DIY Wall Letters

Along with finding a common theme of having a mobile within a Nursery room we also found wall letters to be a popular addition to the room. We found that while many stores and websites create custom wall letters they honestly post a hefty price tag that go along with them. For us personally spelling out Nicholas would definitely cause a dent in our wallet. The solution you may ask... DIY wall letters of course!

We looked around at different ways to creating our own wall art and in the process we came across this example:

8 letters in this style = $145

Realizing that an 8 letter name like Nicholas would be a costly addition to the room we decided that we would make on our own wall letters. When we saw the above example we knew that this is the look we wanted. We figured this would be a great way to add texture as well as emphasize the colors in the Nursery. So with my coupons in hand I ventured off to our local Michael's and A.C Moore in search of the supplies.

What you'll need:

• 8 X 10 canvas (I found a 10 pack at A.C Moore for $20 but used a 50% off coupon)
• 5" pre-cut wooden letters (I found all my letters at Michael's for $2 a piece)
• Fabric (Our bedding set has a pack of 4 matching flannel blankets for $10)
• Paint (2 fl.oz bottle in brown for about $2 at A.C Moore)
• Ribbon (10 yard in brown for about $2 at Michael's)
• Hot-glue

This project took me a whole day to make and I blame that on having to paint my letters. When I went to Michael's to get the letters I of course fell in love with the letters that were already painted white. No-joke each letter took about 7 coats of paint. In the end though it was oh-so worth it!
 

How to make it:

This tutorial will vary depending on how many letters you have as well as how many different patterns of fabric you are using. I'm going to go ahead and lead you step by step on how I created my 8 wall letters using 4 different patterns of fabric.

1. Iron out the 4 pieces of fabric.
2. Cut 2 squares measuring 12 X 14 from each fabric.
3. Take 1 piece of fabric and glue to each of the 4 sides of the canvas making sure that the 12 X 14 piece of fabric sits on the 8 X 10 canvas in these dimensions.
Note: To get a wrinkle free look make sure to glue one side after the other while stretching the fabric as you go.
4. Secure the fabric to the back of the canvas by gluing again.
5. Cut away any unwanted fabric.
6. Take the ribbon and glue around the side of the canvas in one long strip.
7. Paint your wooden letters.
8. After your letters are dry, glue each letter in the center of your 8 X 10 fabric covered canvas.
Note: Step 9 is optional and while I did not do this, I am debating on whether or not to add ribbon to the top of my wall letters. We thought it might look too girlie but will have to do a test with one of them to see if we like it with or without it.
9. Add a piece of ribbon to the top left and right of the canvas.
10. Hang you wall letters!

The Result:

Being the perfectionist that I am I have to go out and buy a leveling tool because I have an odd feeling that the last three letters L-A-S slant downwards. Too funny I know but I stood there for a good 5 minutes with Alex saying "You're kidding right?!" We have yet to have built a tool-box with all the essential tools but hopefully one day we will tackle that.