Tuesday 21 October 2008

In a boat with billowed sail

Simon has spent a lot of time over the last few months building a sailing boat for James to play with. The boat itself is a foam core, and though I'm not too au fait with the details, I know it has layers of carbon-fibre and fibreglass. The keel is a large sinker; all attached using carbon-fibre, and the mast and boom are coated with carbon-fibre, too. It's got little pulleys, and a properly-functioning mast and boom - all the details. My contribution was the sails. They've been cut and pieced to curve just like a 'real' sail, and even have battens (made of quilting template!). I had to sew around everything, reinforce the corners, and attach the sleeve which goes over the mast. Although Simon says James chose the colour of the sail-cloth, I blame him for not providing two coordinating options for James to choose from - given the boat was already painted red! They took it out for its maiden voyage on Sunday. No champagne, but they did get a little sunburn as a certain someone didn't think to take hats, sunscreen, or even any drinks! Oh, and the title comes from "Puff, the Magic Dragon", which James has been singing around the house today - with some interesting word substitutions!

1 comment:

Lily Mulholland said...

What a good mummy you are! And LOL at your EBDQS sneak peaks!