Discover the enchanting world of Disney popcorn and unique merchandise with us in this magical episode! We’re thrilled to welcome Amanda from TNT Shirts and Apparel, who gives us a peek into their delightful collection of subtle, pun-filled Disney-themed tees. Perfect for fans of all ages, these shirts are designed with a nuanced touch that true Disney lovers will adore. Learn how Amanda and her husband, both healthcare professionals, transformed their Disney passion into a thriving Etsy shop, offering designs that are both park-ready and perfect for everyday wear.
Use the code DISLOVE10 to get 10 percent off your order. And there’s no expiration, so the code can be used forever!
Have you ever wondered what makes Disney popcorn so irresistible? We uncover the secrets behind the unique flavors and the iconic collectible buckets that have captivated fans across Disney parks and resorts. Join Vanessa and Kris as they share their excitement about the specialty popcorn mixes at Magic Kingdom’s Kernel Kitchen, where you can customize your popcorn with an array of flavors, chocolate drizzles, and candy mix-ins. Plus, get to know Popcorn Junkie, a local business partner adding even more magic to the popcorn experience at Disney parks.
Popcorn bucket enthusiasts, this one's for you! We reminisce about the frenzy over Disney World’s 50th anniversary buckets and some of our favorite popcorn buckets. From refillable options to seasonal pre-packaged mixes and the best spots to snag these coveted items, we’ve got you covered. We also delve into Amanda’s journey with TNT Shirts and Apparel, discussing their unique approach to Disney-themed designs, their favorite family events at the parks, and the joy of creating something special for fellow Disney aficionados. Get ready for a fun-filled episode that’s sure to sprinkle a bit of pixie dust on your day!
- TNT Shirts Apparel Instagram
- List of current collectible popcorn buckets at Walt Disney World
- Refillable popcorn bucket locations by the Disney Food Blog
Where In the Park game packs are fun & challenging for anyone who knows the parks and for newbies.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
For all the latest news about our episodes follow us on Instagram @dislovewithvanessaandkris or on YouTube.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Vanessa Ferguson (00:05):
Welcome to the Dis Love podcast with Vanessa
and Kris.
I'm Vanessa Ferguson.
Kris Johns (00:08):
And I'm Kris Johns.
Vanessa Ferguson (00:10):
We would like to welcome you to show number
152.
And for any listeners joiningus for the first time, our show
features things we love atDisney and in each episode we
have a guest who features Disneymagic for our listeners at home
or on their Disney vacations.
From vacation planners toproduct producers, our guests
can bring Disney magic into yourlife.
And, as a reminder to ourlisteners, we appreciate if you
(00:32):
take time to leave us a reviewon Apple Podcasts or any other
platform where you listen.
We always like to giveshout-outs to these listeners
and, of course, that helps theshow grow.
And before we get started, Kris, we have a message for our
listeners.
Kris Johns (00:45):
Do you know Disney like the back of your hand or
are you a first-time visitor whowants to get the most out of
your experience?
Our friends Kevin and Amanda,with when in the Park, make
scavenger hunt game packs.
They are fun and challengingfor anyone who thinks they know
the parks like the back of theirhands, or for complete newbies
who want to get a betterappreciation of all the detail
that Disney has for you.
(01:06):
They're also great for all ages.
Besides Disney parks on bothcoasts, they carry packs for
Universal Parks and will soonhave Dollywood and King's
Dominion.
And the great thing too, isthey have a code for you
Dislove10, d-i-s-l-o-v-e 10.
Use that link in the show notesto save 10% off your next order
(01:26):
.
Vanessa, how well do you thinkyou would do with a game pack?
Vanessa Ferguson (01:33):
Well, we did some for Epcot and they really
stumped me.
I saw stuff that I had not sawbefore, and actually we have a
pack that we're going to betrying on our trip later.
This month.
Kris Johns (01:44):
That's awesome.
And again, vanessa has been toDisney more times than I can
count and I definitely don'tknow all the details, so this
would be great.
For even though I'm a veteran,I'm a DVC owner.
I am probably much closer to anewbie than most folks.
That's true.
Our listeners would agree too.
Vanessa Ferguson (02:05):
Yes, and Vanessa, you're a pro.
So with that we're in the park.
Get that game pack, have fun onyour next trip.
And on today's show we aregoing to be joined by Amanda
from TNT Shirts and Apparel.
Amanda and her husband Ryan runtheir shop together and the
nice thing is they have subtleDisney tees.
In their words, they're punnyand they're that I know, you
know sort of thing when you wearthem in the parks and every day
.
And they don't scream Disney,which I know for some of you, if
(02:28):
you've listened to Kris, that'skind of his thing.
He likes those more subtleshirts, and Amanda shared
something with us as well.
Kris Johns (02:35):
She has a code DISLOVE10, d-i-s-l-o-v-e 10.
Save 10% off your next purchase.
And the great thing is, there'sno expiration code, so use it
again and again.
Vanessa Ferguson (02:46):
Yes.
So before we hear about all theamazing things Amanda and Ryan
have in their shop, today we'regoing to talk about food once
again.
I know those of you who listento the show know we talk about
food a lot.
It's been a while since we'vetalked about food in general and
, in particular, looking at onetype of thing, so like a snack
or a meal or something like that.
(03:06):
So today I looked back.
We have never talked about justpopcorn and I thought when I
had this idea, I thought howmuch is there to talk about
popcorn?
Kris Johns (03:15):
Well, probably as much.
Well, not only that, just thinkof all the kernels in one bag
of popcorn.
There's probably a fact forpopcorn.
Vanessa Ferguson (03:23):
I don't think we're going to go that detailed,
but I will say this is afavorite snack of our daughter
and my mom and, of course, Krisand I both love popcorn too, but
it's really neat to see all ofthe different things across the
parks and the resorts, so we'regoing to dive right into that.
And one of the things is thatit's neat to see there's things
all over the parks.
(03:43):
And one of the things is thatit's neat to see there's things
all over the parks.
And one of the things that,when I started to do my research
, we're going to talk aboutdifferent flavors that exist and
like refillable popcorn bucketsand some of the collectible
buckets.
But something I found out isthat Disney has a partnership
with a local business that's outof Orlando that's called
Popcorn Junkie and there's agreat article about them, which
(04:07):
I'll try to put in the shownotes.
But in 2018, they made apartnership with Disney and it
just shows how something smallcan really explode.
They now have new flavors thatare specifically designed for
Disney parks and they get towork with the Disney chefs.
So they went from a smallstorefront in Orlando to
becoming like basically thepopcorn I would say king and
(04:30):
queen of Disney Parks.
They have things that are onMain Street all the way to in
Star Wars, galaxy Edge.
They're getting ready to dosome specialty popcorn for
Disney Cruise Line, so I justthought that was kind of a fun
fact.
So some of the things thatwe're going to talk about and
one of the first popcorns we'regoing to talk about really goes
all the way back to this popcornjunkie company, and one of the
(04:51):
things that they have is thatover at Magic Kingdom a lot of
you might not have tried thisbefore, but on Main Street you
can go to the MainstreetConfectionery and in the back
and, Kris, do you remember doingthis?
Kris Johns (05:07):
I sure do.
Vanessa Ferguson (05:08):
Okay.
So they have in the back ofMainstreet Confectionery it's
called the Kernel Kitchen andyou can create your own popcorn
mix, and this is something thatPopcorn Junkie has done and
worked with Disney on.
They have four popcorn flavorsand then you get to pick a
chocolate drizzle and then twoto three candy mix-ins.
So really you can make yourpopcorn as sweet or as savory as
(05:31):
you want.
It's super great.
I actually did this one timeand we brought it home for our
daughter.
It's a great kind of thing thatyou can take home or you can
enjoy right there.
That, I think, is kind of thecoolest popcorn thing that you
can do, because you literallycan make it exactly what you
want.
And that again is in the MainStreet Confectionery.
You go to the back and you'llsee.
(05:52):
I'll put some pictures.
I think I have some from evenwhen we did it.
It's really neat to see all ofthe different options they have.
So if you want something reallyextraordinary head over there,
but then also over at on MainStreet, there is all kinds of
great flavors that you can get,like kettle, corn, parmesan,
garlic, churro all kinds ofgreat flavors that you can get
(06:14):
right there at the confectionery, which is also a nice thing
that they come already prebagged that you can take home or
you can enjoy right on the spot.
