H is for Hat

We are big into talking in the Licht household.  As most of you know, Brian and I never shut-up.  So, naturally, Jacob is repeating EVERYTHING, and talking up a storm.  The other day I asked Brian, "Are you ready?", and Jacob responded with, "READY MAMA!".  It's funny, he is only 16 months, but I feel like he just "gets it".  This is definitely the most fun I have had with him since he's been a newborn!  Plus, he can't say enough to smart back to me, but can say just enough to get his point across.  Why can't it stay this way forever?  

Anyway, we have been doing a lot of - A is for apple, B is for ball, C is for cookie - letter/word recognition.  As I was flipping through Parents Magazine a couple months ago, I came across a DIY project (see below) that I thought looked like a fun way to get the "baby vibe" out of Jacob's room, but also to help him learn more vocabulary at the same time.  They had DIY chipboard letters, wrapped in yarn.  Before knowing how long this would take, I had a vision that I was going to create the letter A, then have a wooden stenciled apple next to it.  Then B, and  have a wooden stenciled ball next to it...and so on.  Yes, I was going to have the whole alphabet on Jacob's wall.  

Forget that idea!  After figuring out how long the whole alphabet would take to complete, I decided that one word would be just as nice as 26 letters! 

photo courtesy of parents.com

Soooooo...onto my next idea.  I have been wanting to put a hat rack in Jacob's room for some time now.  I thought this would be the perfect way to do it.  I bought a hat rack at Michael's, and bought the corrugated letters H, A & T.      Say it with me,  "H is for HAT!".  

I knew I would have more than one hat hanging, so I had to add the letter S.  I picked out bold yarn colors --- not so pastel-y, like the rest of his room.  Then, I took the letters and started wrapping them, securing the loose ends with Aileen's Fabric Glue.  And here's what I got:

I wanted the paint colors to somewhat coordinate with the yarn colors, so I picked out Martha Stewart's mini paints and got crafty with his hat rack.  At the end, I thought, this is no fun for a kid.  It was just bold colors.  He needed more to look at.  

Jacob loves balls, and I thought this would be a great way to introduce him to sports.  Now we are learning the difference between balls.  Basketball is  buuuskeeeebail.  Football is Fooobull.  You get my drift.  Eventually, he'll get it, right?  :)  

I had all that paint leftover, so I decided to go buy a few frames at Michael's, and paint them to coordinate with the letters.  Here's what I came up with:

Still need to find some pictures to fill those frames up with!  

All in all, I had a fun time with this project.  Never mind it taking me a month and a half to finish...but believe it or not, those letters take a good hour or two if you want them to look right.  I did H & A on our drive to Wisconsin, for Easter...and did T on the drive back.  S was finished in between Bethanny Ever After and The Real Housewives of Orange County.  

Totally cute update to Jacob's room for less than $100.00 (those darn frames are what cost me).  

Here are some other cute/creative ideas for yarn letters:            

photo courtesy of randomanderson.wordpress.com
Cute for a little baby room...although, those paper circles hanging are not very practical.  I know Jacob would pull those suckers right off.

photo courtesy of: ontobaby.com
Even incorporate them into a baby gender reveal party! Which by the way, this is seriously the most adorable party ever.  I will totally copy this idea for the next shower I throw!  

photo courtesy of Nap Time Crafters - nametimecrafters.com
Something I am going to try out for Halloween - would look adorable on the fireplace mantel .

photo courtesy of: handicraftsguide.blogspot.com
How cool would this be in a kitchen, right above a kitchen table?

Photo Courtesy of: theviolethours.typepad.com
And with all those yarn leftovers, why not wrap a few gifts.  Wow, the world of yarn is endless!  Who knew?