Fairy Fail

My neighbor sent me an email with a "magical" project: Fairies in a Jar!

The photo, despite being clearly PhotoShopped, leads you to believe that you can create sheer magic in your own home, just by cutting up a glow stick and shaking it into a jar with glitter.

So I do. Did you know that glow sticks have little glass tubes inside? That's what makes the clicky sound when you break them. So I cut the glow stick, then had to figure out what to do with this thin glass tube of liquid. I ended up breaking it up with some pliers and leaving the pieces inside. And I dumped in some glitter, two kinds.

 Let the magic—uhhm.....

 ...be-glop? The jar glowed....but there was no sparkling effect. You couldn't see the glitter.
Techman walked into the kitchen and was momentarily impressed because he thought I had made a DIY glowstick with household chemicals.

Hey, I have super powers.

I shook the jar around. I looked at it in the dark. Techman said, "You know what that is?"

"That's creamed fairies."

Maybe it needs water, like a snow globe? Bad idea. It killed the glow, and all the glow goo globbed together (say that 10 times fast) and floated on top. It went dark within a couple of minutes.

So, if you want to make a jarful of creamed fairies, give it a shot. Might be great in a friendly haunted house at Halloween!

The Fairy Ball

Not exactly Glinda the Good Witch, but hey, who's going to complain when you get to travel in a bubble?

Starboy LOVES Sparkle Stories' Martin and Sylvia. He has heard all of them (since around Labor Day) probably ten times, maybe more. He especially likes the Halloween audio book, the three-parter. In this story, Martin and Sylvia prepare for the annual Fairy Ball costume party. The stories together run about an hour, and he will play quietly while listening to the whole thing.

Recently I asked Starboy: What do you think Mary Jane would like for Christmas this year? Is there something we could make for her?

Starboy replied: She would like a Fairy Ball.

Me: .....

Me: ... A fairy ball? Liiiike....a ball? With a fairy in it?

Him (matter-of-fact): Yeah. Like in the Sparkle Story. Martin and Sylvia.

Me: .... (processing)... (wondering how he could have heard that story 10x and not know that the fairy ball is a party.)

Me: Okay, we'll go to Michaels and see if we can find anything. I bet she really would like a fairy ball.

Him: O-kay.

Me: (Note to self: Offer scaffolding for next retelling of fairy ball story.)

Well, luck would have it. Giant glass ornaments for cheap enough. And a pipe cleaner flower fairy fits in, if you don't mind an extremely frustrating process of cramming, bending, tweezing, cursing, marveling at ship-in-a-bottle nutcases, and ending up with a small bent fairy with broken wing gossamer hanging only slightly oddly by the neck. During this process, the ball spins, attracting the same fervor and interest as a Kong toy with treats in it, that your favorite mutt is de-puzzling.
But on the upside, with some testing for wings and technique, what a great craft idea for any holiday faire.

And I imagine MJ will like the fairy ball.

Nostalgia generator

A timeless classic. 

You know you've been wanting to make some....

Just shred your crayons and collect some supple leaves...

Find the waxed paper and remember the days when your grandmother actually wrapped sandwiches in this stuff.

Channel your inner Cliff Clavin on the topic here.

Add another layer of waxed paper....

Starboy calls these stained glass creations "sandwiches," because I told him to "make a sandwich" with the paper.

...Put the three-year-old in charge of the hot iron, while he stands on a milk crate on uneven concrete...

Remember that the wax shavings get everywhere, so a layer of newspaper on the bottom and an old towel on top will prevent your day (and your future interview shirt) from being ruined.

 Then admire the beauty of nature's colors.

Um. And Crayola's.

on the BOOOlevard

Scenes from the BOOOlevard, an annual trick-or-treating event at the shops in Atwater Village, an LA neighborhood.

The Forestman lays down a base, for a night of sugaring. Cue James Bond theme music.

In years past, most of the handouts were stickers, tattoos, pencils, erasers, and plastic crap from Oriental Trading. This year? ALL CANDY. With few exceptions, like this glow-in-the-dark spider ring. Dislike.

The Fairy Witches of Eastwick.  Miss Molly and friends.

Getting ready for Halloween!

Jack-o-lantern on crayon rainbow.

Ready for Sherwood Forest

With his fairy adventures behind him, and now attuned to the "themed" blockbuster birthday party, Starboy suited up as a forestman for a Robin Hood themed birthday campout at San Bernardino Forest's Black Mountain Sherwood Forest last weekend.

