By Soarin’ Diva
Are you an avid Disney trading pin collector and trader? Maybe you are like us, we do buy trading pins, but only a select few. We tend to just buy pins that commemorate events at Walt Disney World, limited edition pins, Disney Chase Visa pins or just pins that hold a special meaning for us. We aren’t actual pin traders, and we don’t buy every pin that comes out, nowhere near as a matter of fact. Though we only buy special pins, our kids did go through their own pin collecting phase. They have their lanyards filled with Disney trading pins from years past. Right now, they reside in a plastic bag patiently waiting for some inspiration on what, exactly to do with said pins. We don’t want to get rid of them, our young men may want them later, they may decide to pass them down to their own kids one day…in the far, far, FAR distant future. So here we sit, wondering what to do with all of these pins we have.
This last Christmas, my father-in-love surprised my husband & myself with a special gift. The love for all things Disney didn’t start or end with just our little family of four. My husband inherited his Disney love from his parents, as did his sister. Knowing how much we love Walt Disney World, my father-in-love created such a special momento for us that I couldn’t resist sharing it with you all.
I’ve seen crafts that others have done with their Disney trading pins. I’ve seen the cork boards where pins are placed into shapes and various other ideas, but none of them have ever really inspired me enough that I wanted to do that with our pins. That’s why, when we opened our gift from my father-in-love, I was blown away by how simple, yet incredibly creative this idea was. A clock made out of Disney trading pins. It was a genius idea and we love it!
He took a rustic wood plank, complete with tree bark still on it’s edges and stained it a nice, light color. Wooden boards and/or planks can be found at most craft stores such as Michaels. Once stained, he drilled holes in for the twelve pins that would represent the numbers of the clock, as well as three additional holes for those amazing Haunted Mansion Hitchhiking Ghost pins that are sitting just above the clock mechanism.
Speaking of the clock mechanism, of course he drilled a hole for that as well, fitting it in the center of the board and making sure to line it up with the “number” holes. Clock mechanisms can also be found at any craft store, Michaels had these as well. The back of this particular mechanism came with a hole to hook on a hanger for the wall, so that may be something you want to make sure you get.
Now, I know you are probably wondering how he kept the pins from falling out of the drilled holes. It’s pretty simple, just glue. I imagine any strong holding glue will do. Once the pins are glued in, let it dry for a reasonable amount of time to make sure they don’t fall out. Make sure you put batteries in your clock, and boom, that’s it, you’re done! Simple, right? Simple and genius, just as I said. Not only that, but it looks amazing. Our clock resides on our kitchen wall and we love it!
Now we have to figure out something simple yet genius to do with all of our pins we have stored in plastic bags. Maybe I’ll just hand him the bags and sweetly ask him to blow my mind with his craftiness this Christmas as well. How about you, have you created some Disney Magic for your own home by crafting with Disney collectibles? I would love to see what you have done, trust me, I need inspiration. Feel free to share pictures in the comments!
Last year, this happened…
http://beenaslice.blogspot.com/2018/05/now-its-time-to-say-goodbye-to-all-our.html
What a wonderful and touching blog, thank you for sharing. That was quite a large collection, I haven’t reached anywhere near that point yet. I totally understand what you mean about what kind of mess you leave your kids, I have helped my mother clean out a house of a relative who passed away before and it’s daunting. I know it can be hard to let some things go, but sometimes that’s what we need to do. Thank you again for sharing. – Soarin’ Diva
Thanks, Soarin’ Diva. I wrote this story last year. The room is nearly empty. I plan on writing a follow-up soon.