Dressing-up chest (part two)

I talked about the dressing-up chest we put together for my sons 5th birthday a few weeks ago.
I wanted to share some of the items I found to put in the box.
One of my favourites is the black cloak in the pictures below.
It is second-hand but homemade and I found it on ebay for a snip.
I love that it is so versatile - perfect for Darth Vader, as seen (rather menacingly) below.
Or Lord Voldemort, or Harry Potter, or Merlin, or Gandalf etc ........
My littlest does seem to be drawn towards the baddies - hmmmmmm, should I be worried?

Dressing-up chest (part one)

Our youngest son was five a few weeks ago. Having two boys, less than two years apart, means its getting harder and harder to think of birthday presents for them.

My little one loves dressing up and acting in character, so I decided to fill up a toy-box full of dressing up clothes for him. I scoured ebay and charity shops for second-hand bargains, mixed them with a few new things and some props - and hey-presto - an original birthday present that will keep him and his brother entertained for many years to come.

As I was using a plain white toy chest that we already had - I decided that I need to decorate it, in some way to make it look a bit more special.

I had some A4 wallpaper samples that I ordered a while ago with another project in mind, and decided this was the perfect opportunity to put them to good use.

I cut each A4 page into six (roughly) equal rectangles, and arranged them in a pattern on the top of the chest.

I then glued them down with PVA glue mixed with a little water. Once dry, I covered them with a coat of matt varnish and left it to dry again. I then repeated this three times.

The matt varnish on top of the paper gives a lovely smooth feel and also protects it against the batterings/spilt coffee/juice/goodness knows what else, it is destined to receive.

Card games

We've recently discovered a love of traditional card games.
My boys are at the age where we can play more challenging games together now - and we've had a real game playing Summer this year.

I found this book in the library which has some great ideas for all sorts of games. There is a whole section on card games - some I've never heard of and others I remember well from my childhood.

Here are some of our favourites:

Snap - always a favourite, although someone inevitably ends up stomping off (or is that just my kids!)

War - new one for me, nice and simple

Beggar my neighbour - we knew it as Strip Jack Naked as kids, much better name - great game!

Cheat - what kid wouldn't love a game where they are allowed to cheat

Go Fish - we liked this one too, but they do struggle to hold their cards without everyone else being able to see them, which is essential for this game. Might have to invest in some of these. !!

Do you have any favourite card games to share? We'd love to know about them if you do.

Christmas Idea No. 3

I love retro and vintage toys and have been after one of these for ages.
I have finally found and bought one for my son's stocking and I know he will love it. I've already had a play with it, it's strangely addictive!

Christmas Idea No. 1

I always start thinking about Christmas presents ridiculously early and already have a little list of ideas for my two little boys (and my big boy!), so I thought I would share some with you over the following weeks.

My eldest son (he's 5 next week) really believes he will be a superhero when he is older. He actually thinks it is a career choice and we have had many conversations about what special powers he will have and how he is going to learn them. I really don't want to shatter his illusions just yet - I have started to hint at the fact that firemen, paramedics, coastguards etc could actually be classed as superheros doing what they do everyday - so am happily playing along with it. With that in mind one of these superhero capes would be perfect for him, I just need to decide which colour scheme to go with - they are all so lovely!

Stencils

I bought these for my son when he turned three in August (because I loved the look of them) and I am pleased to say - he loves them too.

I fix them to his paper with a small bit of sellotape at the top and bottom - which can easily be peeled off when finished, this prevents them from slipping around which can be very frustrating for him!

When drawn in, he then spends time colouring them and embellishing them with felt shapes, feathers, sequins etc.

He has spent hours with these since he got them (my bigger boy likes them too) - his particular favourite is the dinousaur, of course.

They are made by Djeco, a French company, who make lots of fab toys, I love everything in their art and craft range. There are lots of other sets available from dragons to princesses (check out the range at http://www.tickety-boo.co.uk/, one of my favourite independent online toyshops), I think Father Christmas might have a few more tucked away in his sleigh for our house this Christmas!

Brick Red

Meg over at Elsie Marley is hosting a colour week inspired by Crayola colours and the imminent arrival of Autumn.

Today is Brick Red - so here's my contribution.


Father Christmas bought this American style trailer and the wooden blocks for Harper's 2nd Christmas a few years ago.
It is one of my favourite toys of theirs - the kind you don't mind lying around because it looks so great.

Tune in tomorrow for Burnt Sienna.

Automoblox

I am a sucker for wooden toys. I just love the feel (and smell - we have a toychest of mainly wooden toys in our dining room and when you lift the lid you get a waft of the most amazing woody smell) of them and love the fact that they will last and last. I envisage my kids being able to hand them down to their children at some point in the future. They can be more expensive than the average plastic toy but definitely worth the investment in my book.

My boys each received one of these from Granny and Grandad last Christmas and they have to be the best quality toy I have ever seen. Extremely well made and also educational. They break apart into three pieces and can only be put back together by slotting the correct shaped pegs into the correct shaped holes. The passengers, wheels and windscreens can also be removed and all the parts can be mixed and matched with other models

The website (click link above) is great - really informative plus you can register your car (they all have unique registration numbers), print off colouring pages and read about the learning benefits.

They are available from several online independent toyshops in the UK - just do a search.
I know a certain small boy who has got his eye on this one.