Harry Potter DIY Project Part 2 : Spell Book and Mandrake Root

Hooray!  Despite behind a month and a half past my original deadline, Christmas only 2 weeks away, pausing to celebrate my little man's birthday and managing the busiest cookie month EVER - I finally finished the Harry Potter DIY gifts for my daughter.

You can read more about how I made the potions in my earlier post here.

The Harry Potter Book of Spells and Magical Potions:

I opted to make it look like a scrapbook of spells.  A place where she could see the spells she's read about, but also add her own.  So, I looked up the spells here and formatted them using these free fonts.  I printed them on regular printer/copy paper, ripped the edges and aged them with tea.  After they dried, I glued them inside the leathery sketchbook I purchased from Hobby Lobby.  I also hand wrote a few spells for an even more handmade feel.  Finally, I added a sticker with the Hogwarts crest inside the front cover.

If you don't feel like editing and formatting your own spells, you can use the ones I prepared for FREE here.

Harry Potter Spells FREE Printable

Mandrake Root:



I'm a big fan of using what I have on hand for diy projects - so I made this Mandrake Root for FREE!  First, I shaped his body out of tin foil (this doesn't need to be perfect, as you'll be covering it in another thick material.)  Next I added the leaves and roots (from fake stems I had stored) using floral tape to attach them to the tin foil.  

To start shaping the body, I used all purpose compound (drywall mud) mixed with a little sand.  It took approx 3 coats to achieve the shape I wanted.  You could also use clay to mold the body.  Once that dried, I added some hot glue around the stems to assure they would stay in place and painted the little guy.  Finally I sprayed a sealer over the entire thing.  

*I'm planning on purchasing a little pot and a piece of brown felt (to look like soil) for him.  Oh and be sure to wear your ear muffs before you play with him!
 
The Extras:

Book: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them purchased on ebay.  Proceeds go to charity too!

Light up Magic Wand purchased on ebay.  This is really nice and very much exceeded my expectations.  It is not thick and bulky like the ones they sell in the costume store and the led light is very bright.


Potions Carrying Case / Wizard Kit:

I found this leather box (Hobby Lobby) with a handle to carry around her potion kit.  There's enough space for all the potion ingredients I made previously and her spell book as well as a small mixing cauldron of sorts (an oil warmer from the Dollar Tree) and 2 battery operated tea lights (to heat the potions.)