Thinking that a great costume might be a giant step ahead for Halloween in a few weeks, I decided to go for it and do the whole shebang—hat, tunic, cape, details. Truth be told, I also was inspired by Jim at Sweet Juniper, in my hometown, but he's a tough act to follow.

I haven't sewn from a store-bought pattern since seventh grade home ec. But how hard could it be? I used McCall's 2854.

Fairy Party—gnome hats

Thinking that some of the kids might want to be a gnome instead of a fairy, I thought I should whip up some gnome hats before the party, so everyone could feel included. I think I got two yards of red eco felt at 40-50% off, so the cost for about a dozen hats was something like eight bucks.

These hats were a little different from the Red Gnome hats I made this time last year. Those were secure, and very German, but since they covered the ears it was sort of a weird experience wearing them. Not great for a party.

I used the dimensions on Tradewind Tiaras for a traditional cone hat, and they worked great. I added about an inch to them for the kids with bigger heads (I made only two of these, and that was plenty. They would have fit some adults as well.) I sewed the seam on the machine then turned them inside out. Didn't take long at all.

I also used her trick of a flower hair clip as a decoration on the hat—thank you, 99-cent Only store.

Of course, the option of a hat meant that some kids wanted to be both a gnome and a fairy. I expected that.

What I didn't expect was that some kids wanted to decorate the hats! It just goes to show: where there is a glue gun and pieces of faux nature, there will be endless creativity.

Hey. She's a kid at heart.

It occurred to me that I didn't really have to go to the trouble of the flower fairies and the gardens at all. I should have just offered the hat project! Sometimes "keeping it simple" is a "hindsight is 20/20" situation for me.

Free Halloween Sparkle Story!

Sparkle Stories is offering a free Halloween story about a baker's son with a magic seed who creates an incredible sparkling lantern. Starboy loves these stories, they are calming and focus his concentration.

In September, they offered another free story, you might like that one as well!

Worker vest a success

The construction worker vest is a success. Starboy is enjoying wearing it, but he doesn't seem to love it with his heart, as he does the gnome outfit. He really has a sense of pride when he is dressed as a gnome.

The hard hat is from Home Depot. We put it on the smallest setting then wrapped a bandanna around the headband to snug it up. There's an orange tee (LS) and a yellow tee (SS) to complete the outfit, but he went with the blimp tee for a playdate in the park.

Calm in the forest

Starboy Red Gnome enjoyed a break in the pretend forest after a lot of Halloween activity. He has really been excited to be a gnome this week.

Happy Red Gnome

The Red Gnome costume could not be more perfect.

I found a beard template online at the annoyingly useful Disney Family Fun website. Starboy wore both the beard and the hat throughout the whole party, and it was hot out! (Whoo boy, that fuzzy giraffe costume would have been a NO-GO today.) The necklace is an acorn with a bell on it, from a Waldorf fair last year.

There weren't a lot of folks dressed up, except for the young kids, but they all appreciated the Gnome Family.

The party itself had mixed reviews in our family, but more on that at a later time.

Starboy seemed really happy to be a gnome. He wasn't too excited about Jack-o-lanterns, but I get that. He's game to give it a go again, at the rest of our 47 Halloween-related activities this week. This kid has a better social schedule than I had in college, sheesh.

It may be a hit at the Halloween party

"Starboy, would you like Daddy to dress up as a Daddy Red Gnome? Would you like to see Daddy in a tall, pointy hat like Red Gnome?"

"Yes."

"I knew I shouldn't have gone to bed early last night."

Der gnomen-plotten

So.

After checking that the giraffe costume fits...

then realizing it will be too bloody hot to wear to an afternoon party that, anyway, is at a playground with a sandbox....and cake...a week before Halloween....

I bust ass on a construction worker vest, which Starboy has been pining for since August.

It turned out beautifully.

I picked up a yellow t-shirt (short sleeved, an orange LS one if it gets cold, you never know) at Target, and I ordered vests from Amazon for Techman and myself, and picked up orange t-shirts for us, as well. The construction family. We'll take turns being Supervisor.

Tonight, while trying to calm Starboy to get him to sleep, I tell him about the Halloween party tomorrow. I say we can dress up.

"You could be a giraffe. Would you like to be a giraffe?"

Starboy nods. Really! Okay, that's cool. It's still an option, despite the hood.

