(I originally posted this piece on DeviantArt long before I thought about dedicating an entire blog to my Disneyland observations and insights. I thought this would be a good time to post it here, inasmuch as we're heading into the holiday season, a very crafty time of year.)
Disneyland
is all about imagination. Imaginative people create. Therefore, what
could be more natural than an arts & crafts shop right in the park? Indeed, various craft supply lines have been carried there in the past, only to be phased out in favor of more
generic, perhaps more high-turnover merchandise. But the time is
right to bring them back! “Craftiness” is on the rise, as
attested by the success of websites such as Etsy and Pinterest, and
searching “Disney” or “Disneyland” on any such site is bound
to bring up thousands of examples of creative works by fans. Why not
cater to them directly? Let the park inspire its guests, and let the
guests indulge their inspirations right on the spot in a retail
facility made for the purpose! Everyone wins!
Such
a shop could be installed almost anywhere in the park—given the
tendency to have the larger retail locations carry redundant lines of
merchandise, it could very well take over space from the Emporium,
Pioneer Mercantile, or Star Trader without reducing Disneyland's
ability to carry the more conventional items. The Disney Showcase is
another shop that seldom offers anything not available in other spots
nearby, and its prime location at the corner where Town Square meets
Main Street makes it a great, eye-catching place to promote the new
concept. It offers space enough to display a wide variety of items
and can support the do-it-yourself design kiosks mentioned further
down.
What
sorts of arts and crafts supplies would be included in this “wide
variety of items?” Almost anything! One shelf could be devoted to
sewing, with bolts of fabric, sewing patterns, thread, and notions.
Another could offer scrapbooking papers and embellishments. A third
could present plaster figurines and paints to decorate them. Window
displays would show off examples of finished works. Each section
would feature a decorative sculpture of an appropriately creative
character—Rapunzel for paints and canvas, Geppetto for woodworking,
Cinderella's mice for sewing. And of course, many of the products
inside would be Disney-specific, featuring popular characters.
Pre-packaged kits for everything from Princess doll clothes to model
Cars would drive home the
point and give overwhelmed newbie crafters a place to start.
The
most exciting merchandise, however, would be craft supplies that
evoke not just Disney animation and characters, but the very theme
park the shop resides in. Disney films are mainstream—if you want a
few yards of Sleeping Beauty
fleece to make a blanket for a child's bed, you can get it at
Jo-Ann's. But if you're agog at the sight of Sleeping Beauty Castle
and want to render it in cross-stitch, the instructions to do so
don't exist in the outside world (except, perhaps, if devised by one
of the aforementioned Etsy crafters). At this shop, they would, along
with numerous other ideas and supplies to create a piece of
Disneyland at home.
If all this seems a bit too slanted toward adult guests, not to
worry—there would be plenty here for children too. An “Imagination
Station” consisting of two or three computer kiosks would allow
kids (and adults) to choose from pre-existing graphical elements
(e.g. Disney characters, background scenes, text) in order to compose
a design which they could then have printed as a poster, tee-shirt,
or other souvenir and pick up later in the day. Most magical of all
would be daily lessons in creating a simple themed craft, hosted by a
Cast Member...or even a face character! This event (like the similar
character drawing lesson in California Adventure) would be free to
participate in, but the smaller class size would necessitate advance
sign-ups in order to prevent overcrowding. Between the scheduled
lessons, the tables would be stocked with Disneyland-themed coloring
pages and crayons, also free to use.
Hardcore fans of Disneyland tend to lament the homogenization of
in-park merchandise and the over-reliance on film- and
character-related items that can easily be found outside—the net
effect of which seems to make Disneyland less special. Management
prefers such things because their instant recognizability—even to
first-time guests—makes them easy to move. By combining character
imagery with unique lines of merchandise that play to popular,
growing hobbies, a compromise that enhances both factors can be
reached. Disneyland and its guests deserve an arts and crafts shop!
