{Think Outside the Toy Box} Puzzle Pieces: Painted Puzzle Wall Art

Okay, I know this is really late, but I have a million legitimate excuses! First off, we moved.. we have been moving since last Saturday. This move an hour and a half away has been exponentially harder than when we moved 32 hours away last year. Every time I thought we were close to being done packing everything up, I found another cabinet, another closet, or another bin full of crap we somehow accumulated over the past year. Anywho, we are finally getting a bit settled, but still have no internet. So I will continue to be absent until next Tuesday when the AT&T guys come to hook us up. Also, I had a birthday! Nothing special, just another year older and I celebrated by going to the laundromat and taking a glorious 3 hour nap with Myles! So here is my Think Outside the Toy Box Summer Fun Series post only four days late!
 

If you are here for the first time or want to check out all the details again, take a look at the post introducing the Think Outside the Toy Box summer fun series. Also if you have missed any previous weeks, here are the projects we have done so far:
Glow-in-the-Dark Bowling (and bath)
Plastic Bottle Waterfall
Astronaut/Alien Costume
 Foamy Bathtub Paint

Edible Sensory Bin
Marble Drop/Race
 Shredded Crayon Canvas Art

Now on to this week's fun with:

PUZZLE PIECES

Since we just moved and Myles will be celebrating his 2nd birthday in less than a month, I figured it would be the perfect time to change his room decor and hook him up with a new big boy room! Last week I showed you my first project for his room and revealed that I decided on a dinosaur theme. I am so excited to get to decorating and DIYing and this series has provided me with some awesome opportunities to get Myles involved as well. We have already made Shredded Crayon Canvas Art and this week I came up with another DIY project for his walls using puzzles:

  Painted Puzzle Wall Art

What You Will Need: 

4 boxes of small puzzles (I found these at the Dollar Tree)
Modge Podge

Paintbrushes/ Sponges

Washable Paints

Wood Decals

Glue Gun

Hole Puncher (*not pictured)

Ribbon (I used three different colors)

Directions:  

1. Start out by putting the puzzles together. I am a puzzle fanatic, so this was my favorite part :) After the puzzles are together, use a foam brush to Modge Podge the puzzles. It will need about 4 coats, 2 on each side. Brush the glue onto one side, let dry, then turn over and glue the other side (repeat).

2. Paint! This is the part to get the kids involved and let them decorate their new wall art. I used Crayola Washable Paints (they are perfect for toddlers) and just let him go at it. I had to guide him a little because I wanted to make sure all the different colors got on to all 4 puzzles and that they were covered well.

3. I let him use his hands and feet to paint as well. This way I got the paint to spread out over the whole puzzle. Let them dry.

4. Use the hot glue gun to attach the wood decals to the puzzles. I found these dinosaurs at Hobby Lobby already painted. They had tons of others to choose from if you are doing a different theme.

 

 5. Punch a hole in the top puzzle piece. Add ribbon and tie a knot for hanging. I used three colors (the main ones I'm using for his room) and braided them.

6. Hang and enjoy!

Thanks for checking out week seven of the Think Outside the Toy Box Summer Fun Series! Also don't forget to check out what all of the other ladies put together for this week's item in the link-up below. 
  And if you have a post (new or old) that you created showcasing puzzle pieces in a kid's project, craft, game, experiment, etc., submit it below as well. No post this week? No problem; join us next Monday when we will be using bathroom paper cups! 

 And in case you want to get a head start, here is the complete list for the coming weeks:
July 21 - Bathroom Paper Cups
July 28 - Plastic Milk Jugs