Take home or you can enjoyright on the spot.
So these are all part of what'scalled the Main Street Popcorn
Company lineup, and these arenot only available on Main
Street in the confectionary, butyou can also find these in gift
shops all over property.
They are usually snack credits.
(06:35):
I haven't seen anything to showthat they're not snack credits
anymore, so I've even boughtthese to take home and the
popcorn tastes great.
I know sometimes bagged popcornlike pre-made sealed bag popcorn
isn't always the best, but itis very tasty.
I think you'll be happy withany of that Main Street Popcorn
Company flavors that you pick up.
So those are some ones thatyou're going to see everywhere,
(06:59):
and one of the things that we'regoing to talk about now is
looking at some of the optionsthat you have with refillable
popcorn buckets.
So here's something that's kindof nice.
You can buy a popcorn bucket onproperty and it's $13 and
that's the initial price.
But here's the great thing howmuch do you think?
Okay, Kris, I'm going to giveyou a pop quiz.
(07:21):
How much do you think a refillis on the popcorn buckets that
you buy on property $14.99.
The bucket was $13 and you thinkthe refill $7.99.
How about $2.25?
Kris Johns (07:37):
What Disney get those prices up?
Vanessa Ferguson (07:39):
Yeah, for real .
So we've bought this beforewith our daughter and my mom and
they end up they'll get refillsthe whole trip and the nice
thing is that you can use that.
You can also use a snack creditto get a refill, but you can
use that to get refills anywhereon property where they have,
like a popcorn cart, so you canget it.
Let's say, you bought it atMagic Kingdom but you're at
(08:01):
Animal Kingdom.
You can use the refill and thisis nice.
They say it's for your validduring that same visit.
If you look online, some peopleclaim they take them back over
and over.
I've done it once, but it waswhen we had trips that were
within a very short period oftime.
Don't bank on the fact thatthey're going to let you bring
(08:22):
back a bucket from two years agoto get a refill.
Count on the fact that they'regoing to let you bring back a
bucket from two years ago to geta refill.
Count on the fact that you'regoing to have to buy a new one,
but even at buying $13 and thenthe $2.25 refill, that's a good
deal.
We were at the Ringley Brothersin Detroit and I think we paid
$18 or something for a popcorncrazy.
So the $13 and the refills is agood deal.
Kris Johns (08:42):
Great deal.
Vanessa Ferguson (08:43):
Yes, so one of the nice things is that they do
have these, as I mentioned, atall of the four parks.
There's also some locations atDisney Springs, the Disney
Spring ones.
The locations changeperiodically but I'll try to put
a link.
There's a couple.
I think Disney Food Blog has agood overview of all the spots
where there's the popcorn likerefillable bucket locations.
(09:06):
One of the cool things aboutthis is that usually you're
going to get just regularpopcorn, but there are a few
places that you can get unusualpopcorn flavors to refill.
So over in Epcot they have acouple of different options.
For instance, in Canada there'sa popcorn cart that serves
(09:30):
maple popcorn and I don't know.
I feel like it's a don'tbelieve the hype sort of thing,
because I've gotten the maplepopcorn and I got it on a day we
were leaving for the airportand maybe it was because I ate
it later in the day when we weretraveling, but it was a
disappointment.
Hopefully, if you get it freshI've heard all kinds of people
(09:51):
rave about it, but that is oneof the flavors that you can get
for a $2.25 refill.
So that's something to keep inmind.
Do you remember having themaple popcorn, Kris?
Kris Johns (10:00):
I do not.
Vanessa Ferguson (10:05):
I figured he wouldn't, but I was a little
disappointed.
If you've had a greatexperience with it, please let
me know.
Also, in Epcot, over near theImagination Pavilion, there is a
cart that has some unusualflavors that will change
throughout the year.
I've seen everything from likesour cream and chive and cheddar
and different things, so that'skind of nice.
They have some unique seasonalflavors that will sometimes
(10:27):
change.
And another thing that is niceat Epcot is that, depending on
if you're at Epcot or MagicKingdom or at Hollywood Studios
or Animal Kingdom, you canactually get there are
collectible popcorn bucketswhich can be a huge, huge thing.
Kris Johns (10:47):
Oh my gosh, vanessa, I remember on.
Was it the 50th anniversary?
Yes, it was.
People were waiting, the lineswere insane all day.
The buckets were nice, but notmultiple hours in line nice.
Vanessa Ferguson (10:59):
No, so we had.
So the popcorn buckets can varyfrom the ones that were on the
50th anniversary.
They were a special ballooncolor and the funny thing was
they ended up bringing them outmore out later.
But a lot of people do gopretty crazy over the different
buckets.
The collectible buckets thatwe've had I have I do have a
(11:22):
couple from theth.
They were not ones that westood in line for, they were
ones that we got on later trips.
So the 50th anniversary we haveone of the figment ones, the
original ones, where it's awhole body of figment.
I do have to admit I spent alittle more on that.
I bought it from someone usingKris money, so I didn't pay for
it out of pocket.
But we do have a figment one.
(11:44):
And then I have several thatare from the holidays that I use
.
We have some space above ourkitchen cabinets.
I put the Kris ones up, so theydo have those.
Those popcorn buckets usuallycan be upwards of $25, but
here's the good thing you canalso get refills for those as
well.
So that's a nice thing.
I've seen people carry arounddifferent ones and they use them
(12:05):
as purses and stuff.
Here's a little tip that Ididn't know, when you buy one of
those collectible buckets webought one at Mickey's Very
Merry Kris party last year askthem not to put the popcorn in
the bucket.
They will give you the popcornin just one of the popcorn like
cardboard boxes.
I made the mistake of justgetting my popcorn bucket with
(12:26):
the popcorn in it and then itwas greasy and I had to rinse it
out and wash it to travel withit and then, after I had already
gotten it, I saw other peoplego up and just ask for their
popcorn separate from the bucket.
So if you buy one of thosecollectible buckets, I highly
suggest asking for your popcornin a cardboard box and one of
those cardboard containersrather than having them put it
(12:47):
in your bucket.
So those, even though they aremore than that $13 for the
standard bucket, you can getthose $2.25 refills on those as
well.
So that's kind of nice and thatkind of rounds out the things
with the refillable buckets.
So you can buy those specialtybuckets or just the standard
(13:09):
refillable ones.
You'll see they're round andtaller.
They've had sometimes they'vehad some for annual pass holders
.
They'll have ones for differentholidays, like we have a
Halloween one we got one yearwhen we were down.
Those are ones that you can dothe refills on.
Now there's some more popcornbesides what we talked about at
the beginning at Magic Kingdom,where you're getting the
chocolate and stuff mixed in orthe bags.
(13:30):
There's also some popcorn in acouple different other parks
that is not part of therefillable collection.
I guess you would say Over inStar Wars, galaxy Edge, at Cat
Saka's Kettle, they have twodifferent types.
They have a savory mix which iscalled the Outpost Mix, which
has a couple different flavors.
(13:51):
It has sweet and spicy.
And then they also have a bluepopcorn mix, that is, blue
kernels that are popped, whichis pretty cool.
I forget the exact name of thatone, but it's basically blue
popcorn.
So these are not part of thatrefill mix.
You just have to pay for these.
Sometimes they have somespecialty buckets there, but
(14:11):
again, none of that is part ofthe refill options.
But again, I actually aminterested in trying the blue
popcorn.
I hope it's better than theblue milk, but the blue popcorn
sounds fun and that's over inGalaxy's Edge.
Another thing that they have,and I've only saw this at
Hollywood Studios, and even whenI've looked when I was doing
some research for the show.
I didn't find it anywhere elseeither.
(14:33):
They have like for as differentseasons roll around.
They have pre packaged bags butthey're not like factory
packaged, they're like made atDisney.
I got a it was a spring mix onetime I brought home for our
daughter that had whitechocolate and M&M kind of candy
(14:54):
pieces in it.
I've seen Halloween mixes thatthey have.
So there's a couple ofdifferent places the one stand
that as you're walking towardsToy Story Land, where there's
the one restrooms as you'rewalking past, like right before
you make that turn towards ToyStory, they have the one stand
there and they typically havethose.
