Dapper Day Spring is one of the most anticipated unofficial dress up days at Disney. So much so, it happens twice a year. This is my third Dapper Day since moving to Orange County. It’s definitely my favorite dress up day for all of the obvious reasons. Coming from my high from Viva Las Vegas, I was excited to show off my styles and be fancy at my favorite place to visit. Dapper Day lasts for two days. There is a free expo where people can shop and enjoy some adult libations to live music. Sunday is the day to visit the parks. For the past couple of Dapper Days, I’ve noticed a trend in integrating Disneybound in the outfits. I did my last two Dapper Days in regular 1940s style clothes from Tatyana Boutique and Stop Staring. This time, I wanted to do something different. The Scarlet Rhapsody team went for both days for Dapper Day. We spent the first day at Storyteller’s Cafe and the expo. The second day was spent in the parks.
The Bounds
Our podcast co-host, Deb, as Figaro. She is wearing a dress from Pinup Girl Clothing.
Our copy editor, Jared, as Thumper. He wanted to make Thumper to step out of a 1980s cop drama. This was one of his first bounds. I found a Honey Bunny plush while sorting through old toys in my attic.
I bounded as Star Butterfly from Star vs. the Forces of Evil on Sunday. The dress is a garden state from Unique Vintage. The jewelry is from Pink Collar Life. The hand bag and headband are from Pip Star Pop. I made the wand.
Our podcast co-host and site contributor, Stan, as Lucifer from Cinderella. He also bounded as Lucifer the last time we went. It’s funny because Stan is a dog person.
I bounded to the expo as Flower from Bambi. The caplet is from H&M. The dress is from Stop Staring.
Storytellers Cafe
Because of the Scarlet Rhapsody squad don’t have annual passes, we decided to spend Saturday at Storytellers Cafe. It”s one of the three restaurants outside the park that have character dinning. While character dinning is aimed at younger guests, you only have to be young at heart. For Storytellers Cafe, they were focused on Chip, Dale, that bear from Brother Bear (I mistook him for Humphrey from the original Disney shorts), and Pluto. Not as many characters as Goofy’s Kitchen, but it was fun to interact and hug these guys.
The food was actually really good. I kept reading mixed reviews about Storytellers Cafe. I could eat the seared salmon for days. We went during brunch which had an omelette station. The price per person came around to $33 before tax and tip. Annual pass discount is also taken into consideration.
Dapper Day Expo
Dapper Day Expo is a free event that is held at the Disneyland Hotel convention center. It was about the same size from previous years. I liked that it was indoors and that you can cool off with water. I saw a lot of my friends from the pinup and Viva scene at the vendors hall. Essentially, this was a huge shopping area for all things vintage, retro, and pinup. There was a huge selection from different eras and decades. Prices depended on which booth you went to.
Running into friends at Dapper Day Expo. Here’s Cosplay Babu:
Need yellow shoes for Disneybounding? Sidecca has you covered.
Besame’s paper moon:
Jared finding hats to his liking
Simplicity was selling patterns and having a sewing machine giveaway
Deb and I are Besame Girls!
Stopping by Pinup Girl Clothing. They are mostly known for Mary Blair prints and hosting Pinup Parade in the Park.
Audrey K Boutique also sold kitschy retro house accessories like these cats. Jared says they’re dumb, but I can’t say no to these cats.
Meeting Nico of Niccoco Creations. Deb and I bought these hair accessories from her.
Stan at Pinup Girl Clothing’s boyfriend buttrest zone. The TV was playing Disneyland’s opening day broadcast. 
Having Viva flashbacks posing with cars. Dapper Day used to have a car show. Kinda miss it.
With Kara Spade from Double Trouble. We’re already making Viva 21 plans!
Saw these Aristocats Disneybounders outside the Disneyland Hotel convention center.
Rockin’ Bettie Las Vegas – one of my favorite places to shop for basics like peasant blouses, skirts, belts, etc.
Jared found the exact same vest at Blue Moon Vintage when we were at Viva. He thought it would look good on Stan. here’s Stan’s reaction:
Jared shopping at Blue Moon Vintage.
