was Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse. The whole nursery was Mickey and Minnie.” The parents couldn’t afford to take the kids to the park, but the kids had access to movies and clothes. I did it like that.

Today, Mr. Diaz works in his parents’ antique shop, where he works alongside his ever-growing Disney collection. He incorporates the collection into his San Antonio home in surprising ways, including turning his Disney VHS collection into a gallery wall.

Diaz’s decor is nostalgic, but for him it’s also a reminder of possibility. “That’s another thing from being a ‘Disney adult.’ Many of us couldn’t have all of these things, whether it was because of financial reasons or because we have a lot of siblings,” Diaz said. Told. “So by giving them that, giving them everything they wanted as a child, and reminding them, ‘You deserve to have that,’ you’re healing that inner child.” It’s something like that.”