DIY Disney Lanyards, Pin Boards, and Pin Trading

March 8, 2018 Mom MD Hawaii

Disney themed lanyards are super easy to make and the best part about making your own is that it’s customized for your desired design and theme. These Moana lanyards were made inexpensively (because I’m ~~cheap~~ frugal) and they worked great for Disney Pin Trading while on the Disney Alaskan Cruise. To gear up for our first family trip to Disneyland we again got our Disney lanyards ready for pin trading. The kids helped me make simple DIY pin boards to store all the pins they wanted to keep and display. No article about Disney lanyards and pin boards would be complete without a discussion about Disney pin trading, which will be reviewed in-depth at the end. After reading this article you will be an expert on DIY Disney Lanyards, Pin Boards, and Pin Trading.

DIY Disney Lanyards

Oh my lanyard! Lanyards are awesome for any Disney vacation. It’s a great place to keep and hold important things like your room key and it was an essential accessory for our Disney Alaskan Cruise. Prior to heading out I did some research and found lots of options online from both Etsy and Amazon. I decided to DIY my own because they can get expensive and I ended up making Key fobs with the extra ribbon for our Fish Extender Gifts. Click the links to see more about fish extenders which is a pretty cool thing found only on Disney Cruises.

The lanyards are also a great place to hold and display collectible Disney pins. It allows showing off of pins and easy access for pin trading. The simple 3 steps to make them are listed below and I also have a video for better views of the finished product.

Steps:

Measure and Cut Ribbon to Size
Fold and Pin into Place
Sew onto Metal Lanyard Hook

1. Measure and Cut Ribbon

Measure the ribbon on your neck to gauge the right size. Leave 1.5 inches extra ribbon for folding.

2. Fold and Pin into Place

Fold the end of the ribbon under and pin. Folding the raw edges under prevents the ends from fraying.

3. Sew on Metal Lanyard Hook

Sew a straight line. I sewed the same line both forward and backward to ensure the lanyard wouldn’t unravel.

Here’s the Disney Pin Trading Lanyard Video:

Purchased materials are listed below. Please allow extra time for AliExpress products as they are shipped directly from China.

AliExpress.com – 25pcs/pack Metal Lanyard Hook Swivel $3.95 FREE Ship

AliExpress.com – 10 yard 7/8″ Moana Grosgrain ribbon $3.90 FREE Ship

If materials are needed sooner for quicker lanyard making then I recommend buying the materials from Amazon or your local craft store.

And if really short on time there are ready-made Disney Lanyards on Amazon and Etsy as below.

DIY Pin Boards

Pin boards are basically cork boards to hold and display collectible Disney pins. They can be any size depending on how large the frame is. These cork boards can be used for more than just Disney Pins, and may be used to hold messages, photos, and notes as well.

Remove Glass from an Old Picture Frame
Cut Cardboard + Adhesive Cork to Fit Frame
Place Cork + Cardboard into Frame
Decorate Pin Board

The only purchased materials for this project was the Cork Board. The corrugated cardboard was from a recycled box. The picture frames used were recycled old ones that were laying in a drawer collecting dust.

DIY Disney Pin Boards YouTube Video:

Disney Pin Trading

This section is all about Pin Trading. Disney Pin Trading is a super fun and interactive tradition where people visiting Disney parks, resorts, and cruises can trade Disney pins with Disney Cast Members and other visitors. It’s easy to start a new Disney Pin collection or trade for specific sought after pins.

Pin Trading Tradition

Disney has always offered collectible Disney pins and the tradition of Disney Pin Trading was started as it got close to the Walt Disney World Millennium Celebration in October 1999. It has grown since then and now thousands of Guests trade with Cast Members as well as other Guests throughout the Disney parks, resorts, and on their cruises every day.

How to Start

It’s very simple and easy to start. Before visiting a Disney park, resort, or cruise buy some Disney Pins and put them on a lanyard to wear. When visiting Disney look for a Cast Member wearing a lanyard with Disney pins and find a pin you’d like. Then present a Disney pin to the Cast Member in trade.

Photo from Disney Springs Pin Traders

Rules

Yes, there are rules. The rules come directly from Disney.

A pin is tradable if it is a metal pin bearing a “©Disney”mark on the back that represents a Disney Event, Place or Location, Character or Icon.
Pins should be in good, undamaged, tradable condition.
For a safe trading experience, please trade one pin at a time, hand to hand with pin backs attached.
Guests may trade a maximum of two (2) pins per Cast Member, per day.
Please refrain from touching a Cast Member’s or Guest’s pins or lanyard. If you need a closer look, kindly ask the Cast Member or Guest wearing the lanyard if she or he can bring it into clearer view for you.
Monies, gifts or receipts may not be exchanged or used in trade for a pin (But, pins are for sale in the gift shops).
When trading with a Cast Member, Guests should offer a pin that is not currently displayed on the Cast Member’s lanyard.
Pins from other business units of The Walt Disney Company (i.e.ABC, ESPN) are accepted for trade.
Operating participant pins that show a Disney, Disneyland®Resort, or Walt Disney World®Resort affiliation are accepted for trading.
Plastic pins, rubber pins or other non-metal pins are not accepted for trading.
“Personalized Name”pins are not accepted for trade.
“Broche style”or “clasp pins”are not accepted for trade.
Disney Service Award pins, Spirit of Disneyland®Resort pins, Partners in Excellence pins or Cast Member costume pins (i.e. Host/Hostess Badges, Disney Trainer) are not tradable.

Are there specific pins I should be collecting?

The best thing about Disney Pin Trading and Collecting is that your individual preferences determine what pins you collect. People collect all sorts of different pins and categories. Some examples include: villains, princesses, Marvel Avengers, Mickey, Minnie, and Star Wars. My daughter has been collecting only Disney Princesses and Minnie. My son has been keeping any pins that are more “guy” themed, like Marvel Avengers, Star Wars, and Mickey.

Jump Start Your Pin Collection

We started off our Disney Pin Collection for pin trading by buying a larger set all at once. Be careful about purchasing scrapper (throw away) pins, which may not be tradable at the parks. Keep on eye out for Authentic Disney Pin sets or look to see that the seller guarantees the pins they are selling are from Disney and 100% tradable, like those listed below.

Now you are an expert on DIY Disney Lanyards, Pin Boards, and Pin Trading. Please let me know if you have made your own lanyards or pin boards and I would love to see any pictures on Facebook or Instagram. Also let me know if you do Disney Pin trading and if you have any tips and tricks.

The product links above are provided for your convenience with no obligation to buy. I am a Cricut, Etsy, and Amazon affiliate and may make a small commission if you choose to use the links above to buy products. All products that I used were bought by me and all opinions are my own.