Friday, October 30, 2015

Kids Halloween Costume - The Making of the Titanic Ship!

  
My kids with their Titanic Ship costume!

Shern came back to tell me there is going to be a Halloween party for the school, and that he needed a costume.
As you all know we weren't fans of ghosts, vampires or skeletons or anything scary. Halloween to my kids is dressing up and collecting candies.

All these while, Shern has never been into superheroes (Iron Man, Superman, Batman, etc) like the other boys his age. Shern likes transports. 
And most available costumes for rent/sale for little boys are superhero costumes, and they can get pretty expensive too which is quite a waste since it is only for worn for a day or so.

And as you all know, Shern is currently very into the Titanic, view my blog post here, and my latest status update on Facebook. So it was no surprise when Shern came home and told me he wanted a Titanic costume. Mine you, it was not about being a captain of the Titanic, but more like being the Titanic ship itself!

And Khye of course he wanted what his koko wanted! 
I would be happy if he said he wanted to be Mickey coz it would be easier, but nope, he wanted a Titanic too.
So this was how I needed to make not one, but two Titanic ships for both boys!

I searched around online and on Pinterest to find an easy-to-do Titanic costume and there were not many. Thank goodness in the end I found this and felt that it was achievable. 
And so I thought about it in my mind on how to do it.

I went to Popular to buy some cloth tapes, black, red, and yellow as I know I will be using these to wrap the box up. Next in search of the correct size box. For Khye it was easy because I wanted a small box so that it would not be too heavy for him to carry.
As for Shern, he wanted a bigger one. I wanted something flat so a TV box would be good. The problem is where do I find a discarded TV box?

I went to a few electrical shops to get this box. Most shops tell me they didn't have any as most of their boxes are either with goods or discarded away. Luckily there was this nice man in the SEC Electrical shop in Prima Tanjung who said he would keep one for me when he did delivery that day. And that was how I got the box for Shern's ship. 



Firstly, I made Khye's Titanic ship first. 

It was easy actually and few materials needed:
- a suitable box. 
- cloth tapes of black, red and yellow to wrap it up. (for white, I used normal paper)
- black paper for windows
- kitchen rolls
- alphabets stickers for the words RMS TITANIC
- elastic strap
- round punch, scissors, glue, pen knife.

For your info, this is how a Titanic looks like:

The making of Khye's simple Titanic ship.
 
 



As for Shern's, same materials used but I just added in more windows as Shern wanted more details. In fact, this is the blue print he drew for me. 
"Mum, I want mine to be like this. Make sure the funnels/smokestacks are slanted" says Shern.



And so, I got to work on his.
 



Shern helped of course by punching out the circles for the windows and sticking the square and circle windows onto his ship. 


As I was doing it just a few days before, I worked on it until 3am 2 nights ago. I was a bit zombi-fied the next morning when I woke up at 6.20am as usual. 

But it was all worth it when I see the almost-end results. 




 

 


And the happiness on my boys' faces when they tried it on. 
 

I then also did some modification on them after they tried it on. I slit two holes for Shern's Titanic to hold his big ship, one on each side. 
See the hole in the middle of the ship on the black part?
 


I also changed the strap. From a normal straight strap to a crossed strap for more secure hold. 

 


I must say I am pretty proud of my work. It looks decent and most important my boys are happy with them. 
And they are cheap. In total I spent about rm20 to make these two, excluding labour costs though. hehe.
 
 


My boys parading in their Titanic ships!
 
 


Later on, the boys will be bringing their ships to the party. Hope the ships will last throughout the party. 
I think I'm bringing some tape and glue there just in case parts of the ship drop out halfway during the party, haha. 

I'm now still counting the years until Vern gets bigger and wants his own costume too. Then, I will be needed to make 3 costumes! *sweat




To see more of our previous Kid-Friendly Halloween Costumes, click below

Harry Potter Costume
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2017/03/kids-diy-costume-making-of-harry-potter.html


Rain Cloud Costume
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2016/10/kids-halloween-costume-making-of-rain.html


Dragon Cape and Mask Costume
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2016/10/kids-halloween-costume-dragon-cape-mask.html



Titanic Costumes
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2015/10/kids-halloween-costume-making-of.html



Jet Packs Costumes
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2014/10/kids-halloween-costume-making-of-jet.html
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2014/11/halloween-trick-or-treating-in-straits.html


Train Costume
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2013/11/labour-of-love-making-of-train-costume.html
http://www.tanshuyin.com/2013/11/sherns-first-halloween-with-trick-or.html

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Review: Ergobaby Wrap

23 September 2015 - Vern @ 2mo in Ergobaby Wrap

As you all should know by now, I love babywearing
I only started to babywear Khye when he was a few months old, and it brought us both so much comfort. Khye was a very contented baby whenever I babywear him. 

