Winter break art project scrabble letter coasters

During the holidays my family is always looking for unique crafts to do together.  When I came across some scrabble letter coasters I knew this craft would be fun, educational, and great to give as a gift.

First you need to find some scrabble letters.  You can find them in lots of 100 or more on Etsy or ebay.  I spent about $24 for 196 tiles.

Next you need cork.  I bought mine at the craft store in a roll.  I used a 50% off coupon so it cost me $3.  I did buy my cork in a roll and if I were to do it over I would have bought it packaged flat.  But if you have to buy a roll don't worry it will still work.

Next is the fun part we all sat around the table as a family and choose letters for our own coasters.  We created our coasters just like you would in a scrabble game, making words off of other words.  Each coaster contained 16 tiles.  

I then measured out the coasters and cut the cork according to those measurements.  

The last step is to glue the coasters.  We used a hot glue gun.  Other sites use some major glue that I did not feel comfortable exposing my family to.  If you are looking for durability that may be the direction you want to go.  Our intent its for fun and if our method lasts a month we will be happy with that!  

Hot glue the cork for the first letter starting in the upper left hand corner.  Apply enough glue for one letter tile.  The next letter will require you to apply glue to the cork next to the first tile and then a small amount on the side of the first tile.  Then place the second tile firmly against that first tile.  You need to be precise in your placement because the tile will stick to that cork and tear the cork if you try to remove it...I speak from experience!  Continue gluing all the tiles in this manner till you are finished.  Remember to not only glue the tiles to the cork but also to each other.  

At this point I completed my project.  Other sites will put some type of clear coat on the coasters but that is just not my style.  Like I said before we did this project more for fun than durability.  And so far they are holding up just fine!

If you are not into making coaster but love the look then Etsy has some very crafty sellers who have listed beautiful, durable scrabble letter coasters.

desiredsimplicity.etsy.com