Monday, May 22, 2017

Ship Ahoy

This past week I have been buried under swaths and swaths of fabric whipping up a cubby house fit for a pirate. One of my friend's little boy, Eli, celebrated his first birthday. I know.....how exciting!! Of course turning one demands a fun gift, a gift that will bring oodles of make believe into a little boy's day.

And.....what better way to encourage a little make believe into a little boy's day than to fashion a cubby house with a pirate theme. I decided to stitch a cubby house that fits over my friend's kitchen table. Every little boy wants to sail away on the seven seas.....right?? Every little boy wants to go a-sailing with the thought of adventure upmost in his mind, to explore distant lands, to perhaps happen upon "that" island and the treasure that is marked with an "X" on his map. Every little pirate wants to find fame and fortune.

When I worked in childcare, one thing I always noticed was that kids love to make cubbies out of all manner of things....sheets, blankets, chairs, tables, boxes.....whatever they could lay their hands on. Children love to hide away in a small, snug place, a hidey-hole where they are safe and cocooned away from the world; a place where their vivid imaginations can run wild.

But back to the pirate cubby house. A while ago I borrowed a craft book titled, "Belle and Boo Book of Craft" written by Mandy Sutcliffe, where from cover to cover there are wonderful crafty ideas to make for children. I was rather taken with the pirate theme cubby house. Isn't it sweet??



The rudimentary need of a pirate if he is to sail the seven seas in search of adventure in far away lands, is a ship. But....before I chat about the 'building' of the ship, let me first introduce you to the birthday boy, One-Eye Eli. He is the sweetest little boy, always smiling and has the most placid of personalities. Though, the waving of that cutlass from ear to ear, by our swashbuckling buccaneer seems to belie that sweet and innocent expression.




I wanted "One-Eye Eli" and his big sister, Ari, to feature on the ship. I took photos of the both of them and then printed these onto fabric, whilst seeing to it that they were dressed in appropriate pirate attire. One-Eye Eli is the master of this ship. With his cutlass and his beguiling smile he will protect his sister and his ship. =)





The main part of the cubby was stitched in a blue canvas-type fabric representing the sky. For the bottom of the cubby I found a cool, ocean theme fabric for the water where a magical, underwater world glides and swims below. I fashioned the ship from strips of old jeans with the masts of the ship in a black cotton fabric. Every pirate ship has portholes. These I fashioned out of a clear plastic. It is of upmost importance that  every pirate keeps an eye on what is happening outside whilst sailing the high seas. A pirate must always be on the lookout for marauding and pillaging pirate ships sailing on his horizon.


Parrots, swords, bunting, peek-a-boo portholes, a jolly roger, anchors, fish........., Eli's cubby is a place where the imagination can escape to far away lands. It is a fun place to play, or in those quiet times a place to perhaps have a nap, or perhaps take time out to have a book read to him. 





Anchors aweigh! The 'door' that entices each child into the magical, cubby world of all things piratey reveals the anchor diving deep, deep down into the sea.



For the table top of the cubby, I found a fabulous print of the world with fact after fact about different countries. Not only can "the pirates" pretend all things piratey, they can have fun with some 'learnin'!



Aaarrgghhh......it's party time. Sooo......much fun to be had!!










With the party over, with the auspicious celebration at an end and the guests having kissed sweet One-Eye Eli goodbye, hopefully there will be many, many imaginative trips to faraway lands where swashbuckling escapades are to be had. Hopefully there will be many, many moments of magical, pirate cubby house, play to be enjoyed by li'l One-Eye Eli and his fellow bucanneers. "Yo Ho! Yo Ho! 'Tis a pirate's life for me!"

As I sat and stitched Eli's cubby this week, my mind ran away with me. How fun it would be to fashion a cubby with a castle featuring knights and dragons and sweet maidens; or perhaps a sweet, little cottage complete with pretty curtains peeking from behind the windows and of course sweet, pretty flowers hugging the cubby all the way round. Aah yes.......the stuff of a fanciful imagination!

Until the next time..............


Sharing this week with lovely Jann's, Share Your Cup.




