OC Q&A: Sarah Sterling on ‘DisneyBounding’

Sarah Sterling walks around Disneyland in a sky-blue tank top, red belt and royal-blue jeans with metallic gold shoes. Her boyfriend sports a red beanie, purple V-neck and grey jeans.

To most, the couple may appear as if they’re trying to set a fashion statement with funky colors. But followers of a fairly new trend know they are ”DisneyBounding” as the Genie and Aladdin.

DisneyBounding was created in 2012 by Leslie Kay, a Disney lover from Canada, as a way to dress up as a character while visiting the theme parks. Disneyland does not allow adult visitors to wear full costumes to the parks, so Disneybounding has become a way for fans to show their Disney sides.

A girl wanting to resemble Ariel from “The Little Mermaid” could wear a purple tank top and green shorts to represent the purple clam shell bra and green tail. And her counterpart, Prince Eric, could wear a white T-shirt, red belt and blue jeans to represent his white blouse, red sash and blue slacks.

DisneyBounding is all about paying homage to a character in clothes you would normally wear, said Sterling, who is known on Disney blogs, social media and around the theme parks for her outfits.

Sterling, 24, a Los Angeles resident, recently talked about the DisneyBounding phenomenon, how it has taken over the parks and how it differs from other forms of dressing up, like cosplay.

Weekend: What got you interested in DisneyBounding? How often do you do it?

Sterling: I first heard about DisneyBounding in 2012 and did it sporadically while I was still in college, because I went to Disneyland pretty frequently, and I thought it was fun. Now I probably do it one to two times a month. I like to make each DisneyBound as detailed as possible, which takes a lot of time. Attention to detail is what can make a DisneyBound really great — like finding the perfect necklace to match a character, or shoes in a very specific color. My boyfriend, Leo Camacho, and I usually only DisneyBound at Disneyland, conventions or for special occasions.

Weekend: What is the difference between DisneyBounding and cosplaying?

Sterling: DisneyBounding is when you wear everyday clothing — items you would wear to work or school — put together in a way that is reminiscent of a Disney character. With cosplay, the goal is more to look like a replica of a character. DisneyBounding is more subtle. You can pair purple and black clothing with white accents to do an Ursula Disneybound, whereas for a cosplay you’d probably wear extreme makeup, a wig, and try to attach tentacles to yourself. Sometimes people use more costumey pieces for DisneyBounds, like wigs or props, and that’s where the lines get blurred, but DisneyBounds are typically outfits you would wear on any other day.

Weekend: What have been some of your favorite DisneyBounds and why? Have any of them been complicated?

Sterling: Leo and I both love our Oliver and Dodger DisneyBounds from “Oliver & Company.” It’s a very underrated Disney movie, and people seemed to really like that we represented those characters. The DisneyBound that took us the longest to prepare for were our outfits for the last Dapper Day at Disneyland. We did Vanellope and Ralph from “Wreck-It Ralph,” and we probably started planning those outfits more than six months in advance. There was a lot of dying, tailoring and accessory-making to do for those. We had special candy pins 3D printed for Leo to wear on his blazer, and I sculpted a belt buckle for my outfit. We had to re-dye Leo’s blazer three or four times to get the color right. It was a long process, but it is one of my favorites because I think people could really tell how hard we worked on them.

Weekend: You often DisneyBound with your boyfriend. What’s that like? Do you always coordinate your outfits together? What are some of your favorite couple outfits you have done together?

Sterling: We have been doing this for so long that Leo and I don’t really like to DisneyBound without each other anymore! First of all, it’s a lot of fun, but second and maybe more importantly, it makes your outfits stand out more if you are with another person. Some of my DisneyBounds might not have been recognizable on their own, but being with Leo who is DisneyBounding a character from the same movie makes people get it a lot quicker. For example, our Belle and Gaston bounds, on their own, are pretty subtle, but together they read more as “Beauty and the Beast” characters. We have hardly done any DisneyBounds solo, so all of the ones we have done are my favorite.

Weekend: What steps would you recommend for people who want to get into DisneyBounding? Where should they shop and what should they look out for?

Sterling: I recommend that you first think of a character you’d like to bound. Think about what colors they have on them and how easy or hard it will be to find clothing in those colors. Start by looking at what clothing you already have to see if there’s anything you can use. I also recommend going to stores like Ross because they organize their clothing by color sometimes, and they are relatively cheap. You can also go to thrift stores to find a lot of options for less money. The trick is to match the items of clothing to where the colors are on the character’s body. Goofy has orange, blue and green on him, but if it’s his hat that is green, you wouldn’t wear green on your waist or pants. You’d want it on a hat or hair accessory. This is where color-blocking comes into play. Draw out where on the character the color appears and try to match that placement with your outfit. Also, just have fun with it. The beauty of the DisneyBound community is that everyone is really supportive and encouraging. If you are struggling with putting together a DisneyBound, there are lots of Facebook groups full of other DisneyBounders who would love to help you out.