I’m A-OK with admitting that I’m stubborn and opinionated and will do whatever I damn well please regardless of others’ opinions.
That’s only when I have my own opinion, though.
I’m a bit stuck on what to do with one of my decor pieces, for lack of a better term, and I need some help.
I have these darling alphabet flash cards I want to hang on the wall in PB&J’s room. There are 26 5×7 cards, and I want to hang them in a big block formation to make one fairly large piece of smart art for PB&J to suck genius from. I think I’m (and when I say “I,” I mean someone else under my polite direction) going to hang them in four parallel rows – the top three rows with seven letter cards each, and the final row with five letter cards.
But how should I hang them? I’ve been waffling over this question for months now, pretty much since I started to make loose nursery idea-plans.
The current options I’m considering:
(I’d most likely have much shorter ribbon tails since there will be four rows.)
(unsure about having similar end pieces or leaving the ends open)
The only other idea I have is to somehow nearly invisibly attach string or ribbon to the backs of the card and just barely see a bit of string/ribbon in between each card. It’d look like they were magically floating above the string/ribbon.
I know, I know. This is a truly trite decision, but I have the cards, and they’re just sitting around in their sleeve, waiting for me to make a (verbal) move.
My only requirements: The hanging method must stick to my 7x7x7x5 idea; and it must be inexpensive. I’m not going to spend money on 26 5×7 frames. We’re on a wicked tight budget, and the cards only cost $20 in the first place.
What do you think, peanut gallery? How should I hang my alphabet cards?
p.s. Broken record, here! Care to take a moment and vote for my blog in the Mommy Blog Awards? The links are over yonder in the sidebar. Thanks, pals!
(Edited to add) p.p.s. I’m pretty sure whatever I decide will have a more straight-line look versus the swag look. Does that help anyone visualize better?
I have to say, after seeing your absolutely adorable nursery, I have a feel for that second photo in terms of the use of the clothes pins (as in the outdoor whimsical look of a fun clothes line) – and if you like the added touch of color and pazzaz of ribbon, attack bows to the clothespins (though that sounds like a lot of work all of a sudden …)
I like the more invisible idea.
But if I had to choose between the two you’ve shown, I like the second one. I think it looks more finished, without the ends just hanging around.
I agree! I like the 2nd picture more!
I realize this is totally not one of the options you listed… but it’s the first thing i thought when you mentioned the 26 cards… if you put up 4 shelves… you could theoretically switch out the smart art… later….
see how YoungHouseLove did it in their office…
http://www.younghouselove.com/2010/09/switching-swatches/
p.p.s. I’m pretty sure whatever I decide will have a more straight-line look versus the swag look. Does that help anyone visualize better?
I LOVE the second one. I don’t really like the ribbon. I’m at a loss for what to do with the ends though. It looks like they are hanging on wire. Maybe tie the wire around a nail, then tie a colorful ribbon bow on the ends? Cheap and adds color.
Love the 2nd option! Very cute!
Ooo, Liz. I really like that idea too. I love YHL! It would be a little more pricey though.
I’m hanging flashcards from a ribbon with clothes-pins, but it definitely looks swaggy (I WANT it to look sort of swaggy), so you might not want to go with that one.
How about you get some ribbon in a color really similar to your wall color and glue the cards to it? You’ll want to get pretty wide ribbon, to keep it from drooping, and then attach it to the wall at each end with little hooks?
The nursery has beautiful clean lines, I would skip the ribbons and clothes pins. Instead use the tiniest finishing nails that have a flat head and nail them directly to the wall. If necessary you could use a spot of paint to hide the nail heads. It will produce super sharp display of the darling cards, plus it will hold it’s shape over time. No worries of slipping cards from clothes pins or shifting on ribbons.
The nursery looks perfect and you look amazing!
What if you mount the cards on maybe some sort of painted plywood or OSB that you get cheap at Lowe’s or Home Depot or wherever. Figure out the needed dimensions, and they will cut it for you in the store. Then just paint it to your liking, and use spray adhesive to tack down the cards. Maybe spray with varnish of some sort to keep them from peeling/add extra shine? Then just hang the boards on the wall.
