Freelance Lady: NAUTICAL THEMED NURSERY - SUPER EASY HANDMADE BABY SHOWER GIFT

When I first started shopping for my niece—before she was born—nearly four years ago, I knew that I wanted to do something special for her. My sister settled on a hot pink and gray nautical themed nursery, so I decided to make something that would go along with the decor, but also represent the love between mother and child. What I decided to make was nautical themed wall decor.

* This post may contain affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking the links.

This wall decor set is so easy to make and very inexpensive.

You will need:

(3) 10 x 10 Frames
(3) Sheets Canvas Paper or Cardstock
(1) Permanent Glue Stick
(1) Yard Fabric
Word Processing Program
Printer/Ink
Scissors

All-in-all, the entire project cost me around $11. I already had canvas paper and glue sticks. Assuming that you already have a printer, ink, and scissors, you're looking at around $18 total for the frames, canvas paper, glue stick, and fabric.

Handmade Nautical Themed Baby Shower Gift

I purchased three frames from Dollar Tree. They are the "Triple-Matted Plastic Photo Frames" and they feature a divider for three images with a smiling family on the front. The reason I chose these frames was because they were a perfect square, measuring 10 x 10.

I removed the backing off of these frames and then took out the paper and the divider and tossed them both in the recycling bin (you won't need them).

Next, I cut three 10 x 10 pieces out of canvas paper. These are what will act as the "picture" to go in the frame, after you cover them with fabric and add your letter, image, quote, etc.

To cover them, I used white and gray chevron fabric from Big Z Fabrics on Amazon. It costs around $6 a yard, plus $2 shipping. Alternatively, you may just use a white and gray chevron patterned paper—this will eliminate the need for canvas paper and fabric. I prefer the fabric because it fills in the space between the frame and the glass, and also provides more texture.

I secured the fabric in place using a glue stick (I like Scotch's Permanent Glue Sticks—you can buy a 24-pack for less than $15). Make sure that you keep the fabric nice and taut when gluing it down. You don't want wrinkles!

Note: I used acrylic canvas paper, because it's heavy duty and the fabric adhered very easily to it . Also, I chose a permanent glue stick over a fabric glue stick because I want the project to last. I don't want it falling apart within several weeks.

Next, I allowed the glue to dry for about two hours.

Designing Your Nautical Frame

Now, for the fun part! This is where you decide what you want to actually go in the frames. Do you want the first letter of the child's name? A symbol that matches the nursery theme? A heart? Once you decide what you want, you can start searching for images.

I, personally, like to create my own images and quotes using PicMonkey, which is exactly what I used for this project. I settled on a letter "M" for Madison, an anchor (to match the nautical theme), and a quote on a white background that says, "Gonna Love You Until The Seas Run Dry."

Note: I just cut the quote out, leaving plenty of white paper around it to set it apart from the other two frames.

Once I was sure that I was happy with the images, I uploaded them into Microsoft Word. I then re-sized them so that they fit the frame. This took a little trial and error, so you'll need to experiment a little to get the right size.

Print the images and then very carefully, cut them out. Paste them directly to the fabric using your permanent glue stick. Once it dries (about two hours or so, just to be sure), you may replace the glass frames.