We all know a lot about pirates and pirate ships, thanks to Captain Jack Sparrow of "The Pirates of the Caribbean" fame. Being on a pirate ship is a fantasy, however, we can turn it into a reality by doing something similar, making one for ourselves. Let's go ahead...
You can buy a remote-controlled pirate ship for your son to play the Captain of a pirate ship. Although he has his toy sword and a couple of old maps and compasses, he does not have a ship for himself.
Building one for him using household material, is not only a challenge for you but also would be a great thing of pride for your little one. If we can manage to devote one Sunday afternoon on it, we can actually come out with 'flying waters'.
Let's Try with Cardboard!
Instead of spending money, you can just pick up a few shopping cardboard boxes which, we are sure, would be lying somewhere in your basement. They must be big and the packages of your refrigerator or television set would be just fine.
You would also need a knife, some tape, a marker, some broomsticks, paint and painting brushes, pieces of cloth to make the mast and obviously, a design or a plan so that you don't end up building a modern cruise line.
Draw the base on a refrigerator box and cut it accordingly. It should make up the base and the sides of the ship. Take another box to make the hull. Always draw with a marker before cutting, to get the desired shapes. You can cut and tape boxes of different shapes to give the inside an original look. Now it's time for the masts to be hoisted.
You can use broomsticks or cardboard rolls for them and you can attach the colorful pieces of cloth as well. Paint the ship with a dark color to give it a worn-out look. You can also attach anchor-shaped cardboard and paper skulls. Your pirate ship is ready to be brought in front of the 'Captain' for approval.
Why not with Milk Carton?
Cut a milk carton down the middle, length-wise. Place your carton horizontally with the open side facing upwards. Cover it with a piece of brown construction paper and tape it firmly. You can use a black strip of paper to attach at the lower part, where the ship touches the water.
Cut another carton, breadth-wise to get a top-open square. Cut a few pieces of colorful paper to make the sails and attach them to the straws using tape. Now attach the straws vertically to the base of the square milk carton.
Bring all the parts of your ship together by placing the square carton piece inside the main body. Color and decorate to your liking. You can even use a foam piece instead of the construction paper and see your kid having a gala time in the bathtub. A treat to your eyes for sure!
A Cake sounds Yum!
The best gift that you can give your little one on his birthday is a theme party. A pirate theme would be unique and a cake of the same idea would be all the more animating.
Ingredients required are not much different from any other cake.
1 ½ cup white flour
½ cup cocoa powder
⅓ teaspoon baking soda
4 eggs (optional)
2 cups cream (in case eggs are not used)
½ cup corn oil
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla extract (essence will do)
1 cup cold brewed coffee
a pinch of salt
a spoonful of vinegar
loads of chocolates and nuts for decoration
Pre-heat the oven to 375o. In a bowl, mix eggs/cream, oil, sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Mix well and add the flour, cocoa powder and baking soda. Blend the mix until smooth. You can add a little milk or cream in case the mix is too watery. Add the vinegar.
Pour the ingredients into a baking pan along with the chocolate and nuts and bake for about 30 minutes. Cut the cake into two flat pieces; one square and the other rectangular. Shape the rectangular piece like a ship and place the square piece above it. Insert some candy straws in the square piece for masts.
Use some frosting to stick the two layers of cake. Now that the structure is ready, you can explore with different colored creams, jellies, ice-creams and candies. The ideal cake must have a lot of booty of candies and nuts. Mouth-watering, isn't it?
Creativity knows no bounds and flows like a river. The given ideas can only help you think in some novel direction. There is no end to what all you can do. You can devote an entire afternoon making a pirate ship styled playhouse for your kid or you can make a beautiful ship-in-a-bottle as a birthday present for your grandma.
You can arrange a pirate party for your wedding or you can plan a pirate ship 'treasure hunt' for a college re-union. See, it's so amusing!