Scrabble Tile Necklaces

Yesterday was a snow day and I ended up with a house full of girls to entertain.

I had planned on making these as gifts for Valentine's Day, but why not have a fun day doing a project with the girls?

To make this project, you will need...

Scrapbook paper - I chose paper with hearts for a Valentine's theme

Wooden Scrabble Tiles - You can order these off the Internet or scour yard sales/thrift stores for old Scrabble games.

Mod Podge - Just like we used to use in school years and years ago..(okay, was it that long ago, really?? I think not)

Some type of connector - this is used to secure the scrabble tile to the ribbon. I used a 8mm split ring from Walmart's jewelry department. You can also use jewelry bails, I just couldn't find an appropriate one.

Super Glue - Obviously Super Glue and 2 year olds don't go together..but we'll get to that.

Exacto knife or small scissors - I allowed the older girls to use the exacto knife with my supervision, but I cut the designs out for the two youngest.


Cord, string, ribbon - This will be the necklace part.

The girls that made these were ages 2 through 12 so we had an array of ages. I simplified these instructions to accommodate all their ages so I didn't seal them for long term use.


The first thing we did was decide what would fit on the scrabble tile...then we sat the tile on the heart, and used the exacto knife to trace around it...essentially cutting out the square in the same size as the tile. Two of the girls chose to do something other than hearts so you can check them out at the end of this tutorial.
Next we mod-podged the paper on the tile...the girls chose to cover the side without the letter. They just put a thin layer of mod podge on the tile, stuck the paper on, and then did a thin coat on the top of the paper to seal it.


While the girls were off playing, I added another coat of mod podge to make sure the edges of the paper and tile were properly sealed. Once this dried, I used the exacto knife to clear up the edges where the paper was overhanging or jagged. I also used the super glue to attach the silver rings to the tile.





This is where two year olds and super glue don't mix. I left the tiles on the table to dry, my curious two year old picked it up...the glue was still wet. She had two fingers stuck together. It was funny...so funny I forgot to take a picture. Now luckily she got them unstuck rather quickly, but the point is super glue is no joking matter, and you should be responsible and make sure that you put the tiles up high while they dry. Live and learn! (-:

We let the super glue dry overnight after that incident, and this morning, we added ribbon to the tiles so they could wear them to school. They enjoyed this project, and I know they are very proud of their creations.




If you want to get serious about your scrabble tile necklaces, you can check out a great tutorial here. You can also support creative women by buying one on Etsy.

Fall Decorating Projects

Fall is in the air! This week I have been working on making or finding quick ideas to decorate my house for Fall. I love the vibrant colors of Fall...the reds, oranges, yellows. I want to bring some of that vibrancy into my home so I have been trying to find no cost or low cost ways as I am on a tight budget this month.

So I went to my workshop and found some scrap wood. I cut it into blocks and painted them orange. Once they dried, I then painted a cream color on top. I used some sandpaper and gently sanded to allow some of the orange coat to come through the cream. Instead of using a paintbrush this time as they still seem to be hiding from me, I used a paper towel...it worked pretty good..only a couple little pieces of lint from it, but they sanded off.

I used my Cricut to make letters spelling "FALL". Stuck them on the blocks and viola, quick, easy and simple....I am glad that the days of handpainting letters are behind me...I was never that good at that anyways!

I also found a deep red leaf at my grandmother's farm this week so I framed it in a frame one of my grandmom's got me for my birthday.

I am also including in this post a ghost I made a few years ago. He was super easy too. He makes a nice addition to the mantel shelf I just put up this week. He looks better in person that in this picture.

This is just the start of my fall decorating...I plan on getting some fall leaves and lay them around here and there. I might print out some fall pictures and frame them with the stack of frames I have around here, and I also would like to get some cheap fall fabric to just put in a few places. I think my kids and I are going to make fall placements, and who knows what other ideas I will come up with. You'll have to stay around if you want to find out. LOL

HAPPY FALL!