Dementor Attack Emergency Pouch - Happy Harry Potter 2017

We all have days when we can feel the dementors lurking...And for those days having a Dementor Attack Emergency Pouch at the ready is just what Madam Pomfrey ordered.  (I'm sharing this as part of Happy Harry Potter at Raegun Ramblings.  Click over to Raegun Ramblings for more Harry Potter inspired projects and read to the end of the post to enter to win some awesome prizes.)  This post contains affiliate links to help support my blog. I used product given by Fairfield World in this post.  all opinions, ideas, and enthusiasm are my own.

These also make great gifts for any friends or loved ones who may struggle with dementors as well.

Jumbo Zipper Pouch Tutorial

This easy Jumbo Zipper Pouch is the perfect pencil case to send your kids back to school with.  (I don't know about you...but the little ones they sell at the store never seem to fit the huge list of supplies the kids are asked to bring.)

They also make great gifts for teacher and if you choose the right novelty fabric they can be personalized to anyone's taste.  Disclaimer: Thanks as always to Fairfield World for providing the support foam and batting as well as compensating me for this project.  All opinions, ideas, and enthusiasm are 100% my own.  This post also contains affiliate links to help support my blog.

We also love to use these as Thank You gifts for our kids' teachers at the end of the year.  A good zipper pouch is a universally appreciated gift if you choose the right fabric and colors.

And once you get the hang of them, they are SO fast and easy.

10+ Amazing DIY Gifts She'll Love and the Weekly Block Party Link-Up

Need a gift for that special lady in your life? Whether it's mom, that awesome teacher, neighbor or sis, here are a ton of DIY gifts she will love!

Rose Cork Coasters | Appreciation Letter Tutorial | Post-it Note Gift

Circular Bag Tutorial | Lemon Hand Soap | Wooden Bead Key Chain

Embroidered Bookmark | Painted China Ware | DIY Jewelry Hanger

Fingerprint Bookmarks | Ombre Earrings | Lemon Candles

Marissa here from Rae Gun Ramblings. Here are some posts that have been super popular on my blog lately!

If you know someone Expecting this List of New Moms Tips New Moms Tips is a Must

Easiest Way to Make Perfect Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Super Yummy Crock Pot Spinach Artichoke Dip

Now let’s see what YOU have been up to. Link up to the Block Party and be featured on all our blogs! Rae Gun Ramblings | Keeping it Simple Crafts| Pieces By Polly Be sure to read over the guidelines…

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An InLinkz Link-up

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Easy Chocolate Occamy Eggs

You can make your own chocolate occamy eggs in minutes!  This is a super easy and fun surprise for anyone who loves Harry Potter or Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Newt has an occamy egg in the beginning of the Fantastic Beasts film that is hatching while he's trying to track down his niffler...and at the end of the film he gives a suitcase full of their solid silver eggshells to his No-Mag friend Jacob so he can start his bakery.  So their silver eggs aren't a huge plot point...but are definitely one of the awesomely fun details that J.K. Rowling is so good at putting in her stories.

And the best part is you don't have to be super crafty to make your own.

All you need is your favorite kind of chocolate eggs that already have a foil wrapping.

Carefully unwrap the egg.  Flatten the foil as much as possible.  It's best to avoid tearing, but even if you tear the wrapper, this will still work.

Re-wrap the egg with the printed foil on the inside and the silver foil on the outside.

And you're done!  I wanted some forever eggs to keep around after Easter is over, so I also painted some craft eggs with silver paint.  I used both paper-mache eggs and wooden eggs.  The wooden ones are my favorite because they look smoother and have more of a "real" egg weight to them.

And what better Easter "Basket" than to fill up a suitcase reminiscent of Newt Scamander's?  You can find out all the details for how I made my Newt Scamander Easter Basket on the Fairfield site.

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Ella Elephant Shirt Pattern - KOTLC - Keeper of the Lost Cities

Keeper of the Lost Cities Fans will be familiar with Sophie Foster's Ella the Elephant.  This free pattern can be used to make Ella's characteristic Hawaiian shirt.

Thanks to Fairfield World for providing me product and compensating me for this post. All ideas, patterns, opinions, and enthusiasm are entirely my own.  This post contains affiliate links.

My oldest daughter was introduced to the Keeper of the Lost Cities series by Shannon Messenger a year or so ago and they quickly became her favorite books (even surpassing Harry Potter for her.)  She's been sharing them with her friends ever since discovering them and asked for a Keeper of the Lost Cities theme for her recent birthday party.  The Keeper of the Lost Cities books have interesting girl and boy characters and Harry Potter fans looking for a similar (and yet very different) series will love these books.  I can definitely see more Keeper of the Lost Cities projects in our future.

This is the author's rendition of Sophie and Ella.  (Lots of Shannon Messanger's Keeper of the Lost Cities Character Art can be found on her blog here.)

An Ella the Elephant is a great gift for Keeper of the Lost Cities Fan or is a great way to introduce a child to the series.

Regular blog readers will know I can't pass up an opportunity to give encourage reading and give bookish gifts, so I made her and Ella Elephant.  Ella is Sophie's (the main character) stuffed elephant that is one of the only possessions she brings when she has to leave her human family to join the Elvish world to which she really belongs.  Ella is described as a bright blue elephant with a Hawaiian shirt and she shows up in multiple books as a comfort to Sophie, and Sophie has a hard time sleeping without her.

Not being able to find any Ella patterns or Ella ready to buy, we made our own.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1/2 Yard bright Hawaiian Fabric
• 1/8 yard Structure One Sided Fusible Interfacing from Fairfield World
• 1 Blue Elephant - This pattern is made to particularly fit this elephant.
• 2 Copies of Each Pattern Piece - Ella Shirt Pattern 1 - Ella Shirt Pattern 2
• Buttons (optional)
• Sewing machine, thread, pins, and an iron

Directions:

Print out your pattern. (2 each of Ella Elephant KOTLC Shirt Pattern 1 and Ella Elephant KOTLC Shirt Pattern 2) Be sure your print settings are set to ACTUAL size to make sure your shirt fits.

You'll need to print two copies of each piece.  Cut one copy out.  Flip it over, and tape to the second piece at the blue lines.

Fold your fabric and line the pattern up with the RED line lined up with the fold.  Do NOT cut the red line side.  Cut around your pattern.

Cut Structure One Sided Fusible Interfacing to go inside color.  Iron in place to WRONG SIDE of fabric according to manufacturer's instructions.  You should end up with pieces that looks like this.

With RIGHT SIDES together, stitch the two ends of your collar with 1/4 inch seam allowance.  Clip corner.  Turn right side out and iron.

Fold over the raw edges of the sleeves 1/4 inch twice and iron.

Topstitch to hold in place.  You should now have two pieces that look like this.  With RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER, pin shirt together at sides.

Stitch with a 3/8 inch seam allowance.  Clip arm pit corner.

Matching centers, sew collar to the neckline of the shirt with 1/4 inch seam allowance.

Fold seam allowance under and topstitch so collar will lie flat.

The finished shape of the shirt will seam a bit odd, but it should fit your elephant well.

Hem the bottom of the shirt by folding under 1/4 inch twice and stop stitching.  Repeat with the two front openings of the shirt.

If desired you can embellish with buttons and if you really want to go the extra mile, you could add button holes.  I add a couple of buttons for looks, but didn't bother with button holes.

                                                                   
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