Kids Crafts: Name Boards

Soon after the shock of finding out we were expecting, I started dreaming of possible nursery theme. I had so much fun decorating the nursery for my twins and then for my baby girl – I just love everything about nurseries. But while ideas were swirling in my head, it occurred to me: those nurseries have long been dissembled by moves and room shifts, so my daughters don’t have any memory of me decorating for their arrival.

That is when I decided: BEFORE I decorate or prepare the nursery in any way, I want to decorate and make each of my girls’ rooms feel extra special. Planning these room makeovers have been a major focus of mine lately, because I’d love to have their rooms done during my 2nd trimester, so I can prepare for the baby during my 3rd trimester. I can’t wait to show you what I have dreamed up!

In the meantime, I thought it would be fun for my girls to play a part in creating the art in their rooms, so we made name boards. A separate canvas for each letter of their name.

The materials:

*canvas boards (I bought the 8×10 3 packs from Walmart)
*acrylic paint (only colors that wouldn’t clash with their rooms)
*paint brushes
*paint shirts (I like old button downs)
*protective covering for the painting surface
*clear, high-gloss spray paint to finish the paintings

The setup:

*No one wanted to do this outside because it is so hot, so I pushed the kitchen table into the corner and laid out a big sheet on the floor. I also put out towels, for under each girl and the paint.
*I squirted some acrylic paint on paper plates and put a paintbrush with the plate. That paintbrush stayed with that color and plate. The girls shared the paint-plates.

The rules:

*create whatever picture or design you want
*put one letter from your name into your design, but no other words
*try your best

I set them up, laid down the rules, and then watched the magic happen.

After the name boards were left to dry for a few days, Matt sprayed all the boards with clear high gloss spray paint. (I stay away from toxic chemicals while I am growing a baby!)

There you have it, lots of wall boards ready to go up. You’ll have to wait for the room reveals to see how they look up on the walls!

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