Thomas The Tank ...wagon: Finale!

The day has arrived. B-chan put on the stripes last night, and I just finished painting the face. The last details like the dome, bumpers, and number 1s need to be applied, but we are pretty much done. To recap, here is a before picture: And here is the after: Materials: boxes, duct tape, paint, electrical tape, various plastic domes, box cutter, pencil, paint brushes, wagon (or other wheeled base)

Thomas The Tank...wagon: Decoration III

So today is actually Halloween. We are down to the wire with this project. Mostly just the face is left. It looks pretty amazing, and I have to say that B-chan did a pretty phenomenal job turning cardboard into a convincing train character. It is difficult to find the time to paint because I have to constantly stop and do something for babies. If its not feeding one, it's changing the other, or putting them down for naps. As I write this I'm about one third done. I could be done by now, but we just had lunch and I have to put babies down for naps. My consolation is that B-chan is coming home early to participate... Except he just came down with what the monkey got from daycare and gave to me. ~2 hour interlude~ Anyhoo, I have just finished painting the face, and aside from obsessing over blending details, I'd say it came out pretty good. Here is the sample: Here is mine: Before After Keep in mind painting is not my hobby. Sewing and photography are. So I haven't painted in a while. I also have never taken a painting class nor have I taken more than one studio art class either. So...not bad, huh? I like it, and so does the monkey.

Thomas The Tank...wagon: Decoration II

So I had to buy B-chan another can of blue paint, a can of red paint (Krylon Banner Red), and small craft paints in black, white, and gray. In addition to everything so far. Here is the sample face I used followed by the rough sketch I made. I have yet to receive the pictures of the painted body, so when I receive them, I will update the post. Update: Here are more pictures of the mostly finished structure before and after paint.

Thomas The Tank...wagon: Decoration I

So, the monkey still doesn't even realize what we are doing. He still thinks its just cardboard boxes. Details Most of the structure is finished, and B-chan just needs to apply a few of the details. So on Sunday, I went and got the supplies to decorate the cardboard. Supplies: (clockwise from left) N95 mask, Krylon spray paint in True Blue, Rustoleum primer in White, Krylon spray adhesive, spray can trigger,black poster paint, and electrical tape (red, yellow, & black). While I did that, he nipped and tucked a little here & there to neaten things up. Now we just have to apply the design. The most difficult part will probably be the face.

Thomas The Tank...wagon: Assembly

My b-chan is absolutely amazing. I told him about my idea for the monkey to be Thomas the tank engine for Halloween. I wanted the costume to fit over the wagon we have. I also had to keep it low budget, so the materials were already on hand, borrowed, or picked up for free. He took the idea and ran with it. So here is our progress so far: Assembly Most of the material was cardboard. However, we did need supplies like a box cutter, straight edge, pen, string, duct tape and of course, boxes of all shapes and sizes. We started with a Little Tykes wagon. From there B-chan assembled a frame upon which to build the engine over the wagon. After he built the frame, he started with the basic shapes. Then he built the boiler portion using a flat box that he rounded. As you can see, we are done with most of the structure, but we still have to add a few details before we paint it, like the wheels.