Mod Podge Letters with Paper and Burlap

Teaching the Alphabet to Toddlers and Pre-schoolers

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My baby is 3 months old now (really?!?) and he has moved out of our room into his own nursery... and my older son has moved out of the nursery into his big boy room! Bittersweet for this Mama, they grow up so fast!

While transitioning the both of the boys to their new beds and new rooms (which of course involved losing sleep), I was glad that I didn't need to do much to get the nursery ready for my baby. The only change I made was replacing the names on the wall. Here's what it used to look like:

I really loved Will's letters which I made out of found objects but this time I decided to do something a little different. I bought some pre-cut letters at Hobby Lobby (they were on sale, I think they cost around $1 each) and decorated them with cool scrap-book paper, buttons, and burlap.

You will need:

pre-cut letters

Mod Podge

scrap-book paper

burlap

paint brush

scissors

Xacto knife

cutting mat

pencil

buttons

craft glue

You can see that I started out with paper that looked like burlap instead of real burlap. Well, I had what I call a "happy accident" (I learned that term when I was teaching art classes to little kids) because I cut out the letter for the burlap paper backwards and then I realized that instead of going back to the store for more paper, I could just use some real burlap (which I already had) and it turned out even cooler that it would have with the paper!

To get started, trace the letters onto the back of the paper. Make sure you flip the letters over so they look backwards when you trace them onto the back of the paper (you can learn from my mistake!)

Next, cut out the paper letters.

Paint a layer of Mod Podge all over the front of the letter.

Then stick the paper to it. It's best to lay it face-down to dry so the paper won't warp. Once it's dry, paint a layer of Mod Podge on top of the paper.

To make the burlap letter, paint a layer of Mod Podge on the letter and then lay the burlap on top. Then paint the Mod Podge on Top of the burlap so it will adhere well.

After the Mod Podge dries, lay the letter on the cutting mat and use the Xacto knife to cut the burlap around the edges.

Once I finished and put them up on the wall I decided the "D" needed a little something extra so I glued buttons on some of the polka-dots!

I used Command Picture Hanging Strips to hang them on the wall and now the nursery is all ready for my sweet baby boy! He really is just about the sweetest baby ever!