(15:14):
Also the stand near the Frozen.
Singalong has these as well.
I've only saw these atHollywood Studios and I thought
it was pretty tasty.
It's almost kind of like apre-bagged version of what you
can do at the Main StreetConfectionery where you mix your
candy with the chocolate.
So that's kind of a nice thingto do as well.
(15:36):
And a couple of things that Iknow when I was looking up
different things that peopletalked about is that if you get
those premium buckets becausethey can be like those specialty
buckets if you're carrying themaround to get refills and
things like that, they do comewith a strap, which is nice.
The smaller, like $13 versiondoes not have a strap.
So it's nice to kind of thinkabout if you it has a handle
(15:59):
that you can snap out and likehook to something.
But a lot of people talkedabout bringing like clips and
different things so you couldhook it to a stroller or a
backpack, especially even withthose premium ones, because
you're not going to most of usare not just going to swing it
over our shoulder and carry itaround.
So those are some things to doand just remember you can follow
(16:20):
along and see the differentpremium buckets as they're
coming out and be prepared.
Sometimes they're going to besold out.
I know when the Skyliner firstopened I really wanted one of
the Skyliner ones and we wentaround that time and it just was
sold out everywhere we went.
So just be prepared, some ofthem are going to be sold out.
(16:41):
If you ever go on Disney CruiseLine, they will sometimes have
some Like when we went last yearon our Halloween sailing there
were a couple of the Halloweenbuckets that were sold out on
property, but they had them onour cruise ship when we were on
the Wish.
So those are some things tokeep an eye out for, and if you
ever make it to Tokyo Disney,they have like they have amazing
(17:03):
popcorn buckets.
I think, if I make it there, Imay have to take an extra
suitcase just for popcornbuckets and I don't even have
that many popcorn buckets, socheck them out.
There's some really coolaccounts that I follow on
Instagram and that that have thedifferent popcorn buckets that
you can see overseas, which isneat to see as well.
So I'd like to thank ourfriends at the Disney Food Blog
(17:26):
for some of this information andalso just some of our own
experience as well.
So if you're looking for atasty treat when you are at the
parks, check out popcorn.
Check out all the really cooloptions they have of popcorn,
because, again, it doesn't haveto just be plain butter kind.
There's all kinds of thingsthat you can test out, take home
(17:46):
, experiment with and or justget your full, enjoy yourself
and have as much regular popcornas you'd like.
If you go to the after hoursevents, which we talked about in
the last show, they hit youusually get popcorn for free at
those, so that's alwayssomething to enjoy as well.
It's a nice balance of the icecream and the pop that you can
get as well.
(18:07):
So next time you're at Disney,check out some of these
different popcorn options andI'm sure you won't be
disappointed.
Kris Johns (18:15):
Before we get up our call with Amanda, we have a
message from our friends Ericand Alexa.
They are BabyQuip independentquality providers, which means
when you're planning your nexttrip to Disney and you're
bringing along your little one,they can help you with
everything from bassinets.
Is that a thing, bassinets?
Yes, it is All right, I'm a dad, so please don't forgive me,
but the main thing is what I doknow is they have awesome new
(18:35):
strollers.
The ones that we use for Kariswas brand new, out of the
plastic worked like a charm, hadan awesome chassis, easy to
move around, and the great thingis is for a guy like me who
likes to push the stroller, itmade it really easy.
And what's the great thing isis that if you're going to be
traveling any sort of distance,leave all that bulky stuff at
home.
Call Eric and Alexa and again,they are your baby quip
(18:56):
independent quality provider andthey will take care of you.
We've used them in the past andwe're going to use them in the
future.
Vanessa Ferguson (19:04):
And I will make sure to put a link in our
show notes where you can checkthem out and make your
reservation.
Again, like Kris mentionedeverything strollers, car seats,
cribs, high chairs, you name it, they have it.
If you don't see it, reach outto them and they usually can get
it for you as well.
So definitely check out theshow notes for the link to make
your reservation today and giveus just a second and we will get
(19:26):
our call up with Amanda.
We'd like to welcome Amanda tothe show.
Her and her husband, ryan, havethe shop TNT Shirts and Apparel
and it's a family-owned shopand they design everything that
they have.
And one of the things that theysaid is they really wanted to
have subtle Disney tees thatwere punny and that when you
wore them in the park theydidn't scream Disney, but people
(19:48):
who are true fans would know.
And they said that the shop isinspired by their three boys.
We would like to welcome Amandato the show.
Amanda (19:56):
Hi, thank you so much.
Vanessa Ferguson (19:58):
Now we have been starting the shows with
asking people things that theyenjoy at the Disney Park.
So lately we've been askingpeople what is your favorite
event at any Disney Park?
Amanda (20:08):
Good, question and that's kind of unfair that
you're going to make me chooseone, I would say for in park
activities.
We really, really like theneyjunior dance time parties for
our boys.
Our boys um are young, five,three and two and they love to
get down with vampirina um andmickey and minnie at that
(20:30):
playtime pow, and so we makesure we do that at least once
every, every one, every time ofour trips.
But um, one of our favoriteevents at the Disney parks it's
after an after hour event andthat's the Oogie Boogie Bash at
Disneyland.
We love the villains and howit's kind of scary but not too
scary for the boys and the trickor treating is fun and we've
(20:53):
done that the last three or fouryears and this is actually the
first year that we're not doingit.
Vanessa Ferguson (21:02):
And I'm kind of sad about it.
Oh, what a bummer bummer.
Yeah, we've never made it toOogie Boogie.
We've done the Halloween partyin Florida, but I know that is
definitely on our list becauseit is so much fun the one in
Florida.
So I've heard Disneyland's evenbetter.
Amanda (21:11):
It is very, very fun and the boys really enjoy seeing
all the different villains.
And again, it's not too scary.
Everybody gets worried thatit's too scary for young kids
and it's not at all.
Vanessa Ferguson (21:22):
That's awesome .
We definitely need to make itthere with our daughter.
She's seven and she loved theHalloween party in Florida last
year, so it sounds likesomething that we would enjoy as
well, definitely.
Now we always want to know, ofcourse, about your business, and
what are the products you offerconnected to Disney are the
products you offer connected toDisney.
Amanda (21:41):
Yeah, so our business, as you guys mentioned, is TNT
Shirts and Apparel and the namestems from our three boys and
then kind of a play on T-shirts,right, tnt shirts and then the
initials of our three boys.
And what really made us startthis?
I kind of just had a wild hairone day.
I'd been designing our familyshirts for quite some time,
(22:04):
because I have three boys, andthen my husband and my husband
definitely didn't want anythingthat screens Disney going to the
parks and we often travel withmy mom and dad as well and, same
thing, my dad really likes likethe more subtle designs.
And so I had been designing ourshirts for quite some time and
just printing them at home.
(22:25):
And then one day I just askedmy husband I'm like, hey, what
if we started selling thedesigns I already am making?
We always got comments at theparks like, oh my gosh, I love
your shirt.
And we just said, hey, thanks,you know we made them.
And we just say, hey, thanks,we made them.
And so we decided in Februarythat we were going to try this
and we officially opened inApril.
(22:48):
And here we are, but theservices we really offer, the
products we really offer areDisney T-shirts or any kind of
Disney apparel, right, or subtle, disney-insp inspired, I should
say.
And it's really those subtlenods, those little hidden
Mickeys, if you will, from ridesor movies or quotes that you
(23:09):
really have to know, disney toknow.
And the point is, you know, if Iwas going to spend a bunch of
money on t-shirts for my kids, Ialso wanted them to be able to
wear them to school or whatnot,and so that's the premise of it.
And then it's so fun because weall get into designing them,
(23:29):
right, like my husband will be,like you have to do a Darth
Vader one, and I'm like withCPAP, right, and we're both in
health care and I was a littleskeptical of doing that because
I'm like I don't know ifeverybody will get it, but it's
one of our best sellers becauseit's like the quintessential
Disney dad shirt, right, cpap,darth Vader, all of that.
So, um, but again, you'd haveto know a little bit about Star
(23:53):
Wars to get the reference andall of that.
And that's kind of the funthing about it is how to make it
look like it's not necessarilyDisney, but you have the subtle
nods to Disney.
