Defend yourself! Create-A-Shield.

Around here, we have spent the past few days playing with foam swords that I picked up (yes, impulse purchase!) at Target in the dollar bins.  The intense indoor action has been just the energy release the kids (especially boys) have needed.

I expected the swords to break; they were $1 and we've invested in foam swords before. They last about an hour.  
Last night I decided to wrap them in colorful Duck^® Tape to help make them last a little longer.  I am in love with all the duct tape options out there! It is fun and my mind is spinning with all the things I can wrap and make with these tapes.

I also realized that by wrapping them with tape, I was turning our harmless foam swords into respectable weapons.  So, this morning I decided we needed to create shields to even the playing field.

Although a pillow and belt make an excellent shield, I had some extra mat board that was perfect for the job. Of course any cardboard or old boxes would also work.  First, I drew a simple design on the board and cut it out.  Then I divided it into sections for my daughter to decorate. We did a quick search for some shield decoration ideas by looking at pictures online.  My daughter colored hers with crayons and I did a few lines in duck tape for my little guy's shield.

  

For the handles on the back, I simply used an extra piece of mat board for the arm holder and cut a circular loop from an old yogurt container (I have 6 million of them in my pantry) for the small handle.  I wrapped them in duck tape for extra reinforcement and we were ready for battle.  It isn't very pretty, but it is strong!

At this point we ran out of the lovely blue and white tape and had to resort to my husband's plain black gorilla glue tape--it was super thick and I hope he doesn't mind that we borrowed it!

Once our shields were decorated and strengthened with even more tape, we were ready for battle!  This project was a success.  We combined artistic fun and creativity to make a useful toy of protection!  I am sure these shields will last as long as the swords, and if/when they are demolished, I'm sure the kids will be thrilled to make a new shield!