Disney's Brave - Birthday Bow & Arrows

For one of the Highland Games for Jacey's Brave-themed birthday party, we opted to do an archery contest.  Of course, we needed bows and arrows for the kids.  I scoured the internet for ideas.  I found videos on You Tube and I found other blog posts as well.

This tutorial was my favorite and if I had to do it again, I would have added the cross sections for at least a few of the bows.  Unfortunately, I was pressed for time, so what little cutting and assembling I had to do, the better.

Here is a basic bow that doesn't take too much time and effort to do.  It cost about $20 to make six bows (four at 3.5 feet and two at 3 feet)

Materials List

1/2" PVC pipe - it comes in 10 foot poles at Home Depot (which makes up to three bows - two 3.5 ft bows and one 3 ft bow)

1/2" PVC plastic caps - two for each bow you intend to make

electrical tape

1/2" PVC pipe foam insulation

Nylon string
Drill

Lighter

Saw

1. Determine your measurements.  For our children ages 6 to 10, we used 3.5 ft bows.  For our daughter, age 3, we used a 3 ft bow.  This allowed us to get three bows from one ten foot pole.

2. Using a saw, cut the PVC pipe according to your measurements determined in step 1.

3. Measure in 1 inch from each end and mark the PVC pipe.

 

4. Using a drill, drill a hole in both markings.  You may chose to drill through the other side for easier stringing if you don't mind your string exposed on the outside.  We opted to just do one side.  I've seen other blog posts where they use a saw to cut a slit down to the drilled hole so the nylon rope can be knotted first and then slipped into place via the slit.

5. Put your nylon string through one end and double or triple knot the rope.  Use a lighter to melt the frayed ends.

 

6. String the other end of your nylon string through the hole and go grab your hubby (or anyone other strong person close by).  Have said husband (or friend) slightly bend the PVC pipe, while you pull the nylon string through the hole and tie a double knot.  The more bend you put in it before tying the string, the more tension you'll have. 

7. Trim the excess nylon string and use a lighter to melt frayed ends.

8. (Optional) - cover the whole pipe in electrical tape or duct tape.  Alternatively, you can paint a design on the pipe and use modge podge to seal it.  Or prior to assembly, spray paint it your desired color.

9. Cut the foam insulation to be at least double the width of your child's hand.  Wrap the foam around the middle of the bow and use electrical tape to secure in place.  To create grooves, wrap a few areas fairly tight with electrical tape, while wrapping the rest of it much lighter.

10. Put caps on the ends (don't glue them down, just in case the string breaks and you have to restring the bow later)

And there you have it! A bow worthy of some arrows.

Speaking of arrows, you can cheat (we ended up cheating) and buy some inexpensive arrows for about $2.50 at Walmart.  The kids each picked out their own.

We originally bought dowels and put notches in them, but we ran into two issues.  The dowels were too thin (1/4") and the notches weren't wide enough to nock the arrow properly.  As a result the kids had issues with using them.  Fortunately, we purchased some real arrows and let the kids use them during the archery contest. 

I plan to purchase some thicker dowels and use stoppers on one end to make them safer for the kids to use (see the link I shared at the beginning of this post - it shows a thicker dowel with rubber stoppers and felt).

Overall, the bows and arrows were a huge hit!

Disney's Brave - A Birthday Party

Have you gone to see the movie Brave, yet?  If not, I highly recommend you do so.  It is, for once, a princess story without being a love story, too.  It is a great mother-daughter movie, because it is about a princess and her mother who don't get along.  It has magic, it has hilarity, and it has heart.

Anyway, my step-daughter turned 9 yesterday.  A couple weeks ago, I told the kids that on the 4th of July we were going to the movies to see the new movie, Brave, since I had the day off from work.  Around the same time, I asked Jacey what kind of theme does she want for her party.  Of course, she wanted a Brave-themed party.

I immediately scoured the internet and Pinterest to find ideas.  Since the movie is so new, I couldn't find many.  I did see, however, that one of the biggest recommended activity to do for a Brave party, is to have a mini Highland Games.  The Highland Games is a Scottish tradition that tests contestants on a variety of skills such as the caber toss and axe throwing. 

It was then that I settled on three activities for our "Highland Games":  archery, javelin throw, and mini-caber toss.

Our archery contest consisted of homemade PVC pipe bows (I'll create another post to show how to make them, but there are plenty of tutorials on the internet), paper targets bought from Walmart, a pool noodle, thumb tacks, and a large board for mounting the targets.  We originally tried using wooden dowels for the arrows but it was difficult for the kids to nock the arrow (even though we carved a notch into one end).   Fortunately, we purchased some actual arrows from Walmart, so we ended up using those. 

Our javelin throw consisted of pool noodles cut in half and stuff with rolled newspaper stuffed in one end for extra weight.  We suspended a hula hoop from a fishing line that was strung from our deck out to a post in our yard.  The kids had two throws to make the javelin in the hoop. 

Lastly, our mini-caber toss.  I purchased a large pool noodle and we stuff it with newspapers to give it more weight.  I wish I had sand to fill the middle to add even more weight, but oh well.   The point of this game is to toss the "log" as far as you can and have it flip 180 degrees.  We used pool floaties to mark the furthest toss.

After the games, we enjoyed pulled pork and chicken sandwiches with chips and drinks (it was lunch time, so heavy foods weren't absolutely necessary).  Then came time for presents!

And of course, there was the cake.  I used figurines purchased at Toys R Us, bonus gift for Jacey.  It was a two tier yellow cake (I cheated this time and used box cake mix substituting water with buttermilk and sour cream), covered in fondant dyed green.  I found this neat idea of piping frosting on wax paper with an image below it, freezing the frosting, and affixing it to the cake.  Unfortunately, I used the wrong kind of frosting.  Fortunately, the words came out pretty good anyway.
I used a leaf press for the leaves and did the stone work by hand.

Because of work, I had to be at our local baseball stadium for a Used Car Giveaway evening.  Something I help to organize.  My group serves dinner in the banquet hall for our clients, and I brought the family along.  I am fortunate to have an awesome boss, who allowed me to arrange to have the team mascot, Sox the Fox, come to the banquet hall and give her balloons and flowers (which I purchased before the game) and have the whole banquet hall sing Happy Birthday to Jacey.  It was perfect!

Overall, it was the "best birthday ever" according to Jacey!  I am glad we were able to make the day super special for a very special young lady. :D