Vanessa Ferguson (24:05):
Now you've kind of talked about our next
question, which is what led youto start your business.
But how would you say?
I know you and your husband runit together.
How does that work, like, wherecan people?
Do you sell on Etsy, or wheredo you sell?
How do?
Amanda (24:19):
you work together on the business.
Great question.
So my husband and I, yeah, wework together, we co-design
everything and then we sell onlythrough Etsy.
Right now, again, we've onlybeen open like three months and
so we're really testing thewaters.
I also, as you I mentioned,we're both in healthcare, so we
(24:40):
have like no marketing or reallybusiness.
So everything we've learned isthrough reading articles,
youtube, et cetera, and so wemight open up another website
down the road, but currently,right now, it's through Etsy and
you can search TNT shirts andapparel.
We also have an Instagram and Iencourage you guys all to follow
us on there.
It's our handles at TNT shirtsand apparel.
(25:00):
We also have an Instagram and Iencourage you guys all to
follow us on there.
It's our handles at TNT shirtsand apparel and there you'll see
all of our new designs firstget exclusive promo codes and
then our shop link is also inour Instagram profile, but we do
release special discounts justfor Instagram followers.
And then, you know, my husbandand I run the Instagram page
together as well, so he helpsreally with the reels and some
(25:24):
of that, that stuff, the editingof of that.
And again, yeah, we both havefull-time jobs, so we really do
this on weekends and nights andbefore work.
So if people will notice that,uh, a lot of my story posts and
stuff start at 4am cause I getup and work out in the morning
(25:45):
and so I'm in between my workoutsets, I'm posting new designs
or reels and whatnot.
Kris Johns (25:53):
Now, with that, you know you've mentioned all your
awesome designs and where you'reat in the socials, but how do
you think your t-shirts addmagic to your customers' lives?
Amanda (26:02):
Yeah Well, I'm, I'm biased, obviously, but I think
they're.
I think they're very, veryunique.
So I mean, you'll, you'll lookout on on Disney and you'll or
you know, you'll search for aDisney shirt, right, and you
have your typical castle shirtor Mickey ears, right?
We don't sell that.
(26:23):
So it's really those subtlenods to your favorite characters
, right?
So we've got Snarf Blatt'sMusic Shop right, so you have to
know that that's from Ariel,but it's like an edgy music shop
tee.
So, if you also like music,I've sold a couple Roz optometry
shirts to optometrists, so wetry to make the puns on that.
(26:46):
So it mixes with your personallife and your favorite
characters, right?
And something again that youwould wear every day if you're
going to spend money on yourpark shirts, we want you to be,
able to wear them over and overagain.
Um, I think another really coolthing that we do is, um, we do
direct to garment print, so weprint into the t-shirts so
(27:09):
they're going to last a lotlonger.
Um, so it's just a better, alittle nicer quality t-shirt,
and nothing against any of theother, um, screen printing or
any anything like that.
Vanessa Ferguson (27:18):
That is all great and well, but we figured
out a way to do the direct togarment, which is nice because
it really looks like aprofessionally made t-shirt you
would buy at a store now you'vetalked about some of your really
cool designs and I know, likethis is one of the things that,
since we started, Kris hasalways been like what you
(27:41):
mentioned he's not going to weara shirt with a huge Mickey face
on it but some of these, thesemore subtle things, what is your
personal favorite of yourdesign?
Amanda (27:51):
Okay, so that's a hard question.
So my personal favorite shirtfor me is I have two.
We have a.
I have a one that says life isbetter with my boys and Main
Street, and so that's myfavorite to wear on my Magic
Kingdom days, because we havethree boys and my husband and
(28:14):
Main Street, um, and then I.
Another one that I really loveis our dinglehopper hair salon
is a is a really fun one that Iwear at the park a lot, um.
And then all of our avenger.
We're big avengers and big starwars fans, so any of our
(28:36):
avenger campus designs are myfavorite.
And then my husband's favoriteis Big Thunder Mountain knotted
tee, and so it just has the goatwith a big explosion behind him
Because you know, if you know,you know right, that's the ride,
(28:57):
and so that's his favoriteshirt.
And then my boys love any ofthe Avenger ones.
We've got some whole, someDeadpool, some Tony Stark ones,
and then the Pirates of theCaribbean ones.
Vanessa Ferguson (29:11):
Now you've mentioned about your boys and
the shirt, so do you sell, then,for kids as well as adults?
Amanda (29:18):
Yes, great question.
And I meant to ask for kids aswell as adults.
Yes, great question, I meant tomention that earlier.
So, yes, we sell on for allages and all sizes, so we can do
baby body suits and toddlertees and youth tees all the way
up to adults.
We also do crewnecks andhoodies.
(29:40):
We can sell on tanks, tanks,v-necks.
I don't have everything postedin the store, but I do have a
comment that says, like, if youwant this on a specific color or
design, please let me know andwe can always order that in and
get it, get it on there, um, butevery design you see can be put
on any size, etc.
We also sell our.
(30:02):
The two main shirt styles wesell are the bella canvas,
unisex, and so those are thesofter cotton oh yeah, nice tees
.
And then we also sell comfortcolors, so those are the looser
fitting, um, more slouchyt-shirts, um, and so just kind
of depending on what styleyou're going for.
So, yes, please anybodylistening if you see a design
(30:22):
you want, just message me and wecan put it on the color or a
shirt you want.
Kris Johns (30:28):
Now you mentioned all the awesome things you have
to offer.
What is the general turnaroundtime?
Amanda (30:32):
Yeah, great question.
Um, I, you know, with shippingthat's a that's a tricky.
The tricky fact I would Iusually give it what we say is
seven business days.
I will say a lot of the timesit's a lot quicker than that
because we can print prettyquickly.
Um, because it's my husband andI and you know my dad even gets
involved in it um, but it'sjust the ship, the shipping time
(30:57):
.
But I will know we have we're astar seller on Etsy, we have
all five-star reviews and peopleare always saying that they get
their shirts a lot quicker.
But I would plan on at leastseven business days.
Vanessa Ferguson (31:11):
Now, I know you mentioned it earlier, but
just to recap, can you tellpeople where they can order and
where they can find you?
Amanda (31:17):
Yeah, of course.
So again, we have an Etsy shopand that is TNT shirts and
apparel, so you can search forus through Etsy Also.
A lot of our designs pop up ifyou type in subtle Disney T's on
Etsy.
And then also we have anInstagram.
So our Instagram's at TNTshirts and apparel that's our
Instagram handle and we post allour new designs there.
(31:39):
That's our Instagram handle andwe post all our new designs
there.
Vanessa Ferguson (31:43):
And then our shop is linked in our bio.
Well, I will make sure to putall of those links in the show
notes as well, and we reallyappreciate you taking time to be
with us today, amanda.
Thank you so much.
Amanda (31:53):
Yeah, I'm honored to be here and thank you so much.
It's always fun to meet otherDisney lovers in the Disney
community.
Kris Johns (31:59):
Thank you again to Amanda for joining us today.
Don't forget to use the codeDISLOVE D-I-S-L-O-V-E 10 to save
10% off, and the great thing isthere's no expiration, so use
this forever and again and again.
Vanessa Ferguson (32:14):
Yes, and now we are up with our two-minute
trivia and our wisdom from WaltCrowe and Kris.
You are up with trivia.
Kris Johns (32:21):
So we've talked a lot about popcorn.
Vanessa Ferguson (32:22):
Yes, we have.
Kris Johns (32:24):
There was an article on the internet.
Yes, which park Disneyland orDisney World in pounds sells
more popcorn per year?
According to the internet.
Vanessa Ferguson (32:35):
I'm going to maybe guess Disneyland because
of the popcorn buckets they sell.
Kris Johns (32:40):
Were you reading the internet before you answered
this?
I did not.
I'm going to maybe guessDisneyland because of the
popcorn buckets they sell.
Were you reading the?
Vanessa Ferguson (32:46):
internet before you answered this.
Okay, well, according to theinternet, you are correct.
I only just I know that peoplein Disneyland are very obsessive
about the popcorn buckets.
Like they have cooler popcornbuckets than we do at Disney
World, so that was where myguess came from.
Kris Johns (32:59):
Yes, you are correct , Vanessa, great job.
Vanessa Ferguson (33:01):
Awesome.
