Disneyland Mini Backpack & Marie Plush Bag Charms
- Feb 27
- 5 min read
There's nothing more satisfying than finding something perfectly doll-sized and realistically detailed, and getting it for (likely) a better price than if American Girl made it themselves.
My latest find that fits that criteria? The new Disneyland mini backpack bag charm.
I found this bag charm on a recent trip to Disneyland, after seeing a black and white version pop up on Instagram. The charm is so ridiculously cute in person! It has two working mesh side pockets, a front zippered pocket and a main zippered body. The only sort of "non-functional" parts of this bag are the straps. They're a little too short for the dolls to actually wear the bag -- either normally or slung over their shoulder. Luckily, when I take photos of doll-sized backpacks, my dolls are usually holding them up so I can show off the bag's design.
At Disneyland, there were tons of the black with white "D" version of the charms available, but I'm pretty sure I only saw this pink version in one store (I think it was the Emporium, but I'm not sure now...). Along with the backpacks, there were also black tote bag charms and black hip bag charms. Each of the bag charms are $19.99, and although that's still a lot for an accessory, I feel like it's a better bang for your buck than something like the AG Star Squad backpack and accessories or the floppy "backpack" that comes with the CYO Fun with Fashion accessories.
If you'll allow me a mini rant for just a second... I know AG is moving away from the 8-9 year old target audience and trying to win over younger and younger kids, but one of the things that always drew me to Pleasant Company/American Girl and really set them apart from every other doll company was how detailed and realistic their accessories were. I think I've mentioned before how flabbergasted I was that at one point it was possible to buy a tiny version of the exact same math book I was using in school! Now everything feels overly simplified. I would love to see AG return to realistic detail. Maybe someday.
Speaking of realistic detail, one of the things I find really gives the impression of realism is attention to proportion -- especially when it comes to tiny plush. It's really easy to make a small plush that's more like a round ball with the suggestion of a head and limbs. It's much harder to make one that has a very defined body. The Disney plush bag charms look like they took the sewing pattern for the regular (human-sized) plush toys and shrunk them down to keychain (and doll) size! The Marie keychain actually looks like it has more definition than some of the American Girl pets!
When I first saw the Disney plush bag charms, I knew I had to have them for my dolls. I got the Winnie the Pooh charm during my birthday trip to Disneyland (the one in my "Jammie January" photos).
And on this past trip, I decided Marie needed to come home with me, too.
When I look at all of the unexpected minis I've gathered for my dolls, I can't help thinking that if the same items were produced by American Girl, they'd likely be much more expensive. That mini backpack? Let's add some easy-to-manufacture accessories that no one really wants and double the price. That plush? Give it Vienna sausage legs that stick out and pair it with something that's sewn with straight lines for $44... (I really don't know how Courtney's sleeping bag set has any business being that expensive.)
I think for a long time, I've been trying to give American Girl the benefit of the doubt. I know they're trying to get (and hold) kids' attention while competing with video games, pop stars, and a really premature obsession with skin care products. I'm all for them trying different things that will help keep them afloat. At the same time, it's starting to get a little ridiculous. The Modern Era dolls are awful. The head-to-body proportions don't even look the same between the M.E. dolls themselves! And sure, there are several news outlets writing stories about how "they put the American Girl dolls on Ozempic!" without actually understanding that they're two different doll lines under the "American Girl" umbrella, but what does AG expect when they barely have any 18" historical dolls available for purchase! During their 40th anniversary!
I wish AG had followed Disney's example. They announced the 70th anniversary of Disneyland ahead of 2025, started introducing merch for it, then went all out on July 17th, 2025. The celebration continued into 2026, and will likely end sometime in July of this year. No one was left wondering "When does the anniversary actually begin?" "What's actually going to be available this year?"
If it'd been up to me (because it's my blog, I'll armchair market/project manage if I want to), I would've given people clear expectations. "Our 40th anniversary celebration officially begins on such-and-such date. All throughout the year, expect this, that, and the other." Maybe even give out some hints! "In February, say hello to a princess who's 'not some prize to be won,' followed by a new twist on well-known classic characters."
I've seen people speculate that AG purposely doesn't give much info about upcoming releases because they want people to buy whatever is currently available instead of waiting for something coming later that they want more. "Buy these Modern Era dolls because the actual historical dolls you want aren't available -- just kidding! Look, we brought them out a couple months later! Now you have to buy them, too!" (Just speculating.) To me, a move like that is a great way to get people to make the switch from AG to OG (or just bypass dolls altogether).
The cherry on top (for me, anyway) comes in the form of a meme post AG released yesterday with baby pictures of team members accompanied by variations on the "This is who you're asking to work" meme. In a vacuum, it'd be a cute meme. In a time when it's getting increasingly more difficult to find a good job because companies don't want to pay for actual skilled human beings and higher-ups think AI can do everything faster and flawlessly, the post is a little tone deaf. "This is who you're asking to do graphic design... ;_;" My dude, if you don't want to do it, I will gladly take over for you. I will help you write your resignation letter. But not only that, it doesn't feel like they're even doing their job at times. Are you actually communicating with people? Effectively? If you were, I highly doubt you'd have so many people screaming at you for "Ozempic dolls."
People are much tighter with their money these days, and rightfully so. We want to make the most informed decisions we can before buying expensive things. We want to buy items where the quality matches the price -- even if that price is a little high! So yes, I'm asking whichever former baby is responsible for designing products to actually design something of good quality. Or adult collectors and parents alike are going to start looking for it elsewhere. Parents will move to OG or My Life As. Doll collectors will hunt for random doll-sized objects, like the ones I've been having really good luck finding at Disneyland and Downtown Disney.
We'll see what the rest of the 40th anniversary brings, but so far, I kind of wish I'd asked for more eBay gift cards and way fewer AG.
