Last But Not Least - Summer Catch Up Post 3

Finally!!!! I was asked to make Harry Potter cookies!  It's even more fun when you're really into the theme of the cookies you are making.  And equally awesome I got to make Honey Bee cookies.  Maybe not quite at cool as Harry Potter, but I truly loved this set.  The last photo is a match to invitation (by SG Graphix - who also designed my new logo) set.  These are always challenging, but give your party treats a really unique design. 

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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.)

Harry Potter Potion Bottles DIY + FREE Printable!

Harry Potter Project Part 1 : Potion Bottles

I've finally started the Harry Potter DIY Christmas gifts for my daughter.   For the tutorials, I'll begin with the Potion Bottles because they are easily adaptable for Halloween.  There really is no wrong way to do these, so give it a try and have fun!

For my daughter's set, I'm going with mainly ingredients vs potions.  There will be a potion book to accompany the bottles later and I want her to be able to pretend to mix up her potions.

POTIONS:
What ingredients to use?  There is an extensive list of Harry Potter potion ingredients here and most of them have descriptions to help you when deciding what to add to the bottles.

BOTTLES:
I purchased a few of the cooler bottles, but all for $1 or less.  I also re-purposed several bottles I had on hand (bath and body works candles, food jars) and I bought a few mini wines, champagnes and shots at the liquor store (yes, I drank the contents - I do what I have to do!).  Here are some of the bottles I purchased (these go on sale often):  3" with cork, square bottle, heart bottle,   I actually found one bottle pre-filled with little wish bones at Hobby Lobby!

LABELS:
I had a difficult time finding free labels for the ingredients I wanted to use.  Let me be clear, a google search will pull up oodles of labels, but that does not mean they are free!  Many of them are meant to be purchased from the creator on etsy and such.  Hey, if you don't mind spending a few bucks there are LOTS of nice labels to be purchased.  For me however, I decided to make my own.  I printed them on regular printer paper, aged them with tea bags, and burnt the edges.  I also opted to hand write a few of them.  I attached the labels using the glues I had on hand (mod podge, diamond glaze).

Here are a few links to FREE (yes, really free) Harry Potter Labels by other wonderful DIYers:
*Update some links have been removed from blogs that no longer exist :(

Harry Potter Drink Printables by Over The Big Moon
Harry Potter Potion Printables by Over the Big Moon

FILLING THE BOTTLES:
I really wanted my daughter to be able to play with these.  That meant no liquids and contents that aren't too messy.  You'll find that many of the online tutorials for Harry Potter Potions use Elmer's Glue.  While they look very nice, they aren't good for "playing" or keeping to decorate year after year.  The Elmer's Glue won't dry all the way thru and you'll need to seal the cork/lid to ensure the liquid won't ooze out.  That being said, these video tutorials are great for reference, and the resin feels much like glue while you are working with it.

For the liquid filled bottles, I used EnviroTex Lite.  This is a 1:1 resin that cures hard and is permanent.  This is by far the most expensive part of this project.  You can buy it at Michaels or Hobby Lobby with your paper or online coupons to save a bit.  The best part about this is that it basically looks cool and lasts forever.  Your child can take the cork off the bottle and pretend to pour it into their potions without any mess.  Tip:  Since this is expensive, use the smaller bottles for "liquids" and be sure to mix small amount to reduce waste.

What I used in my resin bottles:
Dragon Blood - Food coloring and glue to give it an opaque appearance, Unicorn Blood - Food coloring and glitter, Gillyweed - small stones from my path and leaves from fake floral, Acromantula Venom - just a little food coloring. 

For the solids I chose non-messy items I had on hand:
Mermaid Tears - Table Scatter, Bezoar - Decorative Stone, Rat Tails - I cut them off a package of Dollar Tree mice,  Bat Wings - cut off a pkg of Dollar Tree bats,  Pufferfish Eyes - Cut the berries off a holiday stem, Mandrake Root - cut fake stem pieces, Flutterbloom - middle of fake floral, Jobberknoll Feather - blue feathers, Spine of Lionfish - cut fake flowers and colored with sharpie, Bouncing Spider Juice - coated the inside of bottle with glue and sparkles, Belladonna - small beads, Scale of Dragon - large sequins.

 

DECORATE:
Anything goes here.  I used a combination of paints, glues, twine, charms and various leftover crafting supplies to decorate the bottles and lids.

**NOTE: All the bottles I made can be opened and played with.  Please remember if you have small children, many of the items used in this tutorial can be choking hazards.  This project is NOT recommended for small children.**

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My next tutorial will be for the Screaming Mandrake Root!  Be sure to check back soon.

Still to come: Spell Book and Kit Finishing Touches