Artillery Belt

I attempted a post on this a while back - it was a pathetic attempt to be fast and share the pattern. I won't delete it in case anyone perhaps found it and bookmarked it, but I will edit it to include a link to this (hopefully much more useful) post and the other accompanying posts for the holsters.

This is only the post for the belt - but it will be a several-post series to cover the entire project.
After all posts are complete they will be here:
Belt (this one)
Nerf Dart gun holster 
Sword holster


First off - you'll need some stuff:

I've made this twice - the first time I used outdoor canvas - which is so much better than what I used this time - something from my stash - because walmart didn't have the $5 canvas I bought a few years ago (they claim they still carry it) and I didn't want to pay the ridiculous price elsewhere for a toy project.

I recommend outdoor canvas (it's slick on the back), but if you can't find it - then you can use some stabilizer to stiffen up your fabric for the holsters - I'll show you how.

You'll need:

2/3 - 1 yard of heavyweight or sturdy fabric

parachute buckle

strap adjustable slider

thread to match (fabric)

a dart gun, sword, etc...something to use in this!

Useful tools:

Iron/Ironing board (or heat safe surface)

rotary cutter/mat

sewing machine (ok, this is more than useful unless you've got a month to hand sew!)

The basics - scissors, measuring tape, seam ripper, sewing gauge

Go ahead and fold your fabric so that selvage edges are together and  continue folding in this direction until the fabric fits on your cutting mat - then straighten the edge with a rotary cutter. (Don't have one? Draw a line using a straight edge and a book to keep it square to the selvage edge...then save your money and your 40% off coupon and go buy one for your next project - it's super handy!)

Let's start with the BELT.
Go ahead and heat up your iron.

1.  Measure your child's waist. Add about 5" to the length (minimum) to allow for seams and folding through the hardware buckle. Add more if you want room to grow. This is your strap length.

Making it for a gift? Sizing idea: (My son 2 years ago was 29" at age 8. My 6 year old twin girls are now 22 1/2" and 26" - one is a smaller average and the other is probably 90th percentile at every check up...if this gives you an idea for size guessing. The first time I made this it was for my son. This time around, I made the project for their friend's 6th birthday to go with the dart gun they gave him.)

2.  Cut (from selvage to selvage across your fabric - which hopefully is already neatly folder and you've straightened the cut edge of)  a strip 4" wide for waist belt. Then, unfold and measure to Strap length from step 1, and trim the 4" wide piece to that length. Set aside - this is your belt.

  If you want an over the shoulder strap for a sword or bullet pockets, etc - step 3. Otherwise, skip to step 5.

3. Measure from waist on front right over opposite shoulder to waist on back right/center. Add up to 10" to this measurement. This is your shoulder strap length.

4. Again, cut from selvage to selvage across your fabric - again 4" width. This time, cut the 4" wide piece to the length from step 3. This is your shoulder strap.

5. Waist strap first - fold the strap in half "hot dog style" (so it should be 2" wide and still very long) - and iron a crease.

6. Unfold the strap and fold each long edge towards this crease, and iron again - folding and ironing as you go down. Leave a little gap between the two edges that are meeting along the crease.

7. Fold strap in half so that two folded outer edges are on top of each other - strap is now 1" wide and 4 layers thick (and still the same very long original strap length). Iron well.

8. Sew (topstitch) along open edge where folds meet. Sew close to edge.

9. Reverse and sew (topstitch) along the closed long edge (we just want this to match/be symmetrical).

10. Sew any stitch you like (straight, zig zag, other decorative machine stitches) down the middle of the strap. This helps to keep it all together, and makes it stiffer and more strap like.

11. Now, Shoulder strap - repeat steps 5 through 10.

You should now have 2 long straps (probably different lengths) with unfinished ends. Let's fix that.
Open up those packages of hardware.

For the waist strap, you'll need the parachute buckle.

