baby name and numbers subway art
Friday, August 31, 2012 at 05:00AM 
A good friend recently had a baby boy, and I wanted to make something simple and special for the baby's room. I came up with this easy ombre subway art using baby's name and numbers (birth date, weight, & length).
I created a 12x12 inch file in Photoshop Elements and typed in the relevant info. I used different fonts to give it a fun look, and chose a light blue for the first line, and then went a little bit darker blue for each successive line. I printed it out at Sam's Club, then mod podged it to a 12x12 piece of MDF, then sanded the edges and coated the entire thing with more mod podge (tutorial follows).
In the photo above you see the name/numbers print as well as a 12x12 square of MDF. I buy 1/4inch MDF in 2'x4' sheets at Home Depot (as explained in this post) and use it for craft projects, but you could use any type of board as long as it's sanded smooth.
I started by pouring a good bit of mod podge directly onto the MDF, as seen below (I actually used more than what you see in this photo).
I used a foam paintbrush to spread the mod podge across the MDF. When working with mod podge it's very important to get every inch of the surface covered, and to get the coverage pretty even. (A bigger foam brush would have made things easier.)
Next I put the print down on top of the mod podged MDF and quickly scooted it around a bit to make sure the edges lined up. I used a clean cloth to press down on the print and make sure it was all well adhered to the MDF (it's important to do this or you'll end up with bubbles in your project).
Next I did some sanding. I used a hand held power sander to sand around the edges and corners. This really blended the edges of the print into the MDF.
Next I used fine grit sandpaper across the front of the print to gently distress some of the letters/numbers.
Finally, the entire thing got another even coat of mod podge, which dries clear and protects the print.
A simple yet special baby gift.
Linking to some of these great parties:
Monday: Skip to My Lou | Brassy Apple | Craft-o-Maniac
Tuesday: Tip Junkie | Ladybug Blessings | Sugar Bee Crafts | The Blackberry Vine | Hope Studios | Funky Polkadot Giraffe | Not JUST a Housewife | Homework Today's Assignment: Be Inspired
Wednesday: Handy Man, Crafty Woman | Southern Lovely | Sew Much Ado | SNAP | Someday Crafts | The NY Melrose Family | Printabelle
Thursday: Somewhat Simple | House of Hepworths | Momnivore's Dilemma | The Shabby Creek Cottage | Yesterday on Tuesday | Fireflies and Jellybeans | The Taylor House
Friday: Chic on a Shoestring Decorating | The Shabby Nest | Stuff and Nonsense | Naptime Crafters | It's a Hodgepodge Life | At The Picket Fence | 504 Main | Blissful Bucket List
Weekend: Tatertots and Jello
Reader Comments (7)
I can't wait to try this project. My daughter is 2 today and I still don't have any sort of birth art for her room. I started following your blog thanks to a linky party. I've nominated you for The Versatile Blogger Award; read about it here: http://carissasfoodblog.blogspot.com/2012/08/amazing-pesto-stuffed-pork-chops.html
This is beautiful!! Love the way you progressed the colors. Do you mind telling what font the "July" line is?
LOVE IT!
Great tutorial. I love subway art and have been thinking I'd like to create some.
what a great gift and idea! I bought one of these thru tiny prints in Etsy, and I knew I could make something similar, thanks for sharing!
Linking back from Carolyns Homework
Kathie - the font for the July line is "Lavanderia" - it's beautiful, isn't it? Thanks for visiting!
Could you please share what other fonts you used? Thanks, I love it!!!
What a lovely gift!! Beautiful font too!! TFS! Stopping by from Craft-O-Maniac linky party.
Here is what I shared this week: http://craftybrooklynarmywife.blogspot.ca/2012/09/another-fur-baby-coat.html