Well, hey, it pays to payattention to things that people
post on the internet.
All right, and then, really,today, our quote from Walt, the
story of Amanda and Ryan'sbusiness, along with so many of
our past guests, made me selectthis quote for today.
It is to be successful, youmust be unique.
You must be so different thatif people want what you have,
(33:24):
they must come to you to get it.
And that's really what inspiredus for this show is being able
to find all of these uniqueproviders and all of the awesome
products and services theyoffer to all of you, and we've
taken advantage of theseservices as well and products.
So take a page out of Walt'sbook and really go after and
(33:44):
find these things that you wantfrom all these amazing guests
that we've had over the years.
And don't forget to check outall of our other episodes on our
Buzzsprout page and follow uson social media for any more
Disney magic.
Thank you so much for joiningus on this episode of the
Dislove podcast with Vanessa andKris.
I'm Vanessa.
Kris Johns (34:02):
And I'm Kris.
This podcast is not affiliatedwith the Walt Disney Company or
its holdings, and it is intendedfor entertainment purposes only
.
Welcome to the Dis Love podcast with Vanessa
and Kris.
I'm Vanessa Ferguson.
Kris Johns (00:08):
And I'm Kris Johns.
Vanessa Ferguson (00:10):
We would like to welcome you to show number
152.
And for any listeners joiningus for the first time, our show
features things we love atDisney and in each episode we
have a guest who features Disneymagic for our listeners at home
or on their Disney vacations.
From vacation planners toproduct producers, our guests
can bring Disney magic into yourlife.
And, as a reminder to ourlisteners, we appreciate if you
(00:32):
take time to leave us a reviewon Apple Podcasts or any other
platform where you listen.
We always like to giveshout-outs to these listeners
and, of course, that helps theshow grow.
And before we get started, Kris, we have a message for our
listeners.
Kris Johns (00:45):
Do you know Disney like the back of your hand or
are you a first-time visitor whowants to get the most out of
your experience?
Our friends Kevin and Amanda,with when in the Park, make
scavenger hunt game packs.
They are fun and challengingfor anyone who thinks they know
the parks like the back of theirhands, or for complete newbies
who want to get a betterappreciation of all the detail
that Disney has for you.
(01:06):
They're also great for all ages.
Besides Disney parks on bothcoasts, they carry packs for
Universal Parks and will soonhave Dollywood and King's
Dominion.
And the great thing too, isthey have a code for you
Dislove10, d-i-s-l-o-v-e 10.
Use that link in the show notesto save 10% off your next order
(01:26):
.
Vanessa, how well do you thinkyou would do with a game pack?
Vanessa Ferguson (01:33):
Well, we did some for Epcot and they really
stumped me.
I saw stuff that I had not sawbefore, and actually we have a
pack that we're going to betrying on our trip later.
This month.
Kris Johns (01:44):
That's awesome.
And again, vanessa has been toDisney more times than I can
count and I definitely don'tknow all the details, so this
would be great.
For even though I'm a veteran,I'm a DVC owner.
I am probably much closer to anewbie than most folks.
That's true.
Our listeners would agree too.
Vanessa Ferguson (02:05):
Yes, and Vanessa, you're a pro.
So with that we're in the park.
Get that game pack, have fun onyour next trip.
And on today's show we aregoing to be joined by Amanda
from TNT Shirts and Apparel.
Amanda and her husband Ryan runtheir shop together and the
nice thing is they have subtleDisney tees.
In their words, they're punnyand they're that I know, you
know sort of thing when you wearthem in the parks and every day
.
And they don't scream Disney,which I know for some of you, if
(02:28):
you've listened to Kris, that'skind of his thing.
He likes those more subtleshirts, and Amanda shared
something with us as well.
Kris Johns (02:35):
She has a code DISLOVE10, d-i-s-l-o-v-e 10.
Save 10% off your next purchase.
And the great thing is, there'sno expiration code, so use it
again and again.
Vanessa Ferguson (02:46):
Yes.
So before we hear about all theamazing things Amanda and Ryan
have in their shop, today we'regoing to talk about food once
again.
I know those of you who listento the show know we talk about
food a lot.
It's been a while since we'vetalked about food in general and
, in particular, looking at onetype of thing, so like a snack
or a meal or something like that.
(03:06):
So today I looked back.
We have never talked about justpopcorn and I thought when I
had this idea, I thought howmuch is there to talk about
popcorn?
Kris Johns (03:15):
Well, probably as much.
Well, not only that, just thinkof all the kernels in one bag
of popcorn.
There's probably a fact forpopcorn.
Vanessa Ferguson (03:23):
I don't think we're going to go that detailed,
but I will say this is afavorite snack of our daughter
and my mom and, of course, Krisand I both love popcorn too, but
it's really neat to see all ofthe different things across the
parks and the resorts, so we'regoing to dive right into that.
And one of the things is thatit's neat to see there's things
all over the parks.
(03:43):
And one of the things is thatit's neat to see there's things
all over the parks.
And one of the things that,when I started to do my research
, we're going to talk aboutdifferent flavors that exist and
like refillable popcorn bucketsand some of the collectible
buckets.
But something I found out isthat Disney has a partnership
with a local business that's outof Orlando that's called
Popcorn Junkie and there's agreat article about them, which
(04:07):
I'll try to put in the shownotes.
But in 2018, they made apartnership with Disney and it
just shows how something smallcan really explode.
They now have new flavors thatare specifically designed for
Disney parks and they get towork with the Disney chefs.
So they went from a smallstorefront in Orlando to
becoming like basically thepopcorn I would say king and
(04:30):
queen of Disney Parks.
They have things that are onMain Street all the way to in
Star Wars, galaxy Edge.
They're getting ready to dosome specialty popcorn for
Disney Cruise Line, so I justthought that was kind of a fun
fact.
So some of the things thatwe're going to talk about and
one of the first popcorns we'regoing to talk about really goes
all the way back to this popcornjunkie company, and one of the
(04:51):
things that they have is thatover at Magic Kingdom a lot of
you might not have tried thisbefore, but on Main Street you
can go to the MainstreetConfectionery and in the back
and, Kris, do you remember doingthis?
Kris Johns (05:07):
I sure do.
Vanessa Ferguson (05:08):
Okay.
So they have in the back ofMainstreet Confectionery it's
called the Kernel Kitchen andyou can create your own popcorn
mix, and this is something thatPopcorn Junkie has done and
worked with Disney on.
They have four popcorn flavorsand then you get to pick a
chocolate drizzle and then twoto three candy mix-ins.
So really you can make yourpopcorn as sweet or as savory as
(05:31):
you want.
It's super great.
I actually did this one timeand we brought it home for our
daughter.
It's a great kind of thing thatyou can take home or you can
enjoy right there.
That, I think, is kind of thecoolest popcorn thing that you
can do, because you literallycan make it exactly what you
want.
And that again is in the MainStreet Confectionery.
You go to the back and you'llsee.
(05:52):
I'll put some pictures.
I think I have some from evenwhen we did it.
It's really neat to see all ofthe different options they have.
So if you want something reallyextraordinary head over there,
but then also over at on MainStreet, there is all kinds of
great flavors that you can get,like kettle, corn, parmesan,
garlic, churro all kinds ofgreat flavors that you can get
(06:14):
right there at the confectionery, which is also a nice thing
that they come already prebagged that you can take home or
you can enjoy right on the spot.
Take home or you can enjoyright on the spot.
So these are all part of what'scalled the Main Street Popcorn
Company lineup, and these arenot only available on Main
Street in the confectionary, butyou can also find these in gift
shops all over property.
They are usually snack credits.
(06:35):
I haven't seen anything to showthat they're not snack credits
anymore, so I've even boughtthese to take home and the
popcorn tastes great.
I know sometimes bagged popcornlike pre-made sealed bag popcorn
isn't always the best, but itis very tasty.
I think you'll be happy withany of that Main Street Popcorn
Company flavors that you pick up.
So those are some ones thatyou're going to see everywhere,
(06:59):
and one of the things that we'regoing to talk about now is
looking at some of the optionsthat you have with refillable
popcorn buckets.
So here's something that's kindof nice.
You can buy a popcorn bucket onproperty and it's $13 and
that's the initial price.
But here's the great thing howmuch do you think?