12. For the female side, just thread the end over the outside of the buckle and back through the hole nearest the buckle, then zig zag or serge the end or fold under, and stitch down to strap so that the buckle has only a little wiggle room. (Note - I put this end on the left belt end.)

13. For the male side, (which should also have the 2 holes for the strap to go through),  thread the strap through the hole closer to the buckle from the bottom, then over the bar and back down through the outer hole. (The strap piece that was threaded should now be on top of the rest of the strap.

*Please make sure to check that your strap is flat all the way around and that, as threaded now, your buckle lines up properly (i.e., one buckle isn't aligned upside down on the strap in comparison to the other when you try to put the belt on.)

14. If all is right, zig zag or serge or fold under twice the end of the strap to finish the end of the loose piece. But do not stitch it down to the belt (as you did the other side) because this is your side that will be able to adjust.

For the shoulder strap. (You can skip to the holsters if you are not doing a shoulder strap.)
These directions for putting on the adjustable slider follow the package instructions - however, I have used other metal sliders that are done differently - if you use an adjustable slider, check your package to compare directions.

15. Put one end of the shoulder strap through the first hole of the adjustable slider (I started with the curved end - rather than the straight side, I did this backwards, but whatever - still works), over the divider, and back down towards strap.

16. Finish this end of the shoulder strap (zig zag or serge or fold under) then sew to strap as close as you can.

17. With other end of strap, go up through middle hole, and over divider, then back down through farthest hole. Continue pulling strap through until most of the strap is through the slider, leaving a "loop" below the slider - this loop will go onto the belt and to the back (of the child).

       If you want the front of this strap to stay in place, you can add a strap or some velcro or a button/buttonhole, etc to keep it in place. (You may have to do this before you do step 18. I didn't bother ...just a thought.)

18. The unfinished end of the strap can now be finished (zig zag or serged or folded under once) and looped around front of belt and sewn back onto itself in place. (The front doesn't need to be adjustablet since the back is, but it is a good idea to leave the loop big enough so that it can go over the buckle in case you want to take it off later.)

(please ignore all the loose thread - I'm really sloppy about waiting until the end of my project to trim all my threads...if then) :)

Bullet Pockets (I'm sure there's a better word for that?)
If your bullets are about this size: (and most are)

Then, these directions should fit it just fine.

I've done them two ways - the first way was more work, but allowed for 2 bullets/hole (and you can only fit about 2 pockets on the strap before the pockets start to go onto the child's shoulder) and the second way was quicker and simpler, but it only holds 1 bullet. (I probably could have resized it for 2 but I didn't want to.)

1.  Cut a piece of fabric 3 1/4" tall and 2 1/2" wide. Hem the sides 1/8". Hem the top 1/8" folded twice.

(showing beginning, then sides hemmed, then top hemmed)

2.  Place the rectangle so that it is raw edge (unhemmed) towards the "up" direction of the shoulder strap approximately where you want the bottom of the bullet pocket to be.  (In other words, the bullet pocket is face down with hems showing and upside down on the strap.)

3. Align hemmed sides with sides of shoulder strap.

4. Flatten excess (middle) to create a pleat.

5.  Stitch across about 1/8" away from the raw edge.

6.  Fold the bullet pocket up so that the upper hemmed edge now is towards the "up" direction of the shoulder strap (in other words, the pocket is right side up with raw edges hemmed hiding inside)

7. Align sides of pocket with edges of shoulder strap and topstitch in place. (bottom to top is best).

8. Top stitch along bottom - hopefully enclosing the raw edge, but if not, it's ok.

Repeat for as many pockets as you wish to put on, spacing them to allow for easy bullet loading (into the pockets).

Next up...dart gun holster.

100 days of school projects

 Every year since 2009 we have had the 'fun' of coming up with another 100 day project for whoever's in kindergarten or first grade. Here are the ones we've done so far:

My son's -  He chose the medium and we thought of things together that he liked or fit the season to make it creative.

