Disney Taps Celebs And Fashion Icons To Design Limited-Edition Mouse Ears
New selections of limited-edition headgear will be released every month from May to at least Spring 2020. (Photo by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP)
Expanding on their world-famous lines of Mickey Mouse ear hats and Minnie Mouse headbands, Disney Parks announced today their plans for a year-long rollout of limited-edition designs from a host of Hollywood and fashion industry creatives.
Bridal gown maestro Vera Wang, Coach handbags, supermodel Heidi Klum and actress Ashley Eckstein (Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series) headline the braintrust slated to give the iconic Disney headwear the makeover treatment (see the full list below).
“As a lifelong lover of Disney, and the joy and happiness, not to mention fantasy, Disney has inspired in all of us,” Wang said in a statement of her fall 2020 release. “I am both thrilled and honored to have partnered with them to create a Vera Wang Disney wedding veil with the iconic mouse ears so symbolic of their global brand.”
A July 2018 Forbes profile of Wang quoted her net worth at $630 million. The 69-year-old Chinese-American designer has previously catered to the entertainment industry by designing wedding gowns for stars Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey, Victoria Beckham, Sarah Michelle Gellar and the Kardashian sisters, Kim and Khloe.
A preliminary sketch of Wang’s contribution was included in Monday’s press release from Disney Parks. With a ceremonial reimagining evoking that most scared of unions, her customization of Minnie’s headband is nuanced with “hand-sewn crystals and pearl embroidery as well as silk and tulle fabrics she often uses for her own collections,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
As a nod to Star Wars fans (the franchise’s Lucasfilm is a subsidiary of Disney Studios), the company recruited Eckstein to play-up the cross-over appeal between the legendary brands.
“Last year, Disney came to me and asked if I would be interested in designing my own pair of Minnie ears,” Eckstein posted on her Instagram. “I was shocked and in utter disbelief! I spent an entire weekend sketching ideas and the entire process has just been surreal… I’m ‘hopeful’ that you will love my upcoming #StarWars inspired ears this summer as much as I do!”
Of the nearly-70 ear hats and headbands currently sold on shopdisney.com, the Star Wars universe is represented twice in the form of some admittedly pretty sweet Yoda and Chewbacca ear hats. (Disney’s full headgear collection ranges between $28.16 and $12.95 per item. No word yet how the special forthcoming designs will affect the standard price points.)
Disney’s headgear collection also currently pays homage to beloved film franchises like Spider-Man, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, Maleficent, Toy Story, The Lion King, Wall E and Lilo & Stitch.
The first wave of the limited-edition collectibles will be available May 24 at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif., Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla. and online. Subsequent designs will be released every month through at least Spring 2020–with new designers expected to be announced throughout the run.
The 17 confirmed designers and their approximate release dates are as follows:
Summer 2019: Betsey Johnson, ALEX and ANI, Noah Fine Art, Kim Irvine, Her Universe, SHAG.
Fall 2019: Jerrod Maruyama, Heidi Klum, The Blonds, Loungefly, COACH.
Spring 2020: Joe Rhode, Vera Wang, Cupcakes and Cashmere, Kevin Rafferty, Karlie Kloss, John Coulter.