Okay, Kris, I'm going to giveyou a pop quiz.
(07:21):
How much do you think a refillis on the popcorn buckets that
you buy on property $14.99.
The bucket was $13 and you thinkthe refill $7.99.
How about $2.25?
Kris Johns (07:37):
What Disney get those prices up?
Vanessa Ferguson (07:39):
Yeah, for real .
So we've bought this beforewith our daughter and my mom and
they end up they'll get refillsthe whole trip and the nice
thing is that you can use that.
You can also use a snack creditto get a refill, but you can
use that to get refills anywhereon property where they have,
like a popcorn cart, so you canget it.
Let's say, you bought it atMagic Kingdom but you're at
(08:01):
Animal Kingdom.
You can use the refill and thisis nice.
They say it's for your validduring that same visit.
If you look online, some peopleclaim they take them back over
and over.
I've done it once, but it waswhen we had trips that were
within a very short period oftime.
Don't bank on the fact thatthey're going to let you bring
(08:22):
back a bucket from two years agoto get a refill.
Count on the fact that they'regoing to let you bring back a
bucket from two years ago to geta refill.
Count on the fact that you'regoing to have to buy a new one,
but even at buying $13 and thenthe $2.25 refill, that's a good
deal.
We were at the Ringley Brothersin Detroit and I think we paid
$18 or something for a popcorncrazy.
So the $13 and the refills is agood deal.
Kris Johns (08:42):
Great deal.
Vanessa Ferguson (08:43):
Yes, so one of the nice things is that they do
have these, as I mentioned, atall of the four parks.
There's also some locations atDisney Springs, the Disney
Spring ones.
The locations changeperiodically but I'll try to put
a link.
There's a couple.
I think Disney Food Blog has agood overview of all the spots
where there's the popcorn likerefillable bucket locations.
(09:06):
One of the cool things aboutthis is that usually you're
going to get just regularpopcorn, but there are a few
places that you can get unusualpopcorn flavors to refill.
So over in Epcot they have acouple of different options.
For instance, in Canada there'sa popcorn cart that serves
(09:30):
maple popcorn and I don't know.
I feel like it's a don'tbelieve the hype sort of thing,
because I've gotten the maplepopcorn and I got it on a day we
were leaving for the airportand maybe it was because I ate
it later in the day when we weretraveling, but it was a
disappointment.
Hopefully, if you get it freshI've heard all kinds of people
(09:51):
rave about it, but that is oneof the flavors that you can get
for a $2.25 refill.
So that's something to keep inmind.
Do you remember having themaple popcorn, Kris?
Kris Johns (10:00):
I do not.
Vanessa Ferguson (10:05):
I figured he wouldn't, but I was a little
disappointed.
If you've had a greatexperience with it, please let
me know.
Also, in Epcot, over near theImagination Pavilion, there is a
cart that has some unusualflavors that will change
throughout the year.
I've seen everything from likesour cream and chive and cheddar
and different things, so that'skind of nice.
They have some unique seasonalflavors that will sometimes
(10:27):
change.
And another thing that is niceat Epcot is that, depending on
if you're at Epcot or MagicKingdom or at Hollywood Studios
or Animal Kingdom, you canactually get there are
collectible popcorn bucketswhich can be a huge, huge thing.
Kris Johns (10:47):
Oh my gosh, vanessa, I remember on.
Was it the 50th anniversary?
Yes, it was.
People were waiting, the lineswere insane all day.
The buckets were nice, but notmultiple hours in line nice.
Vanessa Ferguson (10:59):
No, so we had.
So the popcorn buckets can varyfrom the ones that were on the
50th anniversary.
They were a special ballooncolor and the funny thing was
they ended up bringing them outmore out later.
But a lot of people do gopretty crazy over the different
buckets.
The collectible buckets thatwe've had I have I do have a
(11:22):
couple from theth.
They were not ones that westood in line for, they were
ones that we got on later trips.
So the 50th anniversary we haveone of the figment ones, the
original ones, where it's awhole body of figment.
I do have to admit I spent alittle more on that.
I bought it from someone usingKris money, so I didn't pay for
it out of pocket.
But we do have a figment one.
(11:44):
And then I have several thatare from the holidays that I use
.
We have some space above ourkitchen cabinets.
I put the Kris ones up, so theydo have those.
Those popcorn buckets usuallycan be upwards of $25, but
here's the good thing you canalso get refills for those as
well.
So that's a nice thing.
I've seen people carry arounddifferent ones and they use them
(12:05):
as purses and stuff.
Here's a little tip that Ididn't know, when you buy one of
those collectible buckets webought one at Mickey's Very
Merry Kris party last year askthem not to put the popcorn in
the bucket.
They will give you the popcornin just one of the popcorn like
cardboard boxes.
I made the mistake of justgetting my popcorn bucket with
(12:26):
the popcorn in it and then itwas greasy and I had to rinse it
out and wash it to travel withit and then, after I had already
gotten it, I saw other peoplego up and just ask for their
popcorn separate from the bucket.
So if you buy one of thosecollectible buckets, I highly
suggest asking for your popcornin a cardboard box and one of
those cardboard containersrather than having them put it
(12:47):
in your bucket.
So those, even though they aremore than that $13 for the
standard bucket, you can getthose $2.25 refills on those as
well.
So that's kind of nice and thatkind of rounds out the things
with the refillable buckets.
So you can buy those specialtybuckets or just the standard
(13:09):
refillable ones.
You'll see they're round andtaller.
They've had sometimes they'vehad some for annual pass holders
.
They'll have ones for differentholidays, like we have a
Halloween one we got one yearwhen we were down.
Those are ones that you can dothe refills on.
Now there's some more popcornbesides what we talked about at
the beginning at Magic Kingdom,where you're getting the
chocolate and stuff mixed in orthe bags.
(13:30):
There's also some popcorn in acouple different other parks
that is not part of therefillable collection.
I guess you would say Over inStar Wars, galaxy Edge, at Cat
Saka's Kettle, they have twodifferent types.
They have a savory mix which iscalled the Outpost Mix, which
has a couple different flavors.
(13:51):
It has sweet and spicy.
And then they also have a bluepopcorn mix, that is, blue
kernels that are popped, whichis pretty cool.
I forget the exact name of thatone, but it's basically blue
popcorn.
So these are not part of thatrefill mix.
You just have to pay for these.
Sometimes they have somespecialty buckets there, but
(14:11):
again, none of that is part ofthe refill options.
But again, I actually aminterested in trying the blue
popcorn.
I hope it's better than theblue milk, but the blue popcorn
sounds fun and that's over inGalaxy's Edge.
Another thing that they have,and I've only saw this at
Hollywood Studios, and even whenI've looked when I was doing
some research for the show.
I didn't find it anywhere elseeither.
(14:33):
They have like for as differentseasons roll around.
They have pre packaged bags butthey're not like factory
packaged, they're like made atDisney.
I got a it was a spring mix onetime I brought home for our
daughter that had whitechocolate and M&M kind of candy
(14:54):
pieces in it.
I've seen Halloween mixes thatthey have.
So there's a couple ofdifferent places the one stand
that as you're walking towardsToy Story Land, where there's
the one restrooms as you'rewalking past, like right before
you make that turn towards ToyStory, they have the one stand
there and they typically havethose.
(15:14):
Also the stand near the Frozen.
Singalong has these as well.
I've only saw these atHollywood Studios and I thought
it was pretty tasty.
It's almost kind of like apre-bagged version of what you
can do at the Main StreetConfectionery where you mix your
candy with the chocolate.
So that's kind of a nice thingto do as well.
(15:36):
And a couple of things that Iknow when I was looking up
different things that peopletalked about is that if you get
those premium buckets becausethey can be like those specialty
buckets if you're carrying themaround to get refills and
things like that, they do comewith a strap, which is nice.
The smaller, like $13 versiondoes not have a strap.
So it's nice to kind of thinkabout if you it has a handle
(15:59):
that you can snap out and likehook to something.
But a lot of people talkedabout bringing like clips and
different things so you couldhook it to a stroller or a
backpack, especially even withthose premium ones, because
you're not going to most of usare not just going to swing it
over our shoulder and carry itaround.
So those are some things to doand just remember you can follow
(16:20):
along and see the differentpremium buckets as they're
coming out and be prepared.