Dapper Day @ Disneyland
Dapper Day took place on Sunday, April 23. It wasn’t too crowded. Most waits for attractions were around 30 minutes. Not bad for a Sunday crowd. I loved seeing everyone’s dapper themed bounds. I like the variety of fanciful decades – flappers, old Hollywood, Gatsby inspired, rockabilly, 1950s opening day, 1950s sweethearts, etc. It’s always nice seeing everyone dressed up! Most themed bounds I spotted were from Cinderella, Han and Leia, Beauty and the Beast, Aristocats, and Sleeping Beauty. I had very few people recognize my Star Butterfly – I know that Disney XD shows don’t get much love, but Star Butterfly has been my favorite animated character of recent times. She’s like a Japanese magical girl, but for Western audiences. And what other princess uses magical powers (other than Elsa)?
Spending time with one of my new friends!
Stroller moms…the greatest villain of the parks…
Obligatory castle photo – I got mine during the morning when there wasn’t a huge line for it.
King Arthur’s Carousel shot
Star would find herself in a teacup if she went into another dimension!
One of the scariest dimensions of them all…don’t drink the water.
Jumped into this dimension with this scary guy who was looking for people to help him achieve his dreams. I LOVE HELPING PEOPLE!
And also with you
Underwater dimension where the fish can talk. Been there, done that!
I made another new friend. This is Alice. She’s also jumped into another dimension. The dimension of Wonderland – it’s a lot like Mewni, but I don’t agree with their stance on capital punishment.
With the ladies of Disney Fans and Annual Passholders!
Selfie frame time!
Met the Fairy Godmother in the Fantasyland dimension. She also uses magic! OMG! She wanted me to cast a “Bibbity Bobbity Boo” spell, but she thinks I’m too high on pixie dust. What a nice old lady!
Checking out It’s a Small World again. Remind me to wear shades anytime I exit the ride. Meeting sunlight again is the very definition of pain.
Red Rose Tavern
Originally themed after Pinocchio, Red Rose Tavern opened in late March in celebration of the live action Beauty and the Beast movie. This replaces Village Haus. It was your standard lunch place in Fantasyland – pizza and burgers with Pinocchio murals. Now that it is the Red Rose Tavern, Gaston’s watering hole, it’s themed to Beauty and the Beast. The tavern has decor and references to the live action, animated, and musical tellings of the tale as old as time. When I sat down, I noticed they they were playing music from the Broadway musical. It brought back memories to the time when I saw Susan Egan as Belle.
I tried the beef poutine. It was okay. The prices are expected for Disney dinning. The poutine was made of waffle fries, minimal curds, and slices of beef. I wanted to try it to say that I did. I noticed a lot of people were ordering the Beast Burger. I ended up also ordering the strawberry rose lemonade which was the best part of the meal. It has a unique flavor to it; it’s almost like drinking a rose. This might just take the place of my favorite drink in the parks. The line for Red Rose Tavern is long due to the popularity of Beauty and the Beast, but it is well worth it to try it at least once. Even if I’m not the biggest fan of the live action rendition, at least I can enjoy instrumental renditions of “Human Again.”
Attractions List
- Red Fire Engine that wants to run over aggressive stroller moms
- Sleeping Beauty’s Castle
- Snow White’s Bizarre Adventures
- Pinocchio’s Bizarre Adventures
- King Arthur’s Carosel
- Teacups
- Storybookland
- It’s a Small World
- Star Tours
- Star Wars Launch Bay
- Star Wars Jedi Academy
- Finding Nemo Submarines
- A very shiny marching band in front of the castle
- Space Mountain
- Jungle Cruise
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- New Orleans Square jazz band
- Haunted Mansion
- Indiana Jones’ Bizarre Adventures
- Big Thunder Mountain
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Jungle Cruise
- Soundsational Parade
- It’s a Small World
- Roger Rabbit’s Cartoon Spin
- Monorail
Overall
Wearing high heels to the parks was a mistake. Even if I wanted to accurately bound as Star with the right colors, it wasn’t worth it. I thought I could pull off Dapper Day even in low heels, but not the case here. I think wearing tea party flats would be a much better idea the next time I hit up the parks dressed up fancy. While I do dress up in retro fashion anytime I visit the parks, it’s just nice to have a day where people are also dressed fancy and also understand your quirky interests in modern vintage style. I felt very drained at the end of the day, but it was well worth it! The Expo was tons of fun as always. I always like seeing what new things people have to sell. Many thanks to Jared, Kara, Nico, Audrey, Dave, Deb, Stan, K Star, and everyone I ran into at Spring Dapper Day. I’m looking forward to future Disney dress up days. I might make it to Star Wars Day during the day time and finally rock 1960s secretary Wedge Antilles. If not, I got yet another obscure bound for Pinup Parade in the Park!
