She Go or No? Park Starz 2 Variant Carnotaurus

Scheduled to be released today is the Park Starz 2 Variant Carnotaurus. This variant comes in a tin with a limited edition run of 1,000 pieces and retails at $26.95. For those of you interested, this is available for purchase at both D-Street locations and online at the Disneystore.com. It is also the featured vinyl for this "She Go or No?" segment.

The first thing that we always look at is the price. We have been in this hobby for such a long time that price is always a factor first and foremost. This is our mindset because of all of the price drops that has occurred over the years that made us feel a bit foolish for not waiting. It has definitely changed our buying habits and will probably continue to do so going forward.

But anyway, looking at the price, it is definitely a fair one considering the tin, the limited edition nature of this variant and the fact that the Park Starz series have always been bigger and heavier than normal Vinylmation releases. They also tend to be a lot more detailed. We believe that this is one release that will be sold out before it would get a chance to drop in price.

Taking a look at the design itself, this is a million times better than the original! Making clever use of a clear body in some areas gives it a nice reflective look that stands out from the crowd and makes it very easy to identify for those of you collectors who open your tins. This makes it a fantastic display piece for any collection!

This variant release gets a "She Go" from us and we recommend you pick one up quickly before it sells out. 

Ballin' On A Budget

There is no such thing as a cheap hobby! The more involved you get within it, the more your wallet will begin to cry!

Being a Vinylmation collector is no different! Collecting all of the 1.5", 3" and 9" figures that you want can get very pricey in a hurry! So, as a staff, we thought we would share some helpful tips with you on how you can be a baller on a budget.

The first way is to be alert and always look out for sales. There are numerous sales each and every month at both your local and online at the Disney Store. Of course, we recommend you grab whatever is available that you want while it is on sale in your store as it saves you a lot of money rather than having it shipped to your house. With the Disney Store online, there are often many free shipping codes out there once you hit a certain spending threshold and that always leaves you with more money to spend on the actual vinyls rather than just the shipping.

Applying for and using a Disney Visa card is another way to save money especially in stores. Anytime you spend over $50 on qualifying merchandise (we have yet to not get this discount on Vinylmation purchases), you receive 10% off your entire purchase. Having one of these will allow you to plan your Vinylmation purchases in store so that it can become 10% cheaper which adds up to be huge savings the longer you participate in this wonderful hobby.

It is assumed that if you are a Vinylmation collector, it is because you love Disney! And it is impossible to love Disney without picking up your favorite films on both Blu-Ray and DVD. Any time you purchase a Disney Blu-Ray or DVD, it comes with a Disney Movie Rewards code on the inside. Using this codes have gotten us vinyls in the past such as the Halloween Minnie. Our advice is to save these codes until they have double points days, or you can find a bonus code that will add even more points to your account. There are also a few days here and there where entering a certain amount of codes (generally 3), gets you a free bonus Blu-Ray and all you pay is the shipping ($3.95)!

D23 is the official Disney Fan Club and joining it has its perks as well! Besides being able to access a cool members only website and having exclusive offers and discounts, our favorite thing about the D23 membership is the ability to purchase exclusive Vinylmation figures that the general public does not have the same access to. The D23 Expo is set for August of this year and you will be able to see all of the fantastic exclusive merchandise soon!

Last, but certainly not least is if you became an Annual Passholder. If you and your family go to the Disney Parks often, this is definitely a must have! Not only does it save you money for your frequent visits but you will be able to get 20% off your Vinylmation purchases there as well! Definitely another way to save money in this hobby and combine it with the magic of visiting a Disney Park and having another great excuse to go :)

Until we win the Powerball lottery, this is how we save money in this hobby whenever we possibly can and thought these would be some helpful tips for everyone as well! Happy Collecting :)

A Baker's Dozen

This exciting picture has surfaced today which shows off a fantastic preview of the Vinylmations that will be released on Friday 7/12/13.

Nothing makes us more giddy than the mysterious, yet open edition Bakery Series that is shown across the bottom of the display. Once the news broke that both Stitch and Little Green Men would be included in this set, we were sold. Those are two of our favorite Disney characters and our mission has always been to get every release that they are featured in. 

Friday cannot come quick enough!

She Go or No? Park 12 Country Bear Jamboree

In this installment of "She Go or No?", we take a look at the upcoming July 12th release entitled Park 12 Country Bear Jamboree

This three figure set will be an open edition with a limited run of 1,500. It will retail for $39.95 and will be sold exclusively at both D-Street locations. 

