Crafting Lilly Pulitzer Letters

After three years of Lilly Pulitzer agendas piling up, I decided it was time to put them to use. The other day I had a little free time and decided to go through my craft bin to see what I could use all my Lilly print paper for.  I found my initial (M) that a friend of mine had painted for me awhile back and thought it would be adorable to cover it in Lilly Pulitzer paper.  Before I began I gathered all the supplies I would need.

Supplies:

Scissors

Cardboard

Letter of your choice (for me it was M)

Mod Podge

Sponge brushes

White Paint

Primer (optional)

Paper Plate or palate for paint

Paper of your choice

The original color of the letter didn't match the color scheme I'm planning to use, so I began by priming it with a coat of paint so that the dark color wouldn't show through when I used mod podge to adhere the colorfully printed paper to the wooden letter.  Before priming the letter, I found a piece of cardboard and laid it down beneath the letter so that I didn't get paint on the surface I was using to craft (AKA- my parents' kitchen table).  You can also use newspaper, a plastic table cloth, or a brown paper bag.  I think using cardboard is the best option because you are able to move the letter while it is drying with messing anything up. 

After priming the letter, I gave it a coat of white paint.  The sides of the letter won't be covered with paper since the paper is just on the top surface, so the white paint is for the outside and back of the letter. While the paint was drying, I began to sort through my agendas and pulled out the paper that had prints that I could potentially use.  I then laid all the prints out and decided which ones looked good together. This process takes awhile if you are a perfectionist like me!  

If you don't like Lilly Pulitzer, then no worries you can still complete the project. All you need to do is get scrap booking paper or print your favorite pattern online. You can also cover the letter in all one print rather than the patchwork style I used.

Once I chose the paper I would be using, I began to cut the paper to fit the letter. I found that it was easiest to cut a piece that was slightly larger than what I needed. I then folded the excess paper and creased it along the edge of the letter. I then cut along the creese marks to ensure that the paper was the correct size.  I think it works best to not be picky about each piece of paper being the same size because most letters are irregular in shape anyways. 

I cut the paper and sized it to fit the letter beginning with the top left corner, of the letter M.  I did this for the entire left side and then I began to glue.  In order to glue the paper down, use a sponge brush, dip it into the jar of Mod Podge, and then apply the paint to the surface of the letter.  Be careful not to use too much because then the paper will be over saturated, which could cause it to rip or bubble easily. After glueing down the entire left side, I then cut the paper to size it to fit the letter along the left side.  I then glued down the left side. Next, I sized the different pieces of paper to fit the middle of the letter and then glued them down.  Finally, I painted a layer of glue on top of all the paper to seal it and ensure that all the paper was glued down.  I then let the letter dry on a piece of cardboard for about 24 hours. 

This project is really easy and the letter(s) can be used for much more than a simple college apartment decoration. Depending on the size of the letter you could use it on a wreath, a classroom door, or anywhere in your home. This is DIY project can also be a great item to give as a gift.

Enjoy Crafting!

XOXO