I'd reviewed the Pikkolo, the Boba 3G, the Ergobaby Performance, the Ergobaby 360 and also the LÍLLÉbaby® Complete All Seasons for soft-structured baby carriers (SSC). 
I'd also reviewed the SUPPORi Baby Sling

With Vern now, I am happy to be able to review another baby carrier by Ergobaby - the Ergobaby Wrap!
This is my first ever wrap, so let's see what I think about it. 


SO WHO AND WHY CHOOSE ERGO?


First designed by Karin Frost from Hawaii, the original Ergobaby Carrier was developed for her son, applying proper ergonomics to a pragmatic need: keep your baby close. 
The Ergobaby Carrier was born out of a personal desire for mobility and comfort allowing you to tackle life while maintaining a close & natural bond with your baby and toddle.The Ergobaby is already well known for its comfortable ergonomic design for both parents and baby. I guess this is the main key for many concerned parents; to have a comfortable yet ergonomic baby carrier. 
(Source: www.ergobaby.com)




FIRST IMPRESSION & FEATURES

It came in a big box together with other stuff so the Ergobaby box was well-cushioned


This is the box of the Ergobaby Wrap; the front of the box, the back, and the sides of it.
The front of the box has a large image and words of the Ergobaby Wrap, telling me at once the content of the box. 

 
 


The box comes with a string for easy carry and transportation.

And at the front right bottom of the box there is a little see-through square which tells me the colour choice of my carrier - Eucalytptus in colour. 
I love the colour as it is a lovely calm colour, which is not too loud and yet bright enough.

Upon removing the Ergobaby Wrap from the box, these are the contents inside. The Ergobaby Wrap, a manual booklet, and also a silica gel packet.

The Ergobaby Wrap itself felt rather cushion-y and soft when I took it out from the box. I read that it is made of ultra-soft premium cotton
The whole long fabric is neatly stuffed into its own pocket which becomes a built-in storage pocket which I think is a genius idea. It folds easily into its own pocket for compact and easy storage

This is the actual size of the Ergobaby Wrap when stuffed into its pocket compared to my palm, so you can have a rough estimate of it. 


But actually the material is rather squishy so you can actually fold it one more time to make it even smaller if you are really tight of space.
Here it is when stuffed inside my good long-lasting Storksak Emily Diaper Bag.
You can see that although it is not small, it is also not bulky, and can fit inside my diaper bag with its soft and fold-able material. 
 

This is how the front and back of the pocket looks like. Eucalyptus shade at the front, and the contrasting black for the back of the pouch. 
 
 

There is even a little handle sewn by the side of the pocket.
 

This little handle is very useful for easy carry, and especially useful when my diaper bag and stroller basket are full, as I could hand it on my stroller hook, or anywhere else. which makes it convenient for me whenever needed. 
 


At the centre of the pouch is the Ergobaby logo and at the sides of one end of the cloth are a few labels such as warning label, material made label and washing instructions label. 
 


Now let me spread the wrap open. 
There you all, the wrap all spread out. It is indeed a lot of cloth! 
To tell the truth, I was a bit intimidated seeing so much cloth as I was using a wrap for my first time.  

A little leaflet manual came with it, with photos on how to wear it, giving you a quick guide and warning on suffocation/fall hazard. 
 

I find the leaflet manual really useful for first-time wrap mummy like me.
By just looking at it, I was able to wrap Vern in it for a tryout at home. 

But I would also like to recommend this video for those who prefers to watch and follow. This is a video on how to tie the Newborn Basic Tie in an Ergobaby Wrap:



Now, why I choose a wrap over SSCs to wear little Vern?

Wraps provide a great way to develop the bond and closeness between parents and baby in the early months and beyond. Being carried in a wrap keeps baby feeling safe and secure, reminding them of the womb. 

Although most SSCs claim that they are suitable for infants, I feel better using the wrap or ring sling for infants.
This is because carrying baby in a wrap carrier is very much easy to achieve Safe Babywearing, especially for an infant. 

