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DIY Established Sign

DIY Wood Sign

April 13, 2015 Sarah Coggins
This post may contain affiliate links that help support this site at no additional cost to you.

When redecorating the area around our foyer console table, I envisioned a grouping of 3 decorative pieces on the wall above it – the large family photo (which we need to update to include our daughter!), a circular mirror, and a ‘C’ for our last name.

DIY Established Wood Sign Tutorial - How I created a custom decor wood sign for free.

I found the ‘C’ first while looking around the home decor aisles at Michaels and between the sale price + coupon, it was under $5. The mirror took a bit more searching, but finally I found one that I liked online at Target. Better yet, I used the store locator so I could go see it in person to be sure. Not only did I like it, but it was on clearance for 50% off making it only $6! After hanging both pieces, I realized the space still felt empty. It needed one more … well, one more something.

Foyer Grouping Before

I was determined to create something and to do it without spending any money. I started by searching through our scraps of wood in the garage. I found 2 that looked like they would be the perfect size when paired together.

DIY Established Sign: Wood Pieces

I used a simple hand saw and miter box to trim the larger piece so it matched the width of the smaller one. Then sanded the edges and faces of both pieces. I pulled out some leftover stain from our half bath makeover. I gently wiped a couple coats of stain on each piece using a rag. Since the scraps were different woods, they each absorbed the stain slightly differently. I worked to give them a similar color, but wasn’t too concerned if they were a little off.

DIY Established Sign: Staining

Once the stain had dried, I measured both pieces to choose sizing for the text. I decided to use the taller piece for “est” and the other for the year. I played around in Photoshop to get the look I wanted for both fonts (you could also do this in Word or another text program). Then printed them out to scale on 8.5×11 paper.

DIY Established Sign: Lettering

I went “old school” at this point and literally ran a pencil on the back of the paper to get the graphite onto the sheet. Held the paper and one of the wood pieces up to a light so I could eyeball location and then traced the lettering onto the wood. Repeating for the other piece.

DIY Established Sign: Letter Transfer

Next I carefully handpainted the letters and numbers using a small paintbrush and white acrylic paint.

DIY Established Sign: Painting

After the paint had fully dried, I took the two wood pieces outside where my son helped me lightly sand them. My goal was to knock off a little of the acrylic paint and give them a more “aged” feel.

DIY Established Sign: sanding

I wanted to attach the two pieces of wood, but leave a small gap between them. The easiest way to achieve this was to cut a spare paint stir stick we had in our garage down to size. I used our miter box again and the hand saw to cut the pieces. I lightly sanded the rough edges where the cuts were, but didn’t worry too much since these won’t be seen.

DIY Established Sign: Cut Paint Stick

Finally I added a little wood glue to the stir stick pieces and tacked in place with my staple gun starting with the top piece.

DIY Established Sign: Staple

I repeated this for the bottom piece. My next plan was to add a hanger, but I realized that we were out so I dug around in our toolbox again and found picture hanging wire. I cut a piece and used the staple gun to attach it to the stir sticks on the back.

DIY Established Sign

With the project complete, I brought the small wood sign inside and hung it with the other decor over our foyer console table.

DIY Established Sign

It’s a fun, unique piece that fills the space perfectly. Have you ever created your own wood sign? This was so easy, I confess, I’m tempted to make a few more in different sizes & styles.

Linked up to Dream Create Inspire Party and Do Tell Tuesday.

***

Did you notice the “+ Giveaway” in the post title? Let’s talk knobs for a moment. Last week I shared the foyer console table makeover which included these beautiful new decorative knobs from Trinca-Ferro:

Foyer Console Table Makeover: Glass Knobs

Trinca-Ferro has kindly offered to give 6 decorative knobs to one of my readers. The giveaway is open to US residents only and the winner will be able to choose 6 knobs from the vast selection on Trinca-Ferro’s website. It could be 6 of the same or a mix of different styles. Entirely up to the winner. Giveaway ends April 19, 2015. Winner will be notified via email and must respond within 48 hours or a new winner will be selected. Knobs will be shipped directly from Trinca-Ferro.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

12 Comments

  • Holly E April 13, 2015 at 6:55 pm
    I love the Ceramic Green and Pink Butterfly Knob.
  • Melisa April 13, 2015 at 8:15 pm
    I like the love out ceramic knob!
  • Danny Garza April 14, 2015 at 10:10 am
    I love the Cut Glass Bell Knobs, if not available then the Ceramic Green and Pink Butterfly Knobs! Thank you!
  • Stephanie Clark April 14, 2015 at 5:46 pm
    This is so cute. I love the combination of everything!
  • Julie S. April 15, 2015 at 8:10 am
    I would get these! We want to redo our bathroom this fall, and I need new knobs for sure. http://www.trinca-ferro.com/us/en/ceramic-round-knob-silver-circles-on-white-chrome-finish-1902.html
  • Jaime April 17, 2015 at 9:01 am
    I'm loving the Ceramic Garden Flower Knob in Turquoise! So pretty!
  • manda April 17, 2015 at 12:05 pm
    I love Ceramic Yellow Dance Knob.
  • Sarah Halstead April 17, 2015 at 7:42 pm
    I LOVE the Ceramic Garden Flower Knob Turquoise
  • Andrea B. April 18, 2015 at 10:45 am
    The ceramic tea cup knob is too cute. :)
  • Stephanie o'day April 19, 2015 at 4:17 pm
    I love the Bauchop Red and Green Glass Flower Knob!!!
  • […] Next, design and cut your stencil from vinyl using a Silhouette or Cricut machine. [If you don’t have either, you could cut a stencil by hand or used a purchased one. Another option is to print the design onto a plain sheet of copy paper, trace onto the wood, and then paint by hand.] […]
  • […] DIY Wood Sign // Tattooed Flower Pots // Paint Furniture With DIY Chalk Paint […]
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    About Me

    Sarah

    Hi! I'm a DIY and craft obsessed mom to 2. I have my hands covered in sawdust or paint any given day. My husband and kids join me in many of our projects. When we aren't creating at home, we're creating memories in our many adventures. Join along! Read More

    Sarah

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