What to do with all of those Race Bibs!

I save all of my bibs from my races.  I never really knew what to do with them so they just got shoved into a folder in my file cabinet.  Six years of bibs in that folder.  I've seen so many cool ideas on Pinterest with what to do with race bibs.  The problem is that I don't really have a room in my home to display them.  Our home is decorated like a Mexican Hacienda and putting up a frame of bibs just doesn't go with the whole Mexican theme.   I also haven't been displaying my race medals.  They have just been hanging on the corner of the full length mirror outside of my bedroom closet.  So, I decided to incorporate both my bibs and medals into one project and I just love the finished product.

Bib & Medal Display

Instructions

This was super easy to make.  I got pre-cut wooden letters at a Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft store.

I got all my race bibs and decided which ones I wanted to use.  I made sure to remove all safety pins and tracking devices from the backs.

Using a sponge brush, I glued the bibs onto the front of the wooden letters using Mod Podge.  I didn't worry about the sides of the letters just yet.  I had to trim some of the bibs so I could wrap them around the sides, but the glue was not holding them securely to the sides of the letters so I just did the front first.

Once I got all the bibs I wanted to use glued to the front of the letters, I used a hot glue gun to secure the bibs to the sides and continued to wrap the bibs to the back.  I was able to secure the bibs to the backs of the letters with the Mod Podge and some packing tape.  I applied a coat of Royal Coat Decoupage Finish to the front and sides of the letters and left them to dry overnight.

The next morning I secured  3M Command™ Damage Free, Clear Utensil Hooks to the letters using the hot glue gun again.  The tape that comes with the hooks was not strong enough to hold the medals which is why I used the glue gun.

Then all you need to do is hang the letters on the wall and hang your medals on the hooks.  To secure the letters to the wall I secured some ribbon to the back of the letters using the glue gun again.  I made sure to pre-cut three pieces of ribbon the same length before gluing them.

Using thumb tacks I secured the letters to the wall by putting a tack through the center of the ribbon at the top.  I hung these on the wall in the hallway right outside my bedroom so they are displayed nicely without clashing with my Mexican decor.  I've decided to actually hang up my race photos in the hallway as well, so every time I walk to my bedroom now I will be able to see my accomplishments.