Bow Board- Completed!

So I decided to try to make one myself. Here is a list of everything I used, and the total I spent on this project:

1. Frame- FREE (we had it leftover from our yardsale)
2. Piece of MDF board- $6 (bought a whole sheet but used about 1/3 of it)
**Note: this should be cut to fit in the back of your frame. I cut mine 1/4″ shorter on all sides to account for the batting/fabric that would be wrapped around the MDF.
3. Quilt batting- $7
4. Ribbons- $3 for 3 rolls
5. Fabric for background- $8 for a yard but again I used about 1/3 of it
6. Paint- Blue was free, pink was $1
7. Wooden letter (optional)- $1
8. Stapler & staples- FREE (already had these)
9. Small nails for attaching back- FREE (already had these)

Total Spent = $26

Here is the frame that I used, with my little helper in the background.  She was outside with me while I gathered all of my supplies.  Once I started the painting, she went inside with her Daddy to avoid any fumes.

And here is another view of the frame I used, and the wooden letter that I picked up from Hobby Lobby.

I painted my frame using the leftover paint from Kate’s dresser and I picked up a small bottle of paint from Hobby Lobby for the wooden letter.

Since I had everything together so I was ready to get started.  The first step was to paint the frame and letter.  It took 2 coats of blue on the frame because I didn’t want anything to get gloppy (is that a word?). And, I ended up putting two coats on the letter too just because.

Once everything was dry, it was time to put it all together.  The actual assembly was pretty easy.  I didn’t take any pictures during this process, but basically I just wrapped about 3 pieces of quilt batting around my MDF and secured it with a few staples.  I used a regular stapler/staples and occasionally the staples would just crimp up and not go through the MDF but I really didn’t end up having too much trouble.

Then I wrapped my fabric around the board and secured it using staples again.  I chose to use a white minky fabric because I love how soft and plush it is. Plus, I picked some pretty bright ribbons to use on the board and there are a LOT of colors going on in Kate’s room.  White kept it pretty simple.

Then, I measured the width of the board and determined how many rows of ribbons I wanted.  I chose to do 5 rows of ribbon so I just cut/measured/stapled those on there.

Next I secured the back onto the frame using a couple of small nails, which I nailed in at an angle.

Last, you can attach your letter to the corner of the frame for a more personalized bow board.  I actually ended up deciding NOT to attach it to my board because I thought that it looked a lot cleaner once all of the bows were hanging.  Just personal preference.  Anyway, here is how it turned out!

  

And here are a couple of pictures with the board holding all of the BOWS Kate has so far.