46 comments:

  1. Oh, my darling Kim, you're truly GREAT and UNIQUE !

    Thank you for sharing this last work of yours, I'm sure that Eli will love it !

    Wishing you a most lovely new week,
    I'm sending blessings across the many miles

    XOXO dany

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  2. That is truly fabulous! What a wonderful gift :)

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  3. Oh this is just darling! You created a real masterpiece here Kim! A truly magnificent gift...
    I am sure the little boy was excited and will sail away on new adventures merrily :)

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  4. What a great and sweet idea, a job well done. He will love this for years.

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  5. How utterly, utterly wonderful. It made me want to be a stowaway and sail the seven seas. I love your other ideas of castles, knights and maidens and pretty cottages too xx

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    1. Thank you, Cheryl. Me thinks I would like to stowaway with you; wouldn't that be fun! Kim Xx

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  6. Wow that is just amazing, well done and lucky kids!

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  7. That is absolutely stunning dear Kim. How wonderful - I can well imagine the fun that will be had in that little cubby house. What a lucky wee boy indeed. I well remember when my boys were young ... we lived in a tiny house & always right in the middle of the (small) lounge, we had the wooden clothes horse up permanently with a large sheet draped over it ... so they could use it as a cubby house/hidey hole. What hours of pleasure it bought them. Have a lovely week my friend xxx

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  8. This is a fantastic idea, Kim!! I'm know Eli will have so much fun playing in his very own pirate ship!!

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  9. Oh my goodness Kim, what a great birthday gift for little Eli (and his sister will have fun, too)! It turned out ever so adorable with your magical hands. I loved seeing the kids' sweet smiling faces looking out of the portholes of the ship. I think I'd enjoy a little cottage for myself! Thanks for sharing this fabulous gift idea with us.

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  10. CUTE CUTE CUTE!!!!!!! I loved seeing all the little ones smiling faces too.

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  11. This is absolutely incredibly adorable!! I just love every little detail you put into this pirate ship. I am sure it will be treasured for years to come. What an unforgettable gift :-)

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  12. Absolutely charming! You are so talented! I would have loved to play in this!

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  13. This is utterly a-m-a-z-i-n-g!!! What little child wouldn't absolutely fall in love with this! You've reminded me that I have a pattern for a farmer's barn that needs a card table as a base that I had wanted to make for our grandson(s). Must dig it out of my stash and start haunting the thrift stores for an appropriate card table.

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  14. oh my goodness, what a thoughtful and creative idea and gift! and i love how personal it is to the children, your talents amaze me!!!

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  15. Oh my Kim, this is just totally amazing, I can only imagine how excited they were to see this awesome creation you have made!! You have put such fantastic detail in this, great impression of their faces you got, love the little windows you have put in there too, such a great thing you have done for this family, it will be so cool if they keep it and hand it down to their own kids when they grow up!

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  16. Beyond amazing! Your sources of creativity never end! How creative to take a tablecloth and turn it into a pirate ship, complete with their pictures sewn into it! You have an incredible eye for every little detail! What an incredible gift to give little Eli, I'm sure it will be one he treasures always and passes on down to his children too! I'm wondering what projects you will be onto next... you never cease to amaze me with your artistic handiwork :) Have a blessed day my friend, appreciate your friendship so much!

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  17. oh dear this is AMAZING!!!
    you are GREAT at your skills of creativity !

    wonderful achievement as this ship looks most beautiful ship i have ever seen .
    this gift of your's for kids is everlasting i believe

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  18. Oh Kim how fabulous is this cubby. You are so clever and so imaganitive. I think this post is a book in the making. Can't wait to see the castle or cottage which I hope you will make too.
    Thank you for your visit to my blog and lovely comments too. Stay warm xx jeanette ann

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  19. Kim, how amazing is this!!! A birthday to remember for all. Thank you so much for including us in this celebration. ♥

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  20. Oh Kim, Little one eye Eli is so cute peeking out of that porthole. You gave this pirate house everything a kids imagination could conjure up. I'm sure there will be many hours of fun for Eli and his sis. Thanks so much for sharing it with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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    1. One-Eye Eli is cute, isn't he. It is a delight to share with you at SYC, lovely Jann. Kim Xx

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  21. Wow, Kim!
    Eli, his sister, and their friends will have such fun with Eli's wonderful pirate play house!
    Can't wait to see the castle ..... knights and dragons too ..... the stuff that dreams are made of!
    Well done ..... it's adorable!
    Barbara x

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  22. Dear Kim, I love your imagination! You are so talented and creative. What a wonderful creation for the one year old to have for a party. Love the pirate theme.