"...Or a construction worker!" I expect him to get really excited.

But he has a funny, faraway look in his eye, the same look as when he wanted to wear the construction vest to Noah's Bagels last August. Like he's having an idea all. his. own.

"Or a gnome," he says quietly.

"A gnome? You would like to dress up as Miss Gnome? Or Red Gnome?"

Starboy nods. He looks a little shy about it. Like I'm going to tell him it's impossible, or a bad idea.

The gnomes are each other's friends, and are part of our weekly story at the art class. They have very pointy, tall hats. We do not own a very pointy, tall hat.

"Or you could be a construction worker!" I add, brightly.

"Or a gnome," Starboy says, dreamily. "Or Blue Duck. With a seashell." Another character in the story.

Great. Well a duck is completely out of the question.

After he has FINALLY fallen asleep, I pull the arm on the Google slot machine and I get: Cherries, cherries, CHERRIES!

I made three felt hats, one for each of us, with stuff I already had. They took just minutes. With a plaid shirt and lederhosen, I think it's an instant costume.

If there is time tomorrow, I hope to get some more ribbon to make the Mama hat more detailed, but since I promised to bake bread for the party and forgot to do it today, the chances of pulling that off are fairly low.

At this point, I don't know that I'll even show him the construction worker vest. Because if we can get Fritz's lederhosen for Techman, that right there is a day that provides pictures you couldn't buy for all the money in the world.

Stay tuned.

Now to find some temporary tattoos.....

Luckily I was able to find some matching bias tape. Starboy hasn't seen the finished product yet, but I think he's going to freak out. He is supposed to be a giraffe for Halloween, but if this warm weather keeps up, I'm not sure I can make him stick to that. Luckily we have several events to attend, so we can mix it up a bit.

Aarrgh.

So after fruitless FRUITLESS searching on the web for a construction worker safety vest for Starboy I decide: You know what, it's time to give up searching and just make the dang thing.

It was hot here--it had cooled to 86 indoors by 6pm-- and I wasn't getting anything done and Joann is air conditioned. Starboy was game because he really wants this vest. He's been pining for it since he saw one at Auntie Troi's in August. So I go to Joann and get some orange fabric and miraculously find the LAST package of reflective tape that is PERFECT for what I need, along with a thing of bias tape for the edges. Of course, I get off-track and also pick up some fabric for some bubble pants for Starboy and then he wants tractor pants, so I get some fabric for that, too (P.S. Do you know of a free pattern for flannel pants/PJs?). The entire store is a monologue by Starboy explaining that he "does not want (whatever I've just shown him) any more. Starboy just wants car pants." He is referring to at least four different hideous children's fabrics we pass by, none of which I'm willing to consider. Especially since I've already said OK to the tractor fabric that he is caressing like his first love and it says JOHN DEERE all over it. (This is not an exaggeration. The brand name is part of the pattern, all over the fabric.)

So, anyway, I come home and make a pattern out of a grocery bag and try it on him. The first one isn't great, the second one is close enough, and then he pitches a fit when I take it back. I start cutting everything out and he's all into everything he is SO EXCITED about this vest. He's into the pins and decides to pin his shirt (by stabbing himself in the belly, natural consequences, ha). He wants to drive cars on the reflective tape. I finally convince him to go to sleep so I can get the thing finished.

It's all going swimmingly with Grandma's loaner Bernina workhorse, and as I'm pinning the bias tape, I'm thinking: Hmmm. This is going to be tight.

So I get to the armholes, and loosely measure, and am relieved that I have JUST enough.

I sew the first armhole (this is the second real mistake here), and then I go to pin the first armhole, and through some miracle of stretchy, circular mathematics that my feeble, journalism-major brain did not anticipate, I have exactly FOUR INCHES not-enough of bias tape. Maybe less.

You know, the bias tape that I conservatively bought only one package for, because I was trying not to overdo it so I wouldn't look like a conspicuous consumer, as always.

The first real mistake.

And then I think, A-HA! I might have some from another project! I rifle around my very small sewing stash box and immediately come up with TWO packs of orange bias tape. And the colors are close! And I rip it open, and—it's single fold, not double fold. It just, totally, will not work.

So I get to drive 30 minutes round-trip on four-buck-a-gallon gas for a single pack of bias tape tomorrow. Because the whole vest is finished except for that 10-minute tiny bit. And because I saved myself $1.40 plus tax by not buying "too much" in the first place.

ARRRGH.