Sometimes they're going to besold out.
I know when the Skyliner firstopened I really wanted one of
the Skyliner ones and we wentaround that time and it just was
sold out everywhere we went.
So just be prepared, some ofthem are going to be sold out.
(16:41):
If you ever go on Disney CruiseLine, they will sometimes have
some Like when we went last yearon our Halloween sailing there
were a couple of the Halloweenbuckets that were sold out on
property, but they had them onour cruise ship when we were on
the Wish.
So those are some things tokeep an eye out for, and if you
ever make it to Tokyo Disney,they have like they have amazing
(17:03):
popcorn buckets.
I think, if I make it there, Imay have to take an extra
suitcase just for popcornbuckets and I don't even have
that many popcorn buckets, socheck them out.
There's some really coolaccounts that I follow on
Instagram and that that have thedifferent popcorn buckets that
you can see overseas, which isneat to see as well.
So I'd like to thank ourfriends at the Disney Food Blog
(17:26):
for some of this information andalso just some of our own
experience as well.
So if you're looking for atasty treat when you are at the
parks, check out popcorn.
Check out all the really cooloptions they have of popcorn,
because, again, it doesn't haveto just be plain butter kind.
There's all kinds of thingsthat you can test out, take home
(17:46):
, experiment with and or justget your full, enjoy yourself
and have as much regular popcornas you'd like.
If you go to the after hoursevents, which we talked about in
the last show, they hit youusually get popcorn for free at
those, so that's alwayssomething to enjoy as well.
It's a nice balance of the icecream and the pop that you can
get as well.
(18:07):
So next time you're at Disney,check out some of these
different popcorn options andI'm sure you won't be
disappointed.
Kris Johns (18:15):
Before we get up our call with Amanda, we have a
message from our friends Ericand Alexa.
They are BabyQuip independentquality providers, which means
when you're planning your nexttrip to Disney and you're
bringing along your little one,they can help you with
everything from bassinets.
Is that a thing, bassinets?
Yes, it is All right, I'm a dad, so please don't forgive me,
but the main thing is what I doknow is they have awesome new
(18:35):
strollers.
The ones that we use for Kariswas brand new, out of the
plastic worked like a charm, hadan awesome chassis, easy to
move around, and the great thingis is for a guy like me who
likes to push the stroller, itmade it really easy.
And what's the great thing isis that if you're going to be
traveling any sort of distance,leave all that bulky stuff at
home.
Call Eric and Alexa and again,they are your baby quip
(18:56):
independent quality provider andthey will take care of you.
We've used them in the past andwe're going to use them in the
future.
Vanessa Ferguson (19:04):
And I will make sure to put a link in our
show notes where you can checkthem out and make your
reservation.
Again, like Kris mentionedeverything strollers, car seats,
cribs, high chairs, you name it, they have it.
If you don't see it, reach outto them and they usually can get
it for you as well.
So definitely check out theshow notes for the link to make
your reservation today and giveus just a second and we will get
(19:26):
our call up with Amanda.
We'd like to welcome Amanda tothe show.
Her and her husband, ryan, havethe shop TNT Shirts and Apparel
and it's a family-owned shopand they design everything that
they have.
And one of the things that theysaid is they really wanted to
have subtle Disney tees thatwere punny and that when you
wore them in the park theydidn't scream Disney, but people
(19:48):
who are true fans would know.
And they said that the shop isinspired by their three boys.
We would like to welcome Amandato the show.
Amanda (19:56):
Hi, thank you so much.
Vanessa Ferguson (19:58):
Now we have been starting the shows with
asking people things that theyenjoy at the Disney Park.
So lately we've been askingpeople what is your favorite
event at any Disney Park?
Amanda (20:08):
Good, question and that's kind of unfair that
you're going to make me chooseone, I would say for in park
activities.
We really, really like theneyjunior dance time parties for
our boys.
Our boys um are young, five,three and two and they love to
get down with vampirina um andmickey and minnie at that
(20:30):
playtime pow, and so we makesure we do that at least once
every, every one, every time ofour trips.
But um, one of our favoriteevents at the Disney parks it's
after an after hour event andthat's the Oogie Boogie Bash at
Disneyland.
We love the villains and howit's kind of scary but not too
scary for the boys and the trickor treating is fun and we've
(20:53):
done that the last three or fouryears and this is actually the
first year that we're not doingit.
Vanessa Ferguson (21:02):
And I'm kind of sad about it.
Oh, what a bummer bummer.
Yeah, we've never made it toOogie Boogie.
We've done the Halloween partyin Florida, but I know that is
definitely on our list becauseit is so much fun the one in
Florida.
So I've heard Disneyland's evenbetter.
Amanda (21:11):
It is very, very fun and the boys really enjoy seeing
all the different villains.
And again, it's not too scary.
Everybody gets worried thatit's too scary for young kids
and it's not at all.
Vanessa Ferguson (21:22):
That's awesome .
We definitely need to make itthere with our daughter.
She's seven and she loved theHalloween party in Florida last
year, so it sounds likesomething that we would enjoy as
well, definitely.
Now we always want to know, ofcourse, about your business, and
what are the products you offerconnected to Disney are the
products you offer connected toDisney.
Amanda (21:41):
Yeah, so our business, as you guys mentioned, is TNT
Shirts and Apparel and the namestems from our three boys and
then kind of a play on T-shirts,right, tnt shirts and then the
initials of our three boys.
And what really made us startthis?
I kind of just had a wild hairone day.
I'd been designing our familyshirts for quite some time,
(22:04):
because I have three boys, andthen my husband and my husband
definitely didn't want anythingthat screens Disney going to the
parks and we often travel withmy mom and dad as well and, same
thing, my dad really likes likethe more subtle designs.
And so I had been designing ourshirts for quite some time and
just printing them at home.
(22:25):
And then one day I just askedmy husband I'm like, hey, what
if we started selling thedesigns I already am making?
We always got comments at theparks like, oh my gosh, I love
your shirt.
And we just said, hey, thanks,you know we made them.
And we just say, hey, thanks,we made them.
And so we decided in Februarythat we were going to try this
and we officially opened inApril.
(22:48):
And here we are, but theservices we really offer, the
products we really offer areDisney T-shirts or any kind of
Disney apparel, right, or subtle, disney-insp inspired, I should
say.
And it's really those subtlenods, those little hidden
Mickeys, if you will, from ridesor movies or quotes that you
(23:09):
really have to know, disney toknow.
And the point is, you know, if Iwas going to spend a bunch of
money on t-shirts for my kids, Ialso wanted them to be able to
wear them to school or whatnot,and so that's the premise of it.
And then it's so fun because weall get into designing them,
(23:29):
right, like my husband will be,like you have to do a Darth
Vader one, and I'm like withCPAP, right, and we're both in
health care and I was a littleskeptical of doing that because
I'm like I don't know ifeverybody will get it, but it's
one of our best sellers becauseit's like the quintessential
Disney dad shirt, right, cpap,darth Vader, all of that.
So, um, but again, you'd haveto know a little bit about Star
(23:53):
Wars to get the reference andall of that.
And that's kind of the funthing about it is how to make it
look like it's not necessarilyDisney, but you have the subtle
nods to Disney.
Vanessa Ferguson (24:05):
Now you've kind of talked about our next
question, which is what led youto start your business.
But how would you say?
I know you and your husband runit together.
How does that work, like, wherecan people?
Do you sell on Etsy, or wheredo you sell?
How do?
Amanda (24:19):
you work together on the business.
Great question.
So my husband and I, yeah, wework together, we co-design
everything and then we sell onlythrough Etsy.
Right now, again, we've onlybeen open like three months and
so we're really testing thewaters.
I also, as you I mentioned,we're both in healthcare, so we
(24:40):
have like no marketing or reallybusiness.
So everything we've learned isthrough reading articles,
youtube, et cetera, and so wemight open up another website
down the road, but currently,right now, it's through Etsy and
you can search TNT shirts andapparel.
We also have an Instagram and Iencourage you guys all to follow
us on there.
It's our handles at TNT shirtsand apparel.
(25:00):
We also have an Instagram and Iencourage you guys all to
follow us on there.
It's our handles at TNT shirtsand apparel and there you'll see
all of our new designs firstget exclusive promo codes and
then our shop link is also inour Instagram profile, but we do
release special discounts justfor Instagram followers.
