I like to constantly remind myself that a good craft doesn’t have to cost me an arm and a leg to complete. A lot of times you can create something awesome with just a few bucks, some elbow grease, and a little outside the box thinking.
Big Monster Ella is quickly wrapping up her kindergarten year. To keep her on track and get her ready for 1st grade, I have been researching a plethora of activities that will trick her into learning all summer long. I stumbled across a felt board during my reading, and realized that it could be a perfect tool to use. We can spell, do the weather, create stories, and as long as I toss in a princess, a pirate, and Doc McStuffins, Ella will think it is the greatest thing that ever existed. The problem with a felt board, for me, is that Ella has pretty much tapped out all available space in our house, and we need another free standing object like a hole in the head. It was while I was leaning against the hallway wall talking to Ella the other night that it hit me. That wall is used for nothing but leaning against and is the perfect size for a felt board. Time to get crafting!
I picked up a giant framed print at Goodwill for $10.00. I really liked it because it didn’t have glass, so I could use the entire I piece in one project. I also used a yard of felt (I had to use the 72 inch wide felt because of the size of the
frame), a staple gun, some 150 grit sandpaper, and a can of spray paint.
The print was held in with staples, typical to frames. I took those completely out and threw them away because I didn’t know how well everything would fit back in once I added the felt, and I didn’t want the extra bulk. Once they were gone, the print, which was glued to very think cardboard, popped right out. I gave the frame a quick sanding to rough it up a bit. Since it wasn’t actually made of wood, 
it was important to give the paint a little something to hold onto. Once everything had been sanded, I washed the entire thing with soap and water, and then some Lysol for good measure, and let it dry completely. I gave it two coats of bright yellow spray paint, and let everything sit over night.
The board itself was really easy to do. Using a “light duty” staple gun, I worked my way around the board, stretching the felt and stapling it down. A quick word 
of caution- be careful how hard you push on the board as you are doing it. If you aren’t careful, the staples could poke through the other side of the cardboard, and nobody wants tetanus while learning to spell.
After the paint was completely dry, all I had to do was pop the board back into the frame. With the Staple gun again, I worked my way around the back of the board, stapling the board and the frame to hold it in. There may be some better method for this, but I figured I can always take the staples out if I decide to use the frame for something else down the line.
I must say, I’m pretty pleased with how it turned out. It will fit the hallway perfectly, the yellow makes me really happy, and it doesn’t look like a felt board hanging on my wall. It looks more like ever changing art! Added bonus- because it is cardboard under the felt, when/if the kids don’t use it anymore, it will make a fantastic bulletin board for my someday craft space!
There you have it. A hanging framed felt board with a total cost of $19.46.
Thanks for crafting with me!
xoxo,
Taylor