So what is Safe Babywearing?
A general rule of thumb is to wear your baby close and high enough to be easily kissed on the baby's forehead. Baby's chin/airways should always be uncovered and visible.
Their hips and thighs should be in a squatted straddle/frog-leg 'M' position, which occurs when baby's spine curves into a natural 'c' shape while being worn, just like the diagram below. 

Photo Source: http://www.babydoousa.com/info/safety/

I would say that I needed a bit more time than usual during my initial tying days. Wraps has a steeper learning curve compared to soft structured carriers (SSCs).
At the initial days with the Ergobaby Wrap, I spent a lot of time trying to get it really right. 
Sometimes I wore it too loose, and sometimes I wore it too tight, so I needed to learn how to adjust the tightness of it. It is quite easy actually once you get the hang of it. 
 
 

I have a love/hate relationship with the large pocket in the centre of the Ergobaby Wrap.

I love the center large pocket because it helps me have a guide on whether am I adjusting/wearing it at the correct length of the cloth, knowing where is the center of it all
But then I hate it because if I wear it a little tilted, it is very obvious because of the contrasting colour, so initially I spent a lot of time getting it to look centered. 


And once you get the hang of it, it can become really easy. It would take me just a minute or so to wrap Vern up like this. 
This is Vern when he was about 2 months old. 
Ergobaby Wrap is very ergonomic as it supports Vern in a healthy frog-leg 'M' position with secure head and neck support. 


Ergobaby Wrap is actually a hybrid wrap. Hybrid wraps combine the benefits of both woven and stretchy wraps because hybrid are strong, but also stretch due to the special material. 
Ergobaby Wrap is made of a material called the 4D Stretch. The strong 4D Stretch material flexes in 4 directions, providing unparalleled strenght, support and flexibility. 

I find that it provided me with the perfect fit as the perfect amount of stretch hugs Vern to me easily.
The material although stretches yet it doesn't sag from the baby's weight even when I wear Vern for many hours when I'm out. It does bounce back well, but never feel overstretched.
It also provides comfort and flexibility as Vern and me can still move our hands and body as usual and not limiting our movements. No slipping downwards if tied properly

As you can see, this newborn basic tie position allows Vern's head to be easily kissable. 
 


This is an example of me babywearing Vern using the Ergobaby Wrap, the front, back, and sides of it. 
 
 


Babywearing makes me hands-free to do anything while calming little Vern. With my both hands free, I can go to the mall all by myself while browsing clothes with my hands. Or I can even hold on to my elder boys' hands to make sure they don't get lost.

With this hybrid wrap providing enough support, you can actually take baby in and out without the need to re-tie the wrap. I tried it and it is absolutely true if you tie it properly and correctly. And this is an absolute life saver, because I cannot imagine tying the Ergobaby Wrap with its long, long cloth in the mall.


However, there was once I needed to retie because I was in a rush and did not tie it properly at home, and I tell you, it was a nightmare to retie. It was difficult not to let the long cloth sweep the dirty floors without another person to help. 
So this was a lesson I learnt: Never leave the house with the Ergobaby Wrap without properly tying it

Although it is said that the Ergobaby Wrap is made out of a thinner, breathable cotton material, I still find it pretty hot if I were to use it outdoors in our hot and humid country
Therefore, I only use it in air-conditioned places like in the mall. 

I also like that the Ergobaby Wrap is machine washable, so I was not afraid of it getting dirty. I just tumble-dry it at low settings and then lay it flat on my clothes line to airdry it. 

Another thing to note is that the weight limit for Ergobaby Wrap is 15kg (31 lbs), and I know that when the baby gets bigger, such as 6 months old, most people would graduate to either a woven wrap, or to using a soft-structured carrier (SSC). So the lifetime of this wrap is pretty short.

However, saying this, I still feel that a wrap or a ring sling is most suitable for newborns and infants, so I've no regret using this. 




TO PURCHASE 

Please visit Bloom & Grow Asia for their list of retailers.
You can also visit their Facebook page for more info. 




To read about my other reviews on babycarriers, click on below :-
a) Soft-structured Carriers (SSCs)
Pikkolo by Catbird Baby
LÍLLÉbaby® Complete All Seasons (Part 1Part 2)
- Ergobaby; Ergobaby Performance, and Ergobaby 360.

b) Wraps
Ergobaby Wrap


c) Slings SUPPORi Baby Sling
SUKKIRI Ring Sling



* Disclosure: I received an Ergobaby Wrap for review purpose, but no monetary incentive was received. All text and opinions are of my own and represents my honest opinion of the product(s).

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