bspoke

Today, I am very excited to introduce you to Rebecca Ashby, of The Pink Orange. She is one of a handful of lovely ladies who are going to be guest posting on b*spoke over the course of the next few weeks as I am up to my eyeballs with a couple top-secret projects. Rebecca is an amazing designer, with great style. She has a sweet little line of charming stationery, and a darling blog as well. Now, get ready for an amazing DIY tutorial from Rebecca that will totally knock your socks off!

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I was so excited and honored to be asked to guest blog for Bethany. b*Spoke is one of my daily visits and I enjoy the personal mix that Bethany brings to her blog, which is why I jumped at the chance to help during a busy time for her! She reminds me so much of myself. But then… I started to hyperventilate! My goodness what can I bring to her readers? I need something fabulous and interesting and fun to boot! That is one large order!

Owning a busy design studio of my own admittedly makes all of my own fun stuff hit the back burner. So, I took advantage of some time I had with my niece last weekend and handled a few of my own projects that I had in my queue. One of them was to take down – ::gulp:: my Christmas wreath off the front door. Yes, I just admitted it. It was February before that beauty came down. In my defense, this easy peasy project was worth the wait, and now all of our neighbors are complimenting our renewed front door!

I can honestly say, that it took under one hour, and cost less than $20. Here is the recipe:

- Paper mache letter of your choice ( I have only been able to find these at JoAnn’s craft store. I’m sure you could use any letter, however the depth on the sides of these make it look nice from the sides). Normally $8.99, and I got it on their one dollar off letter sale for $7.99

- Moss – I used the instant green moss with the webbing on the back. I had originally thought about using the “clumps” of moss, however I was hesitant because of the wind and it starting to fall apart. I bought 2 bags with 40% off coupons at $5.50 per bag.

- Hot glue gun

- Small hole punch if you have one

First thing I did was to tape down brown craft paper to help with any clean up. (Also, if you have a studio cat like I do, be sure he gets involved).

Here is the letter in raw form and the moss I bought. There is one sheet per bag. I bought 2, and if I had measured properly (read: if the cat wasn’t so involved and I had perfect concentration) I could have gotten away with one bag. Each letter being different though, you might need 2 anyway.

The moss is very easy to work with and cut. I measured the front of the ‘A’ as well as added in the sides so the fit was seamless. I did not cover the back of the letter, I figured it would be a waste since it isn’t seen. I started on the outside edge of the letter using strips of hot glue and then worked my way to the front and then the inside edge.

So from here, just keep measuring and wrapping. When I got to the top of the ‘A’ I just folded and glued. It was a bit thicker in those areas, but you can’t tell and it looks natural, just like the moss!

After all of the moss was glued, I made a loop out of ribbon and glued that on the back. Then, I made a separate bow and glued that on next to the front of the ribbon loop (and don’t be afraid to use lots of glue so the ribbon stays put in the wind). I then punched the tiniest hole with my very small hole punch and put a nail through it and hung! Wha-la!

I think the best part is, this could be totally decked out too. My husband even mentioned adding a little bird inside of the ‘A’ or gluing some flowers on. I think he is onto something.

I hope you enjoyed my DIY project and guest blog and Thank You so much for letting me into your lives today!
- Rebecca

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Isn’t this just the classiest, most chic front door treatment you’ve ever seen?? And all for less than $20 and under an hour! Rebecca, you are a genius. I want to thank Rebecca for her time and for this brilliant and beautiful and budget friendly idea! Make sure to head over to The Pink Orange and let her know how much you love this project!