What about using some sort of tape or sticky stuff and just put them up directly on the wall in a straight line, in the lay out of rows you mentioned? you could also do double sided tape and that would make them stick out and “float” on the wall.
I used command strips to hang alphabet cards in the nursery (and another set in the playroom.) not terribly fancy, but it works! and my boys can now read at a college level. okay, maybe not. but still.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pyjammy/sets/72157602396850078/
oh, and here are the ones in the playroom:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pyjammy/3224001882/
ok… so i know you aren’t going to be doing a whole lot of shopping and sanding and painting and whatnot… please stay off your feet, woman.
and sorry to use another YHL link… but i agree with ruthie, that you really want something streamlined in here… the swag just isn’t hitting me right.
http://www.younghouselove.com/2010/07/office-progress-getting-our-art-groove-on/
they did their shelves for under $25. do you have a dad, or is your hubs good with stuff… could he hang these?
Pam, I think we’re decorative soul mates. I literally gasped the first time I saw your boys’ room because I’ve had SO MANY of the exact same idea. Seriously. SO MANY. We’re also doing shelves with books.
And I swear I’m not copying. Double pinky swear!
Liz – thank you for that detailed YHL link! Rob might want to reach through the computer to slap you, but I really like that!
Crap. He’s so going to kill me if I decide this is what I want. I’m going to get poo smeared in my face or something.
I like #2 because the clothes pins make it easy to swap out the cards for other things, like photos or the trip’s original artwork.
aww, sweet! yay! i’m all touched and stuff.
and no, the books never fell off the shelves onto their heads. (i get that a lot. and now they have crib tents so i could put bricks up there and it’d be fine.)
oh, and my brother and SIL did the shelves like YHL (with the same cards we have in the playroom) way back before that blog was even a glimmer in anyone’s eye. i wanted to do that desperately, but am not handy enough, so command strips it was.
Or you could hang 7 ribbons vertically, and attach the letters to the ribbons. Since the ribbons would be hanging down (as opposed to horizontally), they would naturally form nice straight lines. Something like this (where the period represents the ribbon showing through):
A B C D E F G
. . . . . . .
H I J K L M N
. . . . . . .
O P Q R S T U
. . . . .
V W X Y Z
I don’t know if this makes sense, but the A-H-O would all be connected on the same ribbon. Get it?
(Thanks for making the last 10 minutes of my day fly by! I’ve been counting down the minutes.)
I didnt read all the other 1000000 comments. (ok not really) but I think you should using fishing wire. And hang them straight instead of bowed. So they really have a floating feel.
Glue Dots. In the scrapbooking section at your craft store. You can use them to very easily create the looks Pam linked to, and they come off relatively easily, and shouldn’t mark up the wall.
What do you think about backing them with colored paper, so that they look ‘framed’. Then hang them with double sided tape? Perhaps instead of 7x7x7x5 it could be:
X X X X X X X
X X X X X X
X X X X X X X
X X X X X X
or
X X X X X X
X X X X X X X
X X X X X X X
X X X X X X
Good luck! I can’t wait to see what you decide!
I like the 2nd better… but I think I would just buy a packet of pretty finishing nails, and put the nail straight through the center of each card, but only hammer the nails half-way in, so the head sticks out.
I didnt read all the other comments, but I like option two with fishing wire or something similar so you don’t see the wire/ribbon and you could also pull it really tight so there’s no swagging.
What about using some magnetic paint and mixing it with some of the paint you used to paint the walls. You could paint a square with the paint and then put magnets on the back of the cards and hang them that way. You would then have the option of switching out the cards with something else when you felt the need.
http://www.younghouselove.com/2010/07/office-progress-a-new-home-for-the-wallflowers/
So exciting!!! The room looks great and you look fantastic
I like the second one.. mostly because I’m afraid of long cords/ribbons/etc in a nursery. (Anxiety prone mom, at your service)
so this isn’t exactly what you were walking about..but..I did this..
I had alphabet cards roughly 5 x 7 and I bought a huge canvas (I think it was $20 at Hobby Lobby) I painted the canvas dark brown and glued the cards to it. Then I put mod podge over the cards to seal them in place. It looks great!