DIY Alphabet Blocks

Well, here I am, 36 weeks pregnant and covered in poison ivy! The best way to forget about this poisonous plant's irritating effect is to stay busy....
So! Yesterday I kept my mind off how itchy I was by creating alphabet blocks for Finn's room.

My inspiration came from these fabulous blocks I found on Etsy for $32.oo.

Via Tiny Giraffe

I started off with 1.5" wooden blocks from Michael's for about $1.50 a piece. I also thought you could purchase a piece of post lumber from Lowe's or Home Depot and cut it into cubes as well (I can't take credit for that idea, it was totally my husband!).

I painted each of them ivory using a sponge brush-so much better than a paint brush.

For the block lettering I used the font Toskanische Egyptienne Initialen from dafont.com. 

I love being able to cut adhesive vinyl from the Silhouette SD, but I have to tell you, I really struggled at first getting acquainted with how it all works. 

After toying with inch after inch of vinyl I realized that the only way I can get my machine to cut vinyl properly is using the blue knife cap, a speed of 1, and a thickness of 1. Anything faster or thicker and the blade would slice straight through the vinyl and the backing, resulting in a huge disaster.

I also had to learn the hard way that you load the vinyl roll directly into the machine, rather than cutting the appropriate length to load.

And don't be discouraged if the vinyl gets jammed while you're trying to load it, it usually takes me 3-4 tries before it finally feeds through. Just take it out, smooth it down and reload it. Eventually you'll be good to go!

Here I'm peeling off the excess vinyl from the transfer paper:

Since this font is so detailed, I had to use a sewing pin to take off the unneeded vinyl, leaving behind the skinny outline of the letter. Here's what the letter N looks like as it's stuck to the transfer paper:

Then I press the letter, vinyl side down, onto the block and smooth it over. The transfer paper is then removed, and yahoo! it worked!!

At this point I was already so proud of the outcome, but I wanted to add some Distress Ink to the edges and then seal them up so they last a good long time.

I love this stuff!

And here they are! I think I'm pretty proud of them! The only letter missing from this set is M. For some reason, the Silhouette couldn't take all the detail and never cut that letter quite right. Oh well, it'll be our secret!

The distress ink ended up drying more gray than brown, which I am totally fine with!

I'm going to have too much fun spelling random things out of these blocks...and even though they can't spell mom, because the M is missing, I made sure that words like dad, sly fox, and Finn would be possible! And forest, of course.

Even if you don't have a Silhouette or other cutting machine, you could definitely still make these guys with stickers or paint lettering on freehand or with stencils. Isn't this a great idea for something to pass on for generations?


Now if only this poison ivy would go away! (Can you imagine being in labor while covered in red, itchy, oozing bumps?!...me neither, because it's not gonna happen!)

I'm linking up with...

A Little Knick Knack

Porch Sign from Pallet Wood

Our front porch has been looking pretty bland, and with yard work on hold due to lack of funds, hot weather, and really, more important things to do, the whole front of our house is now in desperate need of some help.

I really wanted something decorative to hang to the left of the front door, but didn't want to end up spending a whole lot for whatever it is I would find.

Then, I got an idea to make my own sign with the lyrics "Home is wherever I'm with you" from the song Home by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros. You can listen to it here.

I thought I could put this whole thing together using some wood from a pallet Steven found for me...Gotta love free lumber scraps!!

He volunteered to cut the pieces I needed...thank goodness, because being 8 months pregnant, I don't have a lot of motivation to hold a heavy circular saw!

Once the pieces were cut it was time to paint them...

Then I sanded down the edges to add some distressing later on...

Then I got to designing the text on the Silhouette. I used the font Lullaby on dafont.com.

Here's the vinyl transfer process:

Clockwise from top left:

1. Vinyl is placed face down on sticky transfer paper.

2. Excess vinyl is peeled off of the transfer paper.

3. Transfer paper with remaining letters adhered is flipped over and centered on wood.

4. Transfer paper is removed, leaving vinyl letters behind.

(For a more in depth look at using vinyl with the Silhouette click here.)

Phew, I got the vinyl transferred to the wood with no problem and added distress ink to the edges.

For in depth information on using Distress Ink click here.

I then coated the sign with a clear coat of spray paint, which will hopefully keep everything together and safe while hanging outside.

Lastly, I stapled some sisal rope behind the sign pieces to hang it with. I like the added touch of tying two knots and fraying the ends of the rope, I think I was inspired by the rope shelves I recently made.

Success! The best part about this whole project is that it cost me nothing. I had everything on hand, yay! I can't wait to get this on the front porch! I need a masonry drill bit first...

I'm linking up with the following:

Savvy Southern Style

No Minimalist Here

A Little Knick Knack