**Shopping for WDW Help?!?!**

[Alexsmommie]

So admittedly we're not going until December but I figured a good way to fight the I-cant-wait-to-get-there blues is to start shopping for some of the things we're going to want and need when we get there!!

(a little background): We decided to go Dec 6th-10th staying at Coronado Springs YAY and 10th-12th staying at BLT (WOO HOO ) This will be our first trip as a family (I've been before but I was 7 and then again at 13 - over 13 years since the last time I went and DH was only 2 when he went last so too little to count!!) and it'll be also right around the time of DS's 4th birthday ...

Through the shopping I've been doing I've come across pin trading and penny pressing! (I'd LOVE to do a little of both for some cute small keepsakes)... from what I understand for the pin trading you should go with the intention of having AT LEAST 100 pins PER PERSON and you should also have a lanyard to display the pins that you want to trade... (here comes my dilemma)

I've heard that it's good to have a lanyard to also carry your kttw and any other cards/keys you might want/need to carry (which will be especially good for us since we'll have TWO sets of room keys/kttw because of the split stay) BUT (that's a BIIIGGGG BUT) I haven't found one I fell in love with................YET

Also... through my research there are different styles

(one that has just a ring at the bottom: http://www.disneystore.com/disney-s...yard&Dr=pPublished:1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial)

(one that has a clip at the bottom: http://www.ebay.com/itm/CARS-DISNEY...982?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item230c22babe)

(or a button link: http://www.disneystore.com/disney-s...yard&Dr=pPublished:1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial)

So HEEELLLLPPPP which style do you think I should get?!?! Have you ever used a lanyard?!? If so, what are pros/cons of it?!?

My concerns with the clip one is that the pouch I want will also have a clip on it (so it'll be heavier), with the "button" one will it fall off easily?!? and the one I wanted with the loop I can't find ANYWHERE

** sorry for the long post!! ** any help you can provide would be GREATLY appreciated!! **

 

[Blackbeltdisneygirl]

So admittedly we're not going until December but I figured a good way to fight the I-cant-wait-to-get-there blues is to start shopping for some of the things we're going to want and need when we get there!!

(a little background): We decided to go Dec 6th-10th staying at Coronado Springs YAY and 10th-12th staying at BLT (WOO HOO ) This will be our first trip as a family (I've been before but I was 7 and then again at 13 - over 13 years since the last time I went and DH was only 2 when he went last so too little to count!!) and it'll be also right around the time of DS's 4th birthday ...

Through the shopping I've been doing I've come across pin trading and penny pressing! (I'd LOVE to do a little of both for some cute small keepsakes)... from what I understand for the pin trading you should go with the intention of having AT LEAST 100 pins PER PERSON and you should also have a lanyard to display the pins that you want to trade... (here comes my dilemma)

I've heard that it's good to have a lanyard to also carry your kttw and any other cards/keys you might want/need to carry (which will be especially good for us since we'll have TWO sets of room keys/kttw because of the split stay) BUT (that's a BIIIGGGG BUT) I haven't found one I fell in love with................YET

Also... through my research there are different styles

(one that has just a ring at the bottom: http://www.disneystore.com/disney-s...yard&Dr=pPublished:1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial)

(one that has a clip at the bottom: http://www.ebay.com/itm/CARS-DISNEY...982?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item230c22babe)

(or a button link: http://www.disneystore.com/disney-s...yard&Dr=pPublished:1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial)

So HEEELLLLPPPP which style do you think I should get?!?! Have you ever used a lanyard?!? If so, what are pros/cons of it?!?

My concerns with the clip one is that the pouch I want will also have a clip on it (so it'll be heavier), with the "button" one will it fall off easily?!? and the one I wanted with the loop I can't find ANYWHERE

** sorry for the long post!! ** any help you can provide would be GREATLY appreciated!! **

Ok, first of all, I think each person should only need 100 if you are going to spend a SERIOUS amount of time trading! We went with about 20 each last year for our first year of trading, and ended up not needing to buy more, except for the two adult men in our family who decided to be big dorks and trade too. I won't tell you that I ended up buying a hip lanyard myself near the end of our trip so I didn't feel left out. My kids often traded ones they had already traded b/c that was the whole point. Some people trade to collect, so I could see them bringing 100 so they never have to trade one they want to keep. My kids were only attached to a few, and those will probably get traded this year if I know them! We had fun trying to get whole collections and this year we will probably just trade the ones we already have. We just got a batch of pins for this year that ups everyone's total to about 40 each, and that may be too many. They are for sure too many to fit on the lanyards.