And then, you know, my husbandand I run the Instagram page
together as well, so he helpsreally with the reels and some
(25:24):
of that, that stuff, the editingof of that.
And again, yeah, we both havefull-time jobs, so we really do
this on weekends and nights andbefore work.
So if people will notice that,uh, a lot of my story posts and
stuff start at 4am cause I getup and work out in the morning
(25:45):
and so I'm in between my workoutsets, I'm posting new designs
or reels and whatnot.
Kris Johns (25:53):
Now, with that, you know you've mentioned all your
awesome designs and where you'reat in the socials, but how do
you think your t-shirts addmagic to your customers' lives?
Amanda (26:02):
Yeah Well, I'm, I'm biased, obviously, but I think
they're.
I think they're very, veryunique.
So I mean, you'll, you'll lookout on on Disney and you'll or
you know, you'll search for aDisney shirt, right, and you
have your typical castle shirtor Mickey ears, right?
We don't sell that.
(26:23):
So it's really those subtlenods to your favorite characters
, right?
So we've got Snarf Blatt'sMusic Shop right, so you have to
know that that's from Ariel,but it's like an edgy music shop
tee.
So, if you also like music,I've sold a couple Roz optometry
shirts to optometrists, so wetry to make the puns on that.
(26:46):
So it mixes with your personallife and your favorite
characters, right?
And something again that youwould wear every day if you're
going to spend money on yourpark shirts, we want you to be,
able to wear them over and overagain.
Um, I think another really coolthing that we do is, um, we do
direct to garment print, so weprint into the t-shirts so
(27:09):
they're going to last a lotlonger.
Um, so it's just a better, alittle nicer quality t-shirt,
and nothing against any of theother, um, screen printing or
any anything like that.
Vanessa Ferguson (27:18):
That is all great and well, but we figured
out a way to do the direct togarment, which is nice because
it really looks like aprofessionally made t-shirt you
would buy at a store now you'vetalked about some of your really
cool designs and I know, likethis is one of the things that,
since we started, Kris hasalways been like what you
(27:41):
mentioned he's not going to weara shirt with a huge Mickey face
on it but some of these, thesemore subtle things, what is your
personal favorite of yourdesign?
Amanda (27:51):
Okay, so that's a hard question.
So my personal favorite shirtfor me is I have two.
We have a.
I have a one that says life isbetter with my boys and Main
Street, and so that's myfavorite to wear on my Magic
Kingdom days, because we havethree boys and my husband and
(28:14):
Main Street, um, and then I.
Another one that I really loveis our dinglehopper hair salon
is a is a really fun one that Iwear at the park a lot, um.
And then all of our avenger.
We're big avengers and big starwars fans, so any of our
(28:36):
avenger campus designs are myfavorite.
And then my husband's favoriteis Big Thunder Mountain knotted
tee, and so it just has the goatwith a big explosion behind him
Because you know, if you know,you know right, that's the ride,
(28:57):
and so that's his favoriteshirt.
And then my boys love any ofthe Avenger ones.
We've got some whole, someDeadpool, some Tony Stark ones,
and then the Pirates of theCaribbean ones.
Vanessa Ferguson (29:11):
Now you've mentioned about your boys and
the shirt, so do you sell, then,for kids as well as adults?
Amanda (29:18):
Yes, great question.
And I meant to ask for kids aswell as adults.
Yes, great question, I meant tomention that earlier.
So, yes, we sell on for allages and all sizes, so we can do
baby body suits and toddlertees and youth tees all the way
up to adults.
We also do crewnecks andhoodies.
(29:40):
We can sell on tanks, tanks,v-necks.
I don't have everything postedin the store, but I do have a
comment that says, like, if youwant this on a specific color or
design, please let me know andwe can always order that in and
get it, get it on there, um, butevery design you see can be put
on any size, etc.
We also sell our.
(30:02):
The two main shirt styles wesell are the bella canvas,
unisex, and so those are thesofter cotton oh yeah, nice tees
.
And then we also sell comfortcolors, so those are the looser
fitting, um, more slouchyt-shirts, um, and so just kind
of depending on what styleyou're going for.
So, yes, please anybodylistening if you see a design
(30:22):
you want, just message me and wecan put it on the color or a
shirt you want.
Kris Johns (30:28):
Now you mentioned all the awesome things you have
to offer.
What is the general turnaroundtime?
Amanda (30:32):
Yeah, great question.
Um, I, you know, with shippingthat's a that's a tricky.
The tricky fact I would Iusually give it what we say is
seven business days.
I will say a lot of the timesit's a lot quicker than that
because we can print prettyquickly.
Um, because it's my husband andI and you know my dad even gets
involved in it um, but it'sjust the ship, the shipping time
(30:57):
.
But I will know we have we're astar seller on Etsy, we have
all five-star reviews and peopleare always saying that they get
their shirts a lot quicker.
But I would plan on at leastseven business days.
Vanessa Ferguson (31:11):
Now, I know you mentioned it earlier, but
just to recap, can you tellpeople where they can order and
where they can find you?
Amanda (31:17):
Yeah, of course.
So again, we have an Etsy shopand that is TNT shirts and
apparel, so you can search forus through Etsy Also.
A lot of our designs pop up ifyou type in subtle Disney T's on
Etsy.
And then also we have anInstagram.
So our Instagram's at TNTshirts and apparel that's our
Instagram handle and we post allour new designs there.
(31:39):
That's our Instagram handle andwe post all our new designs
there.
Vanessa Ferguson (31:43):
And then our shop is linked in our bio.
Well, I will make sure to putall of those links in the show
notes as well, and we reallyappreciate you taking time to be
with us today, amanda.
Thank you so much.
Amanda (31:53):
Yeah, I'm honored to be here and thank you so much.
It's always fun to meet otherDisney lovers in the Disney
community.
Kris Johns (31:59):
Thank you again to Amanda for joining us today.
Don't forget to use the codeDISLOVE D-I-S-L-O-V-E 10 to save
10% off, and the great thing isthere's no expiration, so use
this forever and again and again.
Vanessa Ferguson (32:14):
Yes, and now we are up with our two-minute
trivia and our wisdom from WaltCrowe and Kris.
You are up with trivia.
Kris Johns (32:21):
So we've talked a lot about popcorn.
Vanessa Ferguson (32:22):
Yes, we have.
Kris Johns (32:24):
There was an article on the internet.
Yes, which park Disneyland orDisney World in pounds sells
more popcorn per year?
According to the internet.
Vanessa Ferguson (32:35):
I'm going to maybe guess Disneyland because
of the popcorn buckets they sell.
Kris Johns (32:40):
Were you reading the internet before you answered
this?
I did not.
I'm going to maybe guessDisneyland because of the
popcorn buckets they sell.
Were you reading the?
Vanessa Ferguson (32:46):
internet before you answered this.
Okay, well, according to theinternet, you are correct.
I only just I know that peoplein Disneyland are very obsessive
about the popcorn buckets.
Like they have cooler popcornbuckets than we do at Disney
World, so that was where myguess came from.
Kris Johns (32:59):
Yes, you are correct , Vanessa, great job.
Vanessa Ferguson (33:01):
Awesome.
Well, hey, it pays to payattention to things that people
post on the internet.
All right, and then, really,today, our quote from Walt, the
story of Amanda and Ryan'sbusiness, along with so many of
our past guests, made me selectthis quote for today.
It is to be successful, youmust be unique.
You must be so different thatif people want what you have,
(33:24):
they must come to you to get it.
And that's really what inspiredus for this show is being able
to find all of these uniqueproviders and all of the awesome
products and services theyoffer to all of you, and we've
taken advantage of theseservices as well and products.
So take a page out of Walt'sbook and really go after and
(33:44):
find these things that you wantfrom all these amazing guests
that we've had over the years.
And don't forget to check outall of our other episodes on our
Buzzsprout page and follow uson social media for any more
Disney magic.
Thank you so much for joiningus on this episode of the
Dislove podcast with Vanessa andKris.
I'm Vanessa.
Kris Johns (34:02):
And I'm Kris.
This podcast is not affiliatedwith the Walt Disney Company or
its holdings, and it is intendedfor entertainment purposes only
.
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