Vintage Shabby Chic Signs - Part 2

Latey I've really gotten into making these cute vintage looking signs.  This time I made a French inspired "Patisserrie" sign :



Close-up detail




Close-up detail



Close-up detail

 
And this " Antiques" sign.



I just love how they turned out, and they were  really easy.  Oh, and it only cost me $5.00.  I'll give you a quick tutorial, so you can make your very own. 

Here are the supplies you'll need:

Wood in your desired size and shape ( I got mine for free from the scrap pile at Home Depot).
Wood applique's in scrolly shape( for the Pattesserie sign).
Wood glue.
Acylic or latex paint in Raw Umber and Sage Green.
Sand paper, and palm sander.
Faux finish medium ( optional)
Spray paint in Heirloom White
Drop cloth.
An old white candle.
Paint brushes- a foam one for coating the board and a fine one for the lettering.
Old toothbrush.
Hammer or screwdriver.
Stencil or font from the computer.
Lead pencil or charcoal stick.
Chain for hanging.
2 metal cup hooks or eyelets.

The first thing I did was go to my local Home Depot and look for the roughest piece of wood I could find from their scrap pile.  The one I found had a nice big crack in it, so it was perfect for the antique/shabby chic look I was going for.  They will let you have them for free if you ask, as long as you're not greedy- they let me take 2 at a time. Of course, you can use any board cut to size, but rough wood looks best. Then I bought a set of 2 decorative scrolly appliques for  about $5.00.  This was the only thing I had to buy, as I already had all the other supplies on hand. For the " Antiques " sign, I used a scrap piece of beadboard that I had left over from a previous project.

Next I used my palm sander to take off the splinters and round the corners a bit. Then glued the scrolly wood appliques to the top of the wood.  You could also put some on the bottom if you wanted.  Once the glue is dry, paint the whole front with the raw umber paint.  Let dry thoroughly.  Next take your old wax candle and rub it in random places on the edges and front of the board.  Wherever you put the wax, you will later sand off the light paint and it will look chippy and cracked, and show the dark umber paint below.  Then take the board, and chain outside and spray  with 2 or 3 coats of Heirllom White spray paint. Use the drop cloth to protect your surface.  Let this dry very well- at least 12 hours, or more if you can stand to wait.

  Once the spray paint is dry, transfer your selected font onto the front of the board.  If you're using a stencil, just use a stencil brush and light swirl the paint. Build up the layers slowly- 2 or 3 will be sufficient, as you will sand most of it off later.  If you're using a font from your computer, as I did, print out your caption and size it.  On the back side of the paper, rub the entire surface with the lead pencil or charcoal stick. Center the caption on your board and then using a lead pencil, trace around the outline of your letters.  The rubbed pencil/charcoal acts like carbon paper. Now carefully paint the lettering with the sage green paint.  I used 2 coats, letting it dry in between.  If you make any mistakes, you can take a damp Q-tip and clean up the edges of the paint.  It's really cool- it's almost like a mini paint eraser, and you can even go back and clean up edges that are almost dry. Let your lettering dry- I used acrylic paint, so it dried really quickly. 

Now you're ready to distress.  Take a hammer or screw driver and hit the board in random places to create dents- don't go overboard unless you really need to take out some " pent up frustations".  Then go over the entire board with sand paper- go lightly at first, and then build up pressure where you want more distressing.  The more you sand, the more faded your letters will be.  And all the places where you rubbed wax previously will come off really easily and leave some nice dark spots.  The thicker the wax, the more chippy it will look.  If you're happy with the look, you can stop there.

 I decided to add more layers of distressing by mixing more raw umber paint with faux finish medium and painting it over the entire surface.  Then before it dries, take an old T-shirt rage that is wet and wrung out, and wipe over the surface.  This will leave glaze in the cracks and dents and look aged.  Let this dry.  Then , if you want even more texture, take some plain  water and mix it with the green and raw umber paint ( separately).  Dip the old toothbrush in the paint, and then using your thumb, drag over the bristles of the  toothbrush, and fine droplets of paint will spray onto the board.  You might want to practice on a piece of paper first for this effect.  Let dry again.

Now you're ready to hang.  Srew in the cup hook or eyelets, then attach the chain.  Voila!!! A beautiful vintage/shabby chic sign for next to nothing.

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial.

Shabby Chic Beadboard Sign DIY.

