We just booked our first trip with E to Disney World and are beyond excited! The trip is just after Christmas, so I’ve been busy brainstorming up gift ideas for Christmas that can double for all the things we’ll need for the trip. As soon as I saw the first custom Disney patch jacket pop up on Instagram, I knew I had to make one for E (and maybe one for myself).
I have an embroidery machine so I’ll be making many of the patches myself, however if you wanted a less-intensive DIY, there are so many great patches available for purchase on Etsy.
The Inspiration
I mean, how could I pass up the opportunity to make this fun, unique, and practical Disney-themed gift to use on our trip??
THE BASE JACKET
Like any good semi-homemade project, you have to pick a good base – in this case, a quality denim jacket that will hold the weight of the patches. Avoid super stretchy lightweight denim for this one. E is a toddler, so we also didn’t want this to be a huge investment. Thankfully, heavy vintage denim is in and we were able to grab this one from Old Navy for less than $20! I picked the vintage denim women’s jacket for myself (also during a 40% off sale so it was only $25!).
Tip: If making for a jacket for a kid, size up so they can get more wear out of it! You can always roll the sleeves.
Here are a few other favorites we found in our search.
LAPEL PINS
No trip to Disney is complete without pin trading! We’re planning to order one of these bulk packs off Etsy for trading and for E to play with, but of course grabbed a couple of nicer ones to add to the lapel of her jacket. I’m in love with these pins designed by Charmed and Cozy on Etsy and have one of her “seconds” grab bags (discounts for very minor damages) en route now!
THE PATCHES
And of course, the really fun part – picking the patches for your custom Disney patch jacket! There are so many cute ones on Etsy that it can be overwhelming to start. Pick a theme and build a favorites list from there. Then, short list the ones you want and just purchase those. I loved the idea of classic princess themes in pastel pinks and blues, like these birds from Cinderella and a glass slipper.
Tip: Pay careful attention to patch sizes, especially if you’re making a jacket for a kid. Order the jacket first and use tape to lay out the patch sizes and where they’ll go before ordering.
Our inspiration has a small patch for her first name on the front, too. Lots of custom Disney patch jackets have the name across the back, but for safety reasons, we’d prefer her name to stay small and somewhat hidden. Adding it above the pocket on the front was an easy way to personalize it (and ensure it makes it home from preschool each day) without making it easy for strangers to call her by name. I’ll be custom-designing this patch and will go with a monochrome look (light pink background, darker pink font) so it’s even harder to read at a distance.
Now it’s time to get stitching!
Coming soon: Part 2 – Assembling your custom Disney Jacket