50 "stars" + 3 strings for each of 13 "stripes" (that's 39) + 11 strings to spell out "100 strings" =100 strings

(the "i" got 2 - one for the stick, 1 for the dot)

Foam "beads" strung on red pipe cleaners and shaped/twisted into a heart shape.

(he liked flags a lot when he was 5-6 years old. The other was to use up some foam shapes we needed to purge from the craft pile)

Ms. Independent insisted on doing her own thing and refused to accept any of my creative suggestions. She finally agreed 10 stickers to a page so that it would be easy to count (and good practice counting by 10s)

The next year (drat! no picture was taken) - She wanted to use beads, so we strung them on craft wire. She wanted it flower shaped, so we attempted to bend/curve & twist the wire into a flower shape with each petal having 10 beads...it mostly cooperated, and it turned out cute - I take pictures of EVERYTHING - where is my picture of this?

This year we had TWO projects as my twins are in kindergarten - 

My very independent twin decided she wanted a chain "like we make to count down for the end of school".

I suggested felt (since I had most of what we would need) and it wouldn't get torn on the way to school.

 Felt sheets cut into strips and stapled into a chain of rings - just like you would a  paper chain.

(Other than directing and making sure she knew how to use the staple and overseeing she stuck with 'the plan', she did this pretty independently.)

The other looked through my craft surplus and decided to use these little fuzzies (dollar tree - they only come 80 to a pack, so I did have to buy more)

Fuzzies strung on string with a large-eye needle - like you would popcorn for a Christmas tree.

We did find that it was difficult to keep them centered on the needle so that they wouldn't come right off the string - some got a second stitch through it once it was pulled to in place.
I did have to supervise this one a little more:
First of all, there's a needle involved. Secondly, she would push them down the string so hard they all squished together so you couldn't tell one fuzzy from the next. Also, she's the twin that always "needs" help.

Both of these are in sets of 5 (another good counting skill)

Happy Valentine's 2012: Stromboli and Jello Hearts

The stromboli idea I found online - the recipe and instructions I made based on the general idea. 

The jello hearts is a family fun idea (link below).

The Stromboli was a big hit - 

the jello heart idea...well, that one will probably be replaced by heart shaped brownies next year!

On to the how....

Stromboli - makes 8

6-7 cups flour

3 T sugar

1 tsp salt

1 T yeast (3 tsp)

3 T oil

2 cups warm water

12-15 oz spaghetti sauce  (half of 26 oz can)

16 oz mozzarella (or other cheese), shredded

1 egg

Parsley, optional (just because it’s my favorite seasoning)

Mix 6 cups flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in stand mixer with dough hook. Start mixing on low speed (2). Add oil and warm water. Once it comes together, add as much flour as needed to make dough not sticky when touched (stop the kneading/mixing to test – poke and see if dough sticks to your finger). Knead for 7 minutes. Remove from hook (with floured hands), form into a smooth ball and put back into (now, greased) bowl. Grease (spray oil) top or cover.  Rise for an hour.

Divide into 4 pieces. For each piece….

Roll into large rectangle (about 10x20 – as large as my cutting board) on floured surface. Slice (with a pizza cutter) long ways (get two long rectangles about 5x20). Top lightly with sauce, cheese, and toppings. 

Roll each long rectangle from long side to create a long rope. Pinch ends and edge. Move (carefully) to baking sheet (greased is a good idea but not required), and shape as desired (hearts for valentines, etc).

Brush tops with egg, sprinkle with parsley. (I added some mozzarella to the seams that had no filling).  Bake 400°F for 15 minutes.

The Eat your heart out jello idea: (it was ok, but the creamy layer - I think if I ever do this again, I would not use unflavored gelatin - it tasted a sweet bland...if that makes sense.)

Eat Your Heart Out

And lastly, the valentine's card idea I used for my kids with our district and their 'no candy' policy...

come on - I already can't bring my awesomely tasty creations to class parties - now I can't even give 'em M&Ms...what's wrong with this world? (like that cupcake with pink icing still on my kid's pants was really any more nutritional)

2 of my kids used "You color my world" with a piece of chalk tied to the card (two holes punched to tie string through)
2 of my kids used "You make my heart glow" with a glow stick through two punched holes.