Well, I've been very busy with my new job, so I haven't had time to make any entries  for quite a while, but I did manage to make some cute vintage-look beadboard signs over the last month.  I had lots of extra beadboard left over from my Armoire makeover. I've always loved vintage signs and have wanted to do a project like this for a while now. Here are  the photos of the finished signs in my garden, and home , and then I'll give you a breakdown of the items you need to DIY these yourself, and a quick tutorial.  They're  really easy and fun to do. The possibilities are endless- just let your imagination and creativity guide you.





In the garden

Le Jardin Sign

Close-up of detail.

Close-up of crackle detail

Close-up of painted and distressed detail

Here's a list of what you'll need to complete these projects:

Beadboard or wood in desired size

Acrylic or latex paint ( One dark and one light if you plan on doing the crackle effect)

Paint brushes- foam or bristle

Stencil brush

Lead pencil

Antiquing medium or glaze

Old tee-shirt rags

Raw umber or other dark brown color acrylic paint ( to mix with antiquing medium)

Crackle medium

Stencil or font from computer ( for lettering)

Images from computer ( for Rosemary and Lavendar images)

Sandpaper ( and palm sander if you want0

Hammer or screwdriver

Decorative upholstery tacks

Matt acrylic sealer - spray or brush on.

Twine or ribbon for hanging

I used pine beadboard for my project and acrylic craft paint, so I didn't need to prime the wood beforehand. Once you decide on the size, sand the edges of the wood or beadboard for a worn , soft look. Then brush with one or 2 coats of paint.  If you plan on doing a crackle effect, use a dark coat first, let dry, then coat with crackle medium- all over or just in small areas as I did on my large  Rosemary and Lavendar sign.  Once the crackle medium is dry, brush on a light color over the crackle medium and the cracks will begin to show almost immediately.  The thicker the paint, the larger the cracks. It's really important to only brush once over the crackle medium, or it won't work, so I suggest practicing on a scrap first until you get the hang of it.  Of course, you can skip this step if you want, and it still looks good.  Let the paint dry thoroughly. 

If you're using  a stencil, dip the stencil brush in the dark acrylic or latex paint, and rub most of it off onto a paper towel.  Then using a swirling motion, and barely any paint, fill in the stencil letters.  This will give it a soft, worn look.  If you want to use a font from the computer, you'll have to do a few extra steps.  Once you have the lettering the way you want it, rub the back side of the paper all over with the side of the pencil, then place your lettering on the painted board and trace the lettering.  This acts like carbon paper, and you'll get an outline of the lettering.  Then usung a small craft brush, carefully paint the lettering.  Don't worry if you don't get it perfect, because you're going to sand it and distress it later, and it will all get worn down anyway.  Let your lettering dry.  If you want to add any other decorative stencils or hand painted details, do this now as well.  Let dry.

Now for the fun part.  Take a hammer or srewdriver and start hitting the wood anywhere you want to create dents and crevices.  You can even use a metal chain.  It's a good time to get some of your pent-up frustrations out.  Go as crazy as you want - or not - whatever you like.  Anywhere you have a dent will get filled in with antiquing medium later, and take on an aged look- like dirt has collected over time.  When you're happy with your dents, or have all your frustations out, mix your antiquing medium with the raw umber paint, at a rate of 4 parts antiquing medium to 1 part paint.  You don't need a lot, so don't mix up too much.  Paint over the whole sign with the antiquing medium,using a foam brush, and then using a damp t-shirt rag, wipe off most of the antiquing medium, using a light circular motion. Wherever you have a depression in the wood, the dark color will stay, and the raised parts will get wiped almost clean.  The harder you wipe, the cleaner it will get.  You may have to rinse of the rag a few times and keep working  it until you get the look you want.  If you take too much off, you can always go back and add more.  Once you're happy with the effect, let it dry several hours or over night.  Now , sand the edges and corners, as well as some sections on the actual sign.  If you have hand painted any areas, make sure you go over them so they look aged and worn.

If you are using the decorative upholstery tacks, hammer them in where ever you want them.  If the tacks are too long, you can cut off some of the pointed end with wire cutters, hammer them into the wood, and then reinforce them with hot glue or carpenters glue.  Once everthing is the way you like it, spray the whole thing with acrylic sealer and let dry.  I used garden twine to hang my signs for a rustic look, but you could also use ribbon or picture hangers.  Or just lean it against a wall.

That's it.  Enjoy and have fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!