"Super" Gift Idea

Here is how this random project came about: Tyler and I were invited to a Ever's 2 year old birthday party this weekend and I was determined to bring my A-game in the gift department! You see being the only child of model/photographer/musician parents meant that I didn't think a normal monogrammed beach bag was going to do the trick! So I decided to think outside the box on this one and what did I come up with? Duh, what kid doesn't need a superhero cape?! I'm not talking about a generic, cheap shiny fabric kind of cape, I'm talking about a personalized, washable, you can play in this thing until your face falls off kind of cape!

So Saturday morning, with my 40% off coupons in tow, I marched over to Joann's and made the magic happen. I picked up 1 yard of solid colored broad cloth, 1 yard of fun printed fabric, Velcro squares, 2 colors of felt, and some good ole "friendship bracelet" thread. Yes, I still refer to cross stitching thread as friendship bracelet thread.

Next up, I stole one of Tyler's ugly old king sized pillowcases from his bachelor days and did my best to make a template from scratch. I took it over to Blair's house so I could test it out on her 2 year old daughter and it seemed to work pretty well. So I headed back to the studio (aka my dining room) and started working away. I traced and cut out both pieces of fabric, sewed them together (good side to good side), then flipped it so that it had the good sides faced out. Next, I pressed the seams, did a finishing stitch all the way around and sewed on the Velcro for the neck.
I hired Tyler for the next part, he used his master geometry/drawing/cutting skills to create and cut out a perfectly symmetrical capital E and a not so symmetrical but equally awesome starburst. I used my cool friendship bracelet thread to secure the E and then used a zig-zag stitch for the starburst. And TA-DA it was finished!

 I am not going to lie, I think Tyler and I were way more excited about this thing than the birthday boy ever could be and even Strongbow begged and pleaded to try it on!

 
If you need a superhero cape for your next event let me know and I bet I can make it happen!