(only the preschoolers used these cute hearts - the 1st and 3rd grader used boring little rectangles of white cardstock that they had to decorate themselves because they had 15+ valentines, not just 4)
Should have taken a picture of those too - my 7 year old colored hers with watercolors (yes, the cheap kids kind) and they turned out really cute.)

Glow sticks were a little hard to get to school without cracking and using up the limited glowing time, but I heard that the 3rd graders had a lot of fun with them. (WIN!)

Toy Artillery Belt and Holsters

Note: 1/16/13  - this blog post will be updated soon with a real tutorial...my goal is before the end of February 2013.

Our summer activities include a project for each kid of his/her choosing. My one son chose a belt (that went around and over the shoulder) that would hold as many of his play weapons as possible.

The general instructions are below (although you might have to click on the file to make it full sized and readable - or you can get the pdf.) This is not intended as a tutorial, although I could make it one later if someone needed it - and asked.  Several weapons/objects  (like the light saber and walkie talkie) had hooks that could rest on the belt. Several others needed holsters - specifically the little cheap dart gun and the Nerf Maverick dart gun - Little bullet holders for the nerf darts were, therefore, needed too. Those two holsters and bullet holders are what I have patterns for below. (There is an inch square on each pattern piece to help get the sizing right.) The nerf gun holster can be pieced together using the guidelines (pieces are marked for top, bottom, right and left).

 I doubt anyone uses my blog. Hence, the reason I didn't bother with a real tutorial - just a quick pattern and general instructions - so don't judge me by my poor, quickly written instructions! Good luck.

update 2/5/2013
Added help:
For making buttonholes on the holster to attach it to a belt.

Put it on a Belt -  create 'button holes' big enough to accommodate a belt
- a later time making this, I made a casing for a belt by folding over fabric at the top.

1. Hold the holster up to the belt where you want it to sit and mark vertically where you want the buttonholes to be. Also mark little horizontal slashes for where the belt edges are (so you know how tall to make the buttonholes).

 NOTE - You could do this with a buttonhole function on the sewing machine - espcially if you have the 4 step kind, but my current machine has  a 1 - step button hole so I insert a button into the buttonhole foot, align it (that's the tricky part), drop the foot, and hold down the pedal...occasionally 'convincing' the thick layers of fabric to keep moving.  I can't use a 1-step for this project because the foot will not accomodate a button as large as 1" or more.

2. Set your machine's zig zag stitch to a narrow setting (test it out on a scrap of fabric to see what you like) and to a very short length (so that the zigs touch the zags nearly in straight lines sideways...sometimes called a satin stitch.

If you have a 4-step button hole function, just set your machine to that - and start on that edge. Change which step as you go around your line.

3. Start at one end of the line you've drawn (you'll need to extend the hole a little longer than the line so the belt goes through comfortably) - Zigzag down the  side of the line - keeping it straight.

4. Turn the fabric and repeat on the other side of the line - leaving only the drawn line exposed.

5. Now set your zig zag to it's shortest possible length (or drop the feed dogs - those are the little jagged metal things that move up and down in a circular motion under where you feed the fabric - you don't want the fabric to move, so you flip a switch to turn them off). And set the zig zag wide enough to go across the 2 parallel rows of zig zag stitches plus the tiny gap in between. (If yours doesn't go this wide, then just as wide as it will go.)

6. Now, with the zig zags/line running in the direction from you towards machine, align the end of the line under the needle. Sew back and forth a bunch (fabric shouldn't move - a bunch of sideways stitches will 'cap' the end of your buttonhole to keep it from continuing to tear once we actually make the hole.  Do this same thing at the opposite end of the line.

