Wednesday 31 August 2016

Framed Scrabble Tile Quote

Turn old scrabble tiles into a piece of art by spelling out a favourite quote.
Framed scrabble Tile quote wedding gift idea
I have another wedding gift from our summer of weddings to share with you today. I nearly called this "Another Scrabble Tile Picture" as making things with Scrabble tiles is something I've shared before. I always buy Scrabble games when I see them in charity shops but that has led to my discovery that the type of tiles they make has changed over the years. I now have a right old assortment but try not to mix the different tiles in any one project.
scrabble tiles
Basically that means I spend ages sitting with a heap of tiles trying to see what words and phrases I can make! 
This gift was for a lovely couple who like handmade and homemade (the bride made her own invitations) and their home decor is warm, cosy, country so I chose a wooden box frame and a pretty floral paper for the background.
Together is a beautiful place to be
To make something similar you need:
A box frame
Scrapbook paper
Old scrabble tiles*
Strong Glue - I used a hot glue gun
Scrap card, a pencil and masking or washi tape
A suitable quote

This whole thing is super easy to make, basically you are just glueing the Scrabble tiles onto your fancy scrapbook paper to spell out your chosen quote and popping it into a box frame - easy!

The only slightly tricky thing is getting the words central and straight.
DON'T draw pencil marks onto your pretty paper, once those tiles are glued on you just won't be able to get to them properly to rub them out.

This is what worked for me:
  • Cut your pretty scrapbook paper to the size of your box frame first then play around with the tiles until you are happy with the arrangement of words on the paper.
  • Measure the gap top and bottom of your arrangement and cut a bit of scrap card to that width - that's the blue card in the photos below.
  • Push the tiles for the top row together (it's SO much easier to keep things straight if you don't leave gaps between each tile) and mark either end on the scrap card. Shown in big ol' black arrows on the photos.
  • Tape the scrap card to the top of the pretty paper, making the word gap you've marked central. 
  • Now it's easy to glue the tiles into place, as you can push them right up against the scrap card.
  • Just make sure you remove your scrap card straight away before it gets stuck down too!
Framed scrabble Tile quote wedding gift idea
  • Repeat on the bottom, obviously leave gaps between the words as I have here!
  • Once the top and bottom rows were firmly in place I measured the gap needed between the other 3 rows in my quote and cut a strip of scrap card the right width.
  • I actually didn't mark any more for these middle lines, I just used the top and bottom lines to help me centre everything by eye. You could measure if that's your thing. 
  • It was really useful to have the card to push the tiles up against to help to keep them straight.
Framed scrabble Tile quote wedding gift idea
*If you don't have access to any old scrabble sets at the right price, maybe you could get the same effect by printing them on card and mounting them with foam pads. A quick google search should find you free printable scrabble tiles.

We gave the couple their gift a week or so before their big day so I was so honoured when we arrived at the reception to find they have used this picture as part of their wedding decorations on the top table! 
Framed scrabble Tile quote wedding gift idea
Isn't their cake topper fab! As you can see they come from 2 different parts of the world which is why I chose this quote for them.
Framed scrabble Tile quote wedding gift idea
It's so lovely when you give a handmade gift and then discover they really do like it - for real!
I've been looking for the source of this quote but I've not been able to find it to properly attribute it, I just found it on Pinterest. Please let me know if you know where it comes from.
I'll be sharing over at these Link Parties
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Hello, I'm Julie. I love making things and this is where I share my enthusiasm.

9 comments:

  1. I am always looking for old Scrabble games but have yet to find any. People snatch them up but I love your idea on reusing the tiles. It is a cute idea.

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    1. I have bought 3 in charity shops for crafting over the years and we have 1 set that we use to actually play! I find they don't come up very often so now I have all my friends and family primed to just buy them for me if ever they see them!
      I think printing them on thick card then mounting on foam pads might give a similar effect, I'm planning to give it a try sometime, just to see how it looks.
      Good luck with your hunt!

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  2. I love this idea. I never thought to look for scrabble games second had and do this. I will now!! Love this :) Thanks for sharing at Creative Mondays

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  3. My mum is scrabble mad, and can still beat the socks off all of us. She has a set with larger tiles and board for the visually impaired. The letters are lovely because they are wooden.

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  4. I do the same, I'm always on the look out for Scramble games! The craft stores sell similar tiles (not as good though) and cost more. I like the phrase you chose :)

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  5. Great idea. I have a zillion scrabble tiles now your idea gives me a way to use them that is adorable. Thank you for sharing your idea with us at Snickerdoodle.

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  6. What an absolutely beautiful gift

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  7. What a lovely idea. And I like your suggestion about printing the tiles too. As I was reading along I was thinking I would like to make something like this for the kids' rooms, but I'm not going to ruin our Scrabble set...Thank you for sharing at The Really Crafty Link Party this week. Pinned!

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