DIY Batman T-Shirt

I'm SO EXCITED to share today's craft with you! I saw the idea on Pinterest originally the other day aaand have been flipping out GIDDY waiting to do it myself. hahaha 'Cause I'm an uber nerd like that. And I used cardstock, so it totally falls under my paper-crafting expertise area! ;-)

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN BATMAN T-SHIRT! BOOyah!!

What you need:

• a solid-colour t-shirt (white won't work, silly!) - I got ours at Wal-Mart for $4-$9 (I think Mr. Man's was the pricey one - oy!)
• a spray bottle of bleach (STRAIGHT bleach; don't dilute it)
• the Batman sign (which you have to cut out, so scissors, of course)
• and if you're cooler than me maybe some spray-adhesive to help hold the paper to the shirt while you work...especially if it's as windy for you as it was for me!

So I was GOING to draw the symbol and cut it out, 'cause I totally mastered that skill at Hallowe'en when I carved a Batman pumpkin (it was awesome, if I do say so myself...and I totally do!) but wanted to just verify something aaaaand realized in the Googling that I could just print the thing off and save myself the angst of the drawing.... duh!

I got the Batman image from Google search: "how to draw batman symbol" which brought up the image from http://www.dragoart.com/tuts/3751/1/1/how-to-draw-batman-logo.htm  You can get this logo pasted into a PDF for printing here)

Then, obviously I think, I cut it out. I should have used my craft scissors, but being lazy and the weather ridICulously hot today (aiding my laziness take over) so I just used the kitchen scissors. O:-)

Did you know when you cut shapes, especially round ones, that it works best to move the paper and NOT the scissors?  Try it next time you're cutting out a circle; just hold the scissors steady and move the paper along the line you're cutting. It's the secret to a lump-free round cut!

Batman's all cut out and ready to go!

Then I went outside and laid my shirt out flat, and put the paper pieces down on the shirt.

Placed on the t-shirt.

ALMOST READY!

....then I pulled the greatest face EVER...

Dang it! There was quite the gust of wind... I think this is why the original suggested using spray adhesive to help hold her letters on... silly short-cutting!

Then the spraying began!  The idea is to spritz above the shirt and let the bleach sort of float down onto the shirt.

Waiting for it to dry a little before moving it...see how much lighter the shirt is already?

Next shirt!

Spray up above the shirt and let it fall down

like this!

Then remove the paper and voila!!

Ta da!  ...except you can see on the bottom right where I slightly didn't spray UP and got a wee bit under the paper... O:-)

 Because I sprayed our shirts SO much (to make the symbol stand out oodles) I sprayed the backs, too.  A bit lighter, though, 'cause I wasn't screening anything on that side. Just so it wasn't funny looking. 

The coolest family of Batman shirts EVAH! SO excited to wear these!

Once they're dry you're supposed to be able to wear them and go...but I don't like my clothes reeking of bleach, so I ran them quickly through a short wash first.

Isn't that GREAT?! I'm SO IN LOVE! And, obviously, you can do ANYTHING! The pin that I got this from was of the kids' names on the shirt and the blogger had tried a cross that she then added jewels to - it was very pretty!  The sky is the limit, folks! Make yourself something fabulous!

I'm going to go watch Batman.

How to Host a Murder Mystery Party

My husband and I love to have friends come over to our home for dinner, or to have a group of people over for a party. There is something about socializing/ conversation over yummy food (have you seen my previous "I LOVE FOOD" post?) that simply makes me happy. I also enjoy throwing themed-birthday parties for my children and husband. One themed-party that I wanted to do for ages was a Murder-Mystery Dinner Party. When I asked my husband if this was something he wanted for his own birthday, I heard the hesitation in his voice. No matter, I said. Since my birthday is only six days after his, I decided I will give myself a Murder-Mystery Birthday Party.

Fortunately, I live in a city where there are a lot of "Gamers" and all I had to do was visit my local game store, Game Night Games, to view a vast variety of packaged games. For those who do not have something so fun and so nerdy available, Amazon.com is also a great place shop Murder Mystery Games.

The brand "How to Host a Murder" by Decipher Inc offers a variety of Murder Mystery Games. "Why?", you ask. These games come with everything needed to throw a successful party: invitations, menu suggestions, name cards, costume suggestions, a host guide and other things depending upon the game (like maps, diagrams, etc.). The game I chose for the birthday party was Episode Number 5: The Chicago Caper.

