Benjamin's Magic Suitcase

The moment I saw this post on Sometimes Sweet, I was in love with the idea of a "magic suitcase" full of dress up clothes. Eventually I decided that I'd make it for my nephew Ben for his christmas present. I wanted to use the same idea as the one on Danielle's blog, but I also wanted to make it unique. I found a vintage suitcase at an antique store and brought it home and gave it a good cleaning. Then I came up with my own design for the front, which was really fun to do (I've always loved painting, but don't often do it). I used acrylic paints and sharpie paint pens for the design, then finished it with a few coats of spray-on low odour, non-toxic matte finish.

Then I gathered a bunch of dress up supplies, some I made myself and others from out and about. Here's what I included:

{made by me}
-apron (& I made a matching one for his dad!)
-chef hat
-pirate hat
-pirate pants
-eye patch
-brown vest (kind of pirate-ish)
-felt crown
-super hero cape
-super hero mask
-safety vest

{bought items}
- glasses (real, from the thrift store, lenses popped out)
-funny play glasses (with nose, moustache, etc)
-bandana
-fireman hat
-santa hat
-old camera

There may be the other odd thing that I forgot on this list, but that's roughly it. I kind of ran out of time to make all the things I planned on adding, but those ideas include: a cave man outfit, a royal robe, a tie, a bowtie, a clown outfit, etc. 

The best part of all was the email I got from my sister a week later with pictures of him exploring it. Handmade gifts are so much fun!