One thing that is wonderful about having your own blog is getting the opportunity to be brutally honest when called for and this is one of those times. You know how when you were in elementary school, the teachers always preached "If you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say anything at all"? I really just wanted to post a picture of these vinyls with the word "NO" in big bold letters. But, it would not have been right to not post the release information for all of those interested.

With all of that being said, this gets a definitive "No" from our staff and can see this set sitting on the shelves at D-Street for quite a while. 

If Only Money Grew On Trees...

When the first of each month arrives, it has become a traditional to check out our notes and see what Vinylmation releases will be coming and which ones we will want to purchase. Generally, certain months are expensive due to the sheer amount of releases but this month will be a bit different...

Looking at our notes and calendar, there are three releases that have really caught our eye; Mystery Bakery Series, Disney Afternoon Series 2: Ducktales and Muppets 3. With the plans we have for each one, we are definitely glad that we have been saving our money!

The Mystery Bakery Series is a very unique concept! Although they are being touted as Open Edition vinyls, they are actually more of a blind box series. There will be 6 different characters and 3 different designs of each one making this a set of 18. What is so unique about this particular set is that all of the characters look the same from the outside but taking off their cupcake hat is the only way to reveal which design you actually have purchased! Our plan is to get one of each character to display in its Open Edition glory within our "Vinylmation Museum" and then multiples of the Stitch and Little Green Men in an attempt to get each different design.

With the Disney Afternoon Series 2: Ducktales set, taking one look at it should say it all. Anyone who was an 80's child can tell you stories about rushing home from school to turn on the TV and catch as many of the Disney Afternoon cartoons possible before starting their homework. The feeling of nostalgia is so high with this release and of course, anyone who tells you that they do not know the words to the Ducktales theme song is covering up their secret love of Scrooge McDuck and the gang!

And last but not least, the Muppets 3 blind box series! The only thing that really needs to be said is...MAHNA MAHNA! 

August Rush

For each month of the 2013 year, Disney has been releasing a limited edition Poster Series Vinylmation and they have been somewhat hit or miss. That trend will continue in August except this one is in our opinion the best one thus far!

This release is a collaborative effort from Maria Clapsis and Jonathan Bishop that is scheduled for 8/2/13 and will be at both D-Street locations as well as the Disney Store online. Just like its predecessors in the series, this will be an open edition with a run of 2,013 pieces and retail for $14.95.

What do you guys think about this one? Have you been collecting each figure every month? This vinyl is an absolute must have for us :)

The Full Monty

If there is one regret that the Vinylmation Revealed staff has as a whole, it is not picking up every single Disney Afternoon Series 1 release. But, we will not make that same mistake twice!

Today, we get a look at the Disney Afternoon Series 2 release from Chip n Dale Rescue Rangers. This is actually a three vinyl set! It would appear that it includes a 3" Gadget, 3" Monty and a 1.5" Zipper! We are being told this will be released on 8/16/13 at both D-Street locations and online at the Disney Store. This will be a limited edition run of 1,500 and will retail at $29.95.

This is a must have for our staff, how about you? 

See Ya Later, Ben Ali Gator!

Just when you thought your wallet was safe, yet another Friday release is coming!

Fantasia 8 which is a two-pack of Ben Ali Gator and Hyacinth Hippo is scheduled to be released on 6/28/13. This will be a limited edition run of 2,000 sets that will be retailing at $24.95 and is a park exclusive.

Any thoughts on this set? Outside of the initial Fantasia two-pack, the staff has not picked up any of the following releases in this series. Though, if this ever does price drop to the sub $5 range like the Oz sets recently have, it will be a deal that is too good to pass up!

You Rang, Sir?

Since it's release on 5/3/13, the Tower of Terror Bellhop has been one of the most sought after figures from the Park Starz 2 series. And since Disney does its best to never disappoint their loyal fanbase, a variant will be released on 6/28/13 at both D-Street locations and online at the Disney Store.

Here is a sneak peek of what the tin that it will come in looks like:

We are being told that it is a limited edition run of 2,000 pieces and will retail at $24.95. 

What do you guys think of this one? Is this a must have? Our staff will be camping out online to pick one up as he is just too awesome to not join his fellow bellhops in our collection :)