This was on our invitations:

 You have received an invitation to S.P. Keasys place, a private club near the headquarters of notorious gangster Hal Cappone. Upon arriving, Hal is discovered murdered! Come in costume and assume the role of one of the suspects; MOLLY M. AWBSTERR (society dame from NY, the ultimate flapper in Chicago for the action, maintaining a most exclusive penthouse apartment), ERNIE ("BET A MILLION") G. AMBLER (Chicagos most colorful millionaire), "SILKY" M. ADAM (shady owner operator of the The Everlay Club, Chicagos most prominent private establishment), EDDIE ("SOCKS") R. GYLE (smooth fashionable and clever, avid golfer and gambler, owns the exlusive gaming house Green Tables where the affluent gamble), MALISSA F. ORRTHOT ("Scoop" made a name for herself as a crime reporter for the citys leading paper The Trumpet, her considerable beauty and lively charm helped further her career on both sides of the law), S. TREIGHTON HARROW (US District Attorney and chief opponent of the criminal element), ANNA MARIA CARLOTTA SASSINE (sultry voice, exuberant style and traditional blues renditions have earned here the nickname "Torchy", this smoldering beauty currently featured at the Green Tables), or BILLY ("THE KID") THROWER (star pitcher for the Stock Kings, currently holds the league strikeout record, off the field The Kid is fun-loving, hard-drinking, warm-hearted, lustful, brawling and hell-raising). Imagine your home is a 1920s speakeasy in Chicago as you and your guests enjoy hours of suspense and intrigue but mainly humor as you solve the crime over a dinner.

SO MUCH FUN, ITS ALMOST CRIMINAL!

Does sound fun, doesn't it? I have to say, it was a BLAST! So much fun, in fact, that my husband I brought the game to a small family reunion and played it again... even though we knew "who dun it", it was so much fun trying to throw people off :)

 

Next time you think about hosting a get-together with six of your best friends, consider doing something other than a barbeque in the backyard (again!). Make the gathering a little more exciting with a party theme like Murder Mystery. If you want to be especially crazy, have people come dressed up (this REALLY helps everyone get into character!). 

Scoop, Torchy, S. Treighton Harrow, Ernie "BET A MILLION" G. Ambler, & Molly M. Awbsterr

Scoop, Torchy, S. Treighton Harrow, Ernie "BET A MILLION" G. Ambler, & Billy "THE KID" Thrower

My Inner Childhood

 

I have had the opportunity over the years to work with young girls in our church in various committees.  The girls have this fantastic effect on you...they make you feel young again!  Their energy and enthusiasm is infectious!  In deciding what to write about this week I got to thinking back on what activities we have done and what I learned or re-learned to do.  One of my favorite hobbies as a child was friendship bracelets.  Remember those?  They are a perfect craft for kids to do during the summer.  Its inexpensive and a little time-consuming so it helps with the constant "I'm bored!" mantras we all deal with in the summer.  You need three pieces of equipment...embroidery floss which you can find at any dollar store, scissors, and a safety pin to attach it to a pant leg or pillow (or clipboard) to give that all important tension.  There are a ton of websites online that teach how to make them.  Everything from the classic chevron or diagonal to how to put your name (of the name of your BFF!) on them!

http://www.how-to-make-jewelry.com/friendship-bracelet-patterns.html

this is a good site for basic patterns and learning how-to

 http://friendship-bracelets.net

this site has every bracelet under the sun!

and there are tons of other sites that all have fun and fascinating ideas for you to try out!

I hope you  have fun rediscovering the joys of childhood with your kids doing this fun, easy and inexpensive craft!

Father's Day -- Uh-oh, It's Here!

It's the proverbial: "What do we get Dad for Father's Dad?"
Am I right, or am I right?
We all wait until the week of, and then decide that a card will have to cut it this year.

However, I'm sure that you've all seen the cute little questionaire's floating around in the blos-o-sphere
(and hence Pinterest).

I liked all of them.
But, I either had trouble getting the link to work
OR I was asked to purchase it.
I didn't want to do that.

So, I made my own (don't you just love moustaches? -- I'm kind of hooked on them right now)
So I share with you --- go ahead and download it, share it, make it your own.
Have your kids fill it out and give itt o Dad with handmade, drawn card and he will cherish it for always.

you may download the pdf here