Friday, October 26, 2012

No Sew Superhero Masks!


Next step to accomplish for my superhero kits are the masks. I've got the capes finished from the tutorial below, and now I need some matching masks! And I'm sure you're wondering whose mask is the one all the way to the left. As you know, Superman has no mask BUT if I give masks to three of my nephews and not one, there will be a brawl (and that I just can't handle) so I whipped up a random one that matched his cape. Feel free to do something else for Superman though! For this tutorial, I simply used the template HERE from BuzzPatrol.com! However, you all know how I feel about sewing. Therefore, I came up with an alternative using glue.
Things you'll need:
1. 9"x12" Crafting Felt Sheets (I used the colors above)
2. Hot Glue
3. Scissors
4. Black opaque paint marker
5. 4 plastic masks (I got 2 white and 2 black from Joann)
 
 
After I used the templates and cut out all of my masks, I began gluing together the extra parts on the Superman and Captain America masks with my hot glue gun. Then, I copied the template's lines for Spiderman and drew the web pattern onto my black fabric marker. Now, when the masks are complete, feel free to keep them as they are (if you just wanted a felt mask) and then thread an elastic band for the back. For me, I needed something a little more durable. I'm dealing with four boys under the age of five here. I simply used the hot glue gun to trace the mask and then gently placed it on the plastic form. It truly was simple, and kind of fun! Leave comments below if you need further explanation and feel free to let me know how yours came out!
 
 

No Sew Superhero Capes!

For Christmas this year, I've decided to go all out (and a little overboard) with the superhero theme for my four nephews. I've decided to make them all their very own superhero kits which will include capes, masks, cuffs, and then some other little things centered around their favorite superhero. The very first thing on my list to accomplish is their capes. The four superheroes that I've chosen to do are: Spiderman, Superman, Batman, and Captain America but you can do any that you want. I'm not a fan of my sewing machine at the moment, so I'm doing everything without it! The best part about this project is how much they are going to love the capes, and how cheap the materials are. I got my felt at Joann (and ended up with WAY too much) for less than five dollars. How can you beat that?! I got the template and initial tutorial for the capes HERE from Jolly Mom. The decals on the back of the capes I figured out on my own.
 
Things you'll need for each cape:
1. 1/2 yard of felt
2.  9" x 12" pieces of felt (for decals)
3. Black opaque paint marker
4. Scissors
5. Hot glue
6. Stick on Velcro
7. Cape Template (link above)
 
 
For Batman:
I first started by cutting an oval out of the yellow, smaller piece of felt. Then, I googled batman sign outline and found THIS black and white stencil. I then printed it, cut out the bat part, and traced it directly onto the yellow felt with my black paint marker. After I was done tracing it, I then colored it in and hot glued it to the center of my black cape. Walla!
 
For Spiderman:
Start by cutting a circle out of the red, small felt. Drawing the spider that a little more difficult than the bat, but follow the same steps and trace the spider in the center of the circle and then color it in with the same black marker. Once you are happy with the way it looks, hot glue the circle to the middle of the cape. This was my outcome:
 
For Superman:
I'm just first going to say that I was unhappy with the way my superman cape came out, and that it only because of that darn S that took forever to make. (And even taking my time didn't make it look any better). Either way, I'm not concerned. I'm sure my two and a half year old nephew won't notice or mind too much. For this decal, I googled 'Superman S sign' and printed the first black and white stencil I could find. From there, I cut out a red diamond first, then a golden/yellow one, and glued the two together. Then I began working on the red S and eventually (and hesitantly) glued that to the golden/yellow diamond shape. Here's how mine came out: *sigh*
 
For Captain America:
I used THIS template from An Art School Dropout's Life blog, which she actually used for a shield. The directions were right on the template (I used red white and blue instead of the pink option) and from there cut and glued it all together. This one was the easiest to do in my opinion.
Clearly, the capes are a bit long for them, but I figure on Christmas morning when they open them up I'll trim where need be. Comment and let me know if you need more direction. Have fun making them, and good luck!