DIY: Playroom Alphabet Wall!

Earlier this year I decided to create an eclectic alphabet wall in our playroom. It started with a few fabric letters I had found at Anthropologie and grew from there. Slowly, I collected letters from Urban Outfitters, World Market, off of ebay, thrift stores, and garage sales. Eventually, I purchased several blank letters at Michaels and embellished them myself.



The whole process took quite awhile. I wanted each letter to be perfect, to tell a story. See the letter 'M' there in the bottom left corner? I dug into my vintage button jar and hot glued every cool button I could find. Then I added old wooden game pieces I had. Do the buttons and game pieces have anything to do with the letter 'M'? Of course not. I just liked the way it looked!



I did the same thing with the letter 'D'. This time I also included some vintage earrings and pins I received from a friend. They bejeweled my new "D' quite nicely.

With my letter 'O' I took some gorgeous yarn I had laying around (I don't knit but I love yarn. Go figure...) and simply wrapped it around the form.

I did a little letter prep each week until one day I had them all! It was like Christmas morning. Now it was time to assemble 26 letters on a narrow wall. Initially, I figured I would go in alphabet order. I am slightly OCD and couldn't imagine NOT keeping the letters in order. But once I got everything laid out I realized that I hated it. So I mixed up letters based on size and texture. I kept my Anthropologie letters evenly spaced (I had the most of those) with everything else. Now it all made sense.

I hung each letter on the wall with special 3M Velcro Command Picture Hanging Strips. This stuff is AMAZING. My husband was extremely concerned about me putting 26 nail holes in the wall; these strips made him feel better about my design project.

If you have the time, this is a great project to tackle. It isn't hard at all. What makes this particular DIY work best (in my opinion) is having many different shapes, sizes and textures in your alphabet. And that takes time to acquire organically. I spent many evenings scouring ebay for "vintage alphabet letters" and "fabric letters" and "painted letters". Also for this project, hot glue is your friend.

This is a motif that would look great as an accent wall in a nursery, childrens bedroom, playroom or even an office. In my house, our alphabet takes up the wall between my foyer and playroom and never feels childish or out of place.

Is this a project you would like to try? For more alphabet wall inspiration check out this board on Pinterest!