Today on Fun Jar Friday~
Okay, so if you've been around awhile, you know about my love for PVC. If you haven't, well, you'll know soon enough.
Why do I like PVC so much?
One, it's super cheap. 8 feet for under $2, and a pack of 10 elbows and other hinges for $3. I'll take it.
And Two, think giant tinker toys, people! You can make just about anything with this stuff. It's durable and versatile.
So, my kids used to have puppet shows. My Mother in Law made the boys some adorable felt puppets several years back. They are terrific even though they didn't quite hold up to the rough and tough play of boys. After all, there is something engrained in the male child's brain that turns any mode of play into a fighting game. And every object turns in to a weapon.
Felt puppets don't withstand this type of treatment.
My youngest son had a large barn playset. It stood up high and one side was the outside of the barn and the other side was the inside with lots of flippies and turnies and sounds a baby would love. In the middle was the barn door which created an opening perfect for their puppet shows.
In the process of cleaning and organizing my living room, I decided to rid myself of baby toys since there is no longer a baby living in my house. This barn was one of the things to go since it was huge, took up a lot of space and it had been awhile since it had been used for a puppet theatre.
I thought I was fine putting it away. After all, kids forget about things completely until they see them again, right?
Wrong.
The other day my youngest son found the puppets.
"I want to play puppets!" he says to me all excited about his find.
"Sure, son" I say. Forgetting all that was involved. Apparently I need to see things to remember as well.
He looks around the room.
"But where's the barn?"
Crud.
After some discussion about how he was too old for the barn and we had to put it away to make room for new toys, he still wasn't buying it. You couldn't put on a puppet show without the barn.
So, I decided to make a new puppet theatre.
And I put it together using things I had around the house and from previous fun jar activities. And it was a hit.
Yippee!
What you need
8- 2 foot lengths of 3/4 in PVC
6-2.5 foot lengths of 3/4 in PVC
4- 2 in lengths of 3/4 in PVC
8- 3/4 in PVC elbows
8- 3/4 in PVC T joints
king or queen sized sheet
twin sized sheet or fabric
dark fabric or or sheet
two baby blankets, fabric, or pillowcases
lots of safety pins.
strips of material to tie sashes
The PVC I used all came from my PVC sprinkler house I did last summer which came from a sprinkler I built the year before for the kids. See how there are many uses for PVC? And I cut 2 in pieces from leftover scraps (don't throw out your leftovers) If you don't have PVC around, this project will run you about $10 (assuming you have a bunch of sheets or blankets around)
I've said before and I'll say it again. You can cut PVC with a mitre saw or any small saw. But if you plan to use PVC a lot, I highly suggest investing in a PVC cutter. They are about $12 and worth every penny.
Build your set like the picture below. It helps to build the front and back first on the ground, and then attach them together.
Anyone want to come edge my lawn for me?
Next, starting on one side, pin the large sheet around the sides and back of the theatre. Excuse the sun flares. I was apparently shooting pictures at the magical time of night. I simply wrapped the top edge around the PVC and pinned it to itself. I used several pins and went all the way around. You may recognize the sheet I used as the blanket bubble.
Next, attach the dark blanket to the inside of the theatre. I put it about 2/3 of the way towards the front. This allows the kids to stand behind a backdrop while they put on their show. I simply pinned the top corners to the large sheet.
(sun flare attack!)
Now the curtains. I used two baby blankets for those. Wrapped the top edges around again and pinned. I also pinned them together at the top so they wouldn't separate when the curtains were opened. The strips of fabric (which I pulled off my son's bedroom curtains) were used to keep the curtains opened during the show. I just tied the curtains to the PVC pipe.
(attack attack!)
Finally, I used a twin sized sheet for the front. I just draped it over.
And we're done!
The kids can crawl under and put on their show.
It was an excellent solution to the puppet theatre problem.
(actually liked the flares here)
Only problem now?
He won't let me take it down.
Want to see some more PVC fun jar activities?
PVC Bow and Arrow
Marshmallow Shooters
Rocket Launcher
PVC Sprinkler Playhouse
I thought I was fine putting it away. After all, kids forget about things completely until they see them again, right?
Wrong.
The other day my youngest son found the puppets.
"I want to play puppets!" he says to me all excited about his find.
"Sure, son" I say. Forgetting all that was involved. Apparently I need to see things to remember as well.
He looks around the room.
"But where's the barn?"
Crud.
After some discussion about how he was too old for the barn and we had to put it away to make room for new toys, he still wasn't buying it. You couldn't put on a puppet show without the barn.
So, I decided to make a new puppet theatre.
And I put it together using things I had around the house and from previous fun jar activities. And it was a hit.
Yippee!
What you need
8- 2 foot lengths of 3/4 in PVC
6-2.5 foot lengths of 3/4 in PVC
4- 2 in lengths of 3/4 in PVC
8- 3/4 in PVC elbows
8- 3/4 in PVC T joints
king or queen sized sheet
twin sized sheet or fabric
dark fabric or or sheet
two baby blankets, fabric, or pillowcases
lots of safety pins.
strips of material to tie sashes
The PVC I used all came from my PVC sprinkler house I did last summer which came from a sprinkler I built the year before for the kids. See how there are many uses for PVC? And I cut 2 in pieces from leftover scraps (don't throw out your leftovers) If you don't have PVC around, this project will run you about $10 (assuming you have a bunch of sheets or blankets around)
I've said before and I'll say it again. You can cut PVC with a mitre saw or any small saw. But if you plan to use PVC a lot, I highly suggest investing in a PVC cutter. They are about $12 and worth every penny.
Build your set like the picture below. It helps to build the front and back first on the ground, and then attach them together.
Anyone want to come edge my lawn for me?
Next, starting on one side, pin the large sheet around the sides and back of the theatre. Excuse the sun flares. I was apparently shooting pictures at the magical time of night. I simply wrapped the top edge around the PVC and pinned it to itself. I used several pins and went all the way around. You may recognize the sheet I used as the blanket bubble.
Next, attach the dark blanket to the inside of the theatre. I put it about 2/3 of the way towards the front. This allows the kids to stand behind a backdrop while they put on their show. I simply pinned the top corners to the large sheet.
(sun flare attack!)
Now the curtains. I used two baby blankets for those. Wrapped the top edges around again and pinned. I also pinned them together at the top so they wouldn't separate when the curtains were opened. The strips of fabric (which I pulled off my son's bedroom curtains) were used to keep the curtains opened during the show. I just tied the curtains to the PVC pipe.
(attack attack!)
Finally, I used a twin sized sheet for the front. I just draped it over.
And we're done!
The kids can crawl under and put on their show.
It was an excellent solution to the puppet theatre problem.
(actually liked the flares here)
Only problem now?
He won't let me take it down.
Want to see some more PVC fun jar activities?
PVC Bow and Arrow
Marshmallow Shooters
Rocket Launcher
PVC Sprinkler Playhouse
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