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  23. Trust you to make something so special for One-Eye Eli and include his sister Ari in it too. You added such sweet details, even portholes!! They are very very lucky to have you in their lives, Kim! What an amazing gift! Bon Voyage!!

    -Soma

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  24. Wonderful work Kim and you couldn´t have thought of a better gift to be used for years. Loved seeing the happy faces.

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  25. I can't believe how sweet and adorable this is. You must have had such fun making it and you know the kids will have fun as well. Now I want one.
    Amalia
    xo

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  26. How beyond wonderful! You have the perfect eye for color and print combos. You make me want to pull out my sewing machine.

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  27. How sweet is that! What a great gift. And O so much fun to be had too.

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  28. Kim,
    What a truly thoughtful, amazing gift you have made for this little boy! The details are wonderful and sure to spark a child's imagination! I want to play in it! LOL! I cannot get over your creativity and talents! WOW!

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    1. I want to don my pirate's hat and put on my eye patch and play in it too, Linda. Oh to be a wee child again. =) Thank you so very much for your lovely comments, lovely lady. Kim Xx

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  29. What a perfect idea and the kids have so much fun with the pirate ship.
    You made it so beautiful!!!!!!

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    1. Thank you, lovely Loes. The kids will have oodles of fun escaping to imaginative, faraway lands. Kim Xx

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  30. ADORABLE!!!!! Any pirate would find this a worthy ship! Love it!!

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    1. Thank you, Sheryl.It is a delight to have you visit. Kim Xx

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  31. Oh my goodness...what a blessed little one Eli is to have received such an amazing birthday gift! How much fun is this?? When I was little, my mom just threw a quilt or blanket over the picnic table outside...lol! Kim my dear, you never cease to amaze me with your gift of imagination and nimble fingers! Blessing on your weekend!

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  32. I can't even imagine the fun you had and the fun One-eyed Eli and his sister will have with their pirate ship. And to be so lucky as to have one made by you - with all the clever ideas and sweet designs. When our three kids were little they would build all sorts of tents and houses of sheets and blankets and whatever would hold them up - the giggles and fun was amazing. For our grandsons I made a tipi - blue fabric with white pvc pipes for the tipi poles and big wooden beads between the poles at the top to hold it open - oh the fun they had. And I made a big fat polka dot pad to go inside the tipi for the comfort of little explorers. I have lots of photos of the fun times the boys had and when our third grandson visited from West Virginia he had fun for days, going in and out and inviting everyone to come inside (even though we couldn't fit). When everyone outgrew the tipi we gave it to a friend who has four little boys - can you just imagine the fun they are going to have? Hope your week ahead is as sweet as your pirate cubby my dear.

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  33. Oh that is so super cute!! I never would have thought to go to so much effort - yet it's totally worth it.

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    1. Thank you so much, Linda. I must admit the ideas kept flowing as I stitched. You know how it is. =) Thank you for popping by. Kim Xx

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  34. How clever! And love the parrot! Hours of fun! Anna x

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    1. Pirates and parrots kinda go hand in hand. =) I love the parrot too, Anna. Thank you for your sweet comments. Kim Xx

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  35. This is fabulous, Kim! Perfect for the aspiring Pirate and his sister to have so much fun and to learn about the world too as they grow older. I can't imagine a more fun gift :)

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  36. What a fun project for you to make and the kids to play with! I remember my kids making forts out of a card table and old quilts, but they never had anything as wonderful as this pirate ship. I hope I remember this idea when I have grandchildren!

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  37. Fabulous! I only wish that my kids were still little and I could make something like it.

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