Hello friends! First I need to thank you all for your support of this little hobby of mine. I truly appreciate every question, comment, like, and email. I have been so uplifted by this wonderful community and I am so grateful to each of you.
I have been pondering opening an Etsy shop to sell some of these signs I make, or a vinyl stencil so you can make your own. I am sorry for posting these tutorials that require a Silhouette Cameo when so many of you don’t have one! But the Silhouette is seriously the easiest and least time consuming option that I have come up with, so here is another Silhouette tutorial. I hope it is helpful for some of you – and to those of you without this handy machine, I HEAR YOU! I am working on my Etsy shop and hope to get it running soon!
For this tutorial, I will skip the software design process. If you would like further instruction on how to design your stencil see this post.
First, paint or stain your wood to your desired color. I wanted the woodgrain to show through a bit so I watered my paint down just a bit. Like 1 Tbsp water per 8 oz paint.
After the paint dried I sanded it down a bit with 100 grit sandpaper. Clean off the dust.
Next lay your stencil. I use spray adhesive to hold my stencil in place. See this post for more details.
For this particular sign I used the font “Impact”. This is a standard font that comes with most programs. I did alter the spacing and height a bit to fit my sign better.
Here is the jpg image I used for my sign. I just ask that you do not use it to make signs to sell using my design. Thanks!
I need to give credit to Joanna Gaines here – I am in love with her “Super Market” sign in her kitchen (along with half of the country, amiright?) and I used this picture as inspiration for my sign.
After my stencil was in place, I used a stencil sponge to lightly apply my text paint. The trick to eliminate paint bleed is a few light coats. If you put a glob of paint on it will bleed through to the underside. Slow and steady.
After painting your text, immediately remove your stencil. The longer it dries the harder it is to remove the stencil. Allow the paint to dry completely.
After the text dried, I sanded it again. I wanted it to have a worn look, but this is totally optional. If your background is not roughed up and the woodgrain or wood is not showing through, I don’t recommend this step.
If you are worried about humidity or things splattering on your sign, protect it with a coat or two of Polycrylic. I love this stuff because it dries clear and doesn’t smell.
Next add your frame. Cut your wood to frame your sign. Home Depot or Lowes will do this for you if you don’t have a miter saw (as long as you purchase your wood from them).
I like to use these little brad nails from Home Depot. I like the look of the nail head showing a bit on the frame it gives it a little industrial look. If you do not want your nails to show, use a nail gun or wood glue (I have been known to use a hot glue gun as well – shhh!). Be careful to get your nail in the middle of the sign, if it is too close to the edges the wood may crack or bulge a little.
Here is a closeup of two nail heads showing on my frame. They are almost unnoticeable.
And mounting brackets and there you have it!