As for the 3 kinds of lanyards you posted links for...#1 and #3 are essentially the same. They both have the detachable bottom section with a little button that releases that section. That is the kind I buy for my family. That being said, the little clear pouches that come with them (I don't know if the ones you posted come with them) fall off really easily. Last year I put contact info inside all of the kids' pouches, and ended up getting a phone call that someone found one of the cards. The rest we never found, or they fell off in front of us. They all fell off though bc the plastic is really flimsy. We are still using the same lanyards this year, just not attaching a plastic pouch b/c they rip and fall off..

What I suggest for fastpasses and KTTW cards is this thing I bought at our resort's gift shop. We stayed at POR, and it was a little clear pouch attached to a retractable cord. It was fantastic. My mom ended up buying one too b/c it worked so well. The clip held on really well. Instead of the pouch on the lanyard to hold ID for the kids, we stopped at the little dog tag machines all over WDW and made each of the kids an ID tag with just our last name and my phone number. They are on a chain and hide well in their shirts.

Today I decided my hip lanyard wasn't going to cut it b/c it has a retractable cord like the little pouch I got, and the weight of the pins pulls it way down. So...I bid on a new lanyard on ebay. It is just like #1 and #3. I like that style b/c I think it looks nicer, so that is what I am going with! good luck!!! Oh, and as for having two sets of cards...we did a split stay last year at POR and CSR and we didn't get our new cards until we checked into CSR, so you will only have to keep track of one set at a time.

 

[Heluvsme]

I think 100 pins is a lot, but to each their own! You can pin trade with as few as a dozen really, and part of the fun is to find new ones ... if you start with 100 then it kinda takes away, at least at the beginning anyways.

Lanyards... I also like the retractable cord card holders. The lanyard straps always irritate my neck, but we almost always go in the summer.

I usually use a cross-body type purse... Baggalini and Vera Bradley are my favorite ones---and the retractable cord card holders have always attached really securely to the "key" strap that's attached just inside the purse cover.

One other thing to consider.... WalMart sells a waterproof card holder that can clip to a lanyard, or anything else I suppose, and it's really cheap and very convenient, in fact, several years ago my dh had our tix, credit cards, etc in one, and thank God he did because after Splash Mtn he came off of it soaked, an out-of-the-ordinary soaking, but his waterproof card holder was completely dry inside!!

 

[Blackbeltdisneygirl]

I think 100 pins is a lot, but to each their own! You can pin trade with as few as a dozen really, and part of the fun is to find new ones ... if you start with 100 then it kinda takes away, at least at the beginning anyways.

Lanyards... I also like the retractable cord card holders. The lanyard straps always irritate my neck, but we almost always go in the summer.

I usually use a cross-body type purse... Baggalini and Vera Bradley are my favorite ones---and the retractable cord card holders have always attached really securely to the "key" strap that's attached just inside the purse cover.

One other thing to consider.... WalMart sells a waterproof card holder that can clip to a lanyard, or anything else I suppose, and it's really cheap and very convenient, in fact, several years ago my dh had our tix, credit cards, etc in one, and thank God he did because after Splash Mtn he came off of it soaked, an out-of-the-ordinary soaking, but his waterproof card holder was completely dry inside!!

I also hate things around my neck. I just gave in and got a lanyard off of ebay though. My hip lanyard had too many pins and was weighted down. I don't like the retractable cord on my hip lanyard for that reason. Love the retractable cord on my card holder though. I think I am going to glue the cord to the clip so it won't retract and trip me. Anyway, I bought the neck lanyard b/c we ordered 200 pins (for division between 11 people), and I had too many for the hip lanyard! I figure I can wear it for a little bit of time and then put it in a bag when it bugs me.

Let us know what you decide to go with!

 

[noahdove]

As for lanyards. I have the one with a little pouch that holds my KTTW card and has a small zipper like to hold some small bills. I used double sided velcro to be sure my card didn't fall out. It was great for fast passes. If I knew I wasn't going to need fast passes, I put the lanyard in my bag, and pinned it so I could find it at the end of the day