Designer Ears: The Mystery of One-of-a-Kind Ears

The Disney Designer Ears Collection is a real mystery to me. While other FashionEarstas may have mastered the chaotic scramble to get the most incredible ears, this collector is still learning the tricks of the trade!

So what is it about these designer ears that have such a magnetic pull? Do people actually wear them? Do they save these ears to proudly display on a wall? Will there be a monetary value to them in the future? I’m going to try and make some sense out of something I know very little about and pray that I don’t end up with another Disney addiction!

What Are Disney Designer Ears?

According to my very reliable sources, Disney Designer Ears are a collaboration between some of the world’s top fashion designers and the Disney Design team. Designers such as Heidi Klum, Vera Wang, Lily Aldridge, LoungeFly, The Blonds and many more. These talented artists were slated to create over-the-top, one-of-a-kind ears!

Disney announced this collection all the way back in May 2019 and planned to release at least 18 designer designs in the parks and on shopdisney.com by Summer 2020. Of course, COVID-19 park closures and supply disruptions messed up those plans.

I’ve heard that, even accounting for covid, the whole process is a little bit of a hot mess. Does it have to be? Does Disney want it that way? We’ll likely never know, but the chaos of snagging these ears hasn’t stopped fans from trying to get their hands on a pair!

How Can You Get Your Hands on a Pair?

Trying to find when ears will be released is a challenge at best.

For one thing, Disney gives little to no warning about when each pair of ears is scheduled to be released. Usually the designer will release a post on their blog and Instagram about 3 days before the ears “drop” onto shopdisney and in one location at Walt Disney World or Disneyland. Even the most popular and reliable Disney blogs don’t get advanced warning, which leads die-hard FashionEarstas on a wild goose chase for these coveted ears.

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Even if you’re lucky enough to live within driving distance of Walt Disney World and able to spend your entire Thursday waiting in line (with only a few days’ notice), you still might come up empty-handed. The crystal-studded ear hat by the Blonds were super-difficult to snag since they only released 50 pairs (in person and online)! Many people who waited hours at Epcot to snag the Joe Rodhe ears left disappointed, too! When it comes to limited-release ears, it always seems like there are 50 eBay resellers in line ahead of you buying 10 pairs each!

And trying your luck with shopdisney is just as crazy! When Cupcakes and Cashmere debuted matching mommy-daughter ears, the chaos of people trying to buy not one but two pairs of ears without shopdisney.com glitching or cancelling their orders left a lot of people angry (and some people with 5 pairs of kids’ ears but no adult pairs!)

These Cupcakes and Cashmere ears were double-the-nightmare to try and buy on shopdisney.com

There are a number of Facebook Groups that act almost like support groups to Disney ear hunters that have come up empty-handed. Members are able to voice their frustrations and concerns about the process itself. These groups also act as a place where members with good intentions (we hope) can offer tips on where and when the next “drop” will be.

My best advice: join a “Disney Ears” Facebook group and follow @disneyparksblog on Instagram for your best chance at seeing release dates

All in all, it seems like a pretty crazy process that would leave a number of people quite frustrated, it may lead to them banging on some desks and let us not forget, people are willing to shell out a RIDICULOUS amount of money for these ears!

What is Their Price Point?

These Ears are NOT for the budget-conscious! Ranging from $75-$800, these ears pack a massive punch to your wallet!

Wedding Designer Vera Wang’s ears *still* have no release date!

Of course, the materials used for these are top-of-the-line, and being designed by a world-famous name AND being limited in quantity makes these ears worth the price of a night at a deluxe resort… to most!

Would you spend this much on a pair of ears? For a special occasion like a honeymoon, maybe?

What Do You Do with a $800 Pair of Ears?

What do you do with an $800 pair of ears? Well… wear them, of course! I am not sure if they would pass all of the tests we do in our secret laboratory but I would bet they would pass most of them!

Just ask the Fancy Floridian, who [maybe cried a little as she] cut the tags off of her Designer Ahsoka Tano ears to wear them to the parks…. and then immediately left them behind on Expedition Everest and had to start a park-wide manhunt for them! (Fortunately, Cast Member David helped her get them back safe and sound!)

The Fancy Floridian tries to use the Force to keep herself from losing her designer ears!

To others, they are a special piece of art for display purposes only. I could see a beautiful wall full of gorgeous ears and maybe some cool Disney art with these being the focal point. And some people don’t even take them out of their collectable boxes and dustbags!

There are also those that are avid collectors that see these more along the lines of investment. Perhaps these will skyrocket in price someday and pay for someone’s college tuition? I mean it sort of happened with Beanie Babies, right?

Are You Ready to Take The Plunge?

Of course, everyone is different and as I say, “you do you!” For this FashionEarsta, I think an extra night at a Disney Deluxe Resort is a little more appealing. Though I have to say that the hunt for the elusive designer ears has a certain allure to it.

What I would love to know is what inspires someone to buy a pair of ears that are this costly? I LOVE LOVE LOVE my ears but I am not sure any pair of ears could sway me to spend that much. However, that is just me, what about you? Would you wear these ears? Display them? Would you even purchase them?

For now, this Diva is going to keep stalking the Disney Ears facebook pages and Etsy. But you never know; I might get inspired to buy a pair of limited edition Disney Designer Ears someday!

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Pixie dust and glamour!