7. Your line should now be completely surrounded by stitches.  Place a straight pin at each end of your button hole, slightly closer together than the end stitches.  CAREFULLY, with your seam ripper, insert the pointed end through the fabric in between the two pins, and slowly rip open a buttonhole. (The pins should stop you from ripping right through the opposite end of the button hole.) You can also start with a seam ripper to make a small hole and then cut with scissors. Whatever works for you.

Done (make 2 buttonholes so that the belt can go in one and out the other...and the farther you space them the less the holster will flop around).

Cinnamon Rolls

 

First the recipe for easy copy/paste and printing…

My Mom’s Cinnamon Rolls – 60 minute recipe (approximately)

Rolls:

2 pkts yeast

1 ½ cup warm milk

¼ cup sugar

1 tsp salt

¼ cup butter, melted

4 ½ cup plain flour

2T Butter

Brown Sugar

Cinnamon

Icing:

2-3 c Powdered sugar

2-3 T Milk

Vanilla (I leave this out – probably just a few drops if you like it)

Mix yeast, milk, and sugar and let sit 5 minutes. Add salt, butter, and flour. Mix (*don’t knead) and set for 25 minutes. Roll out and rub with melted butter. Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll up and slice about ½” thick. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake 375° for 10 minutes.

Mix icing ingredients to desired consistency and drizzle over baked rolls.

So, the recipe with pictures now.

Heat 1 1/2 cups milk in microwave for about 2 minutes (I’ve used 2%, skim, and powdered…all work, 2% was used here). Test with your finger. It should be warm/hot, but not burn you. If it’s too hot, let it cool so you don’t kill the yeast. Add 1/4 cup sugar and 4 1/2 tsp (or 2 pkts) yeast. Stir and let sit 5 minutes.

I forgot to take a picture here…It just looks all frothy and light brownish on top and liquidy underneath. (If it doesn’t you probably have dead yeast…or you killed it with hot milk.) I’ll add a picture here later.

After 5 minutes, add in everything else (1 tsp salt, 1/4 cup butter, and 4 1/2 cups flour) and mix. (really, no kneading – I do stir pretty tough to help the flour all stir in well.) cover (I toss a paper towel over the top) and let rise 25 minutes.

The dough right after mixing:

After Rising (25 minutes):

After 25 minutes, I roll it out to about …24” by the width of (normal) aluminum foil.

Melt 2T butter in microwave, pour on dough (see my ‘line of butter’), spread around (I use my hands for all this – you can use a spoon if you like). Drop on all the brown sugar you like, and spread evenly. Sprinkle on the cinnamon. (I don’t measure these last two – I just put on what I think looks good.)

Now, you’re ready to roll. You can use the foil to help get the rolling started, but use your hands to finish or it will be too loosely rolled.

Now – on to the shape…

My mom uses a knife to cut hers in 1/2” slices. My sister in law cuts hers into about 12 rolls and just cuts from one end to the other (like my mom). I am a little methodical about how I do things - and the first question my kids ask is “How many do I get?” So I’m going for quantity and I have to cut it in a logical method.

So, first in half…then into fourths…then into 8ths – this is all halving over and over again)

Then each 8th into 3 rolls (24 total) – notice they aren’t perfectly identical in size – and that doesn’t bother me – and they are ‘falling over’…it’s ok.

However,sometimes the ‘squished roll’ does bother me…so when it does, I uncoil and recoil. Other times, I just have oval shaped rolls.  Ideally, you could use dental floss (not the mint flavor – plain) and they wouldn’t squish, but I just use a knife or pizza cutter.

Before and after baking: (once you have them on the pan, you can cover and put them in the fridge over night to bake the next morning…so you get just the rolls and not the work for breakfast)

I bake them at 375 for about 10 minutes. (This was perfect for my last oven…this one usually takes longer than 10 minutes.)

While the rolls are cooling, make the icing.  For the icing, mix 2-3 cups powdered sugar and 1T of milk at a time (about 2-4 T total) to get to the consistency you like. I get it to about this consistency. My mom’s recipe says drizzle…I should probably change that to “drown” for my cookbook!

YUM