To Infinity & Beyond!

Ethan absolutely loves the character of Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story. When his kindie teacher asked the class what they wanted to be when they grow up, Ethan's answer was.....yup, you guessed it.....BUZZ LIGHTYEAR! lol

He came up to me one day and asked me if he could have a helmet just like Buzz's. Disney-Pixar had created a good character in Buzz, so I saw no harm in encouraging Ethan in his role-play. However, licensed toys and accessories are just too pricey, but I also had no heart to deny Ethan this innocent childhood pleasure. So.......I decided to get creative! The photo below is the result. I'm kinda pleased with myself (grin)!

The 'backpack' with wings attached.

Not exactly Disney-Pixar quality, and I must admit the 'helmet' looks kinda dismal... BUT! the good news is Ethan is totally thrilled! Phew! He couldn't wait to try it on.

The entire 'thingamajig' was created from items I found in the household. The main structure and the wings are from cardboard recycled from carton boxes. The foam wrapped with masking tape that goes around his neck, and the wires, are leftover remnants from the stage backdrop I made for my line dance party several years ago. The transparent plastic is the same as those used to wrap my children's textbooks.

The green 'chest plates' in front are made from polystyrene disposable lunch boxes. The wings are detachable from the main frame. And, although not shown here, the hinges which allow it to be detached are fashioned out of office paper clips. Everything and anything that needs to be stuck together is given the hot-glue treatment.

And, of course, the final touch is the painting, for which I used poster paints which cost me only RM6.40 from Tesco. :)

In the end, I have a happy child, recycled some stuff from home which I would have eventually thrown away, and did not have to spend a bomb for the real thing (giving myself a pat on the back...heheh).

Posing with his idol, Buzz

Oh dear, 'Buzz Lightyear' has got the sniffles. The universe shall have to wait.

Next phase... To get a pair of white pants and white long-sleeved T-shirt/pullover for Ethan, create some 'gloves' and 'shoulder shields', pull a purple 'ski-mask' thingy over his head and voila! he is set for 'In..finity.....And Beyond!' :)