Thanksgiving Signs

Last week I made a pumpkin spice sign out of a wooden pumpkin from Dollar Tree. The project was working so well, that I opted to turn a few more of the vinyl decals I cut from the week before that.


I found some free designs and some freebies from the Sillhouette stores and made 3 pages of cuts all at once out of black vinyl I don't remember where this week's designs came from (that's what I get for cutting a bunch all at once).


I used standard settings for glossy permanent vinyl on my old Silhouette and let the machine run. After cutting out all of my designs, I separated the designs from each other using scissors and set them aside for each project.


I had a couple of wooden signs from a trip to JoAnne's ages ago that I hadn't made anything with, so after the Pumpkin Spice sign turned out so well, I decided to give them a similar treatment. I painted the signs with a layer of thinned-out brown craft paint and a tiny drip of maroon paint to make it warmer in color.


After the brown paint had dried, I started weeding my vinyl decals with a vinyl pick.


Then I transferred the designs onto transfer tape and applied it to the painted wooden sign.


The hardest part of making these signs is getting the design on straight. This one is a bit crooked. It will give it character, sure, but it also makes my eye twitch just a bit.


I repeated the process with another design on a second wooden plaque.


Then I took my two wooden signs and gave them a coat of white craft paint with a bit of brown mixed in to make it off-white.


After the first layer was dry, I gave it a bit of a light sanding to smooth out any bumps and lumps and then came back for a second coat.


After the second coat dried, I sanded again to reveal the decal and smooth out any imperfections. I also sanded the edges a bit to give it a rustic look. Then I used my dental pick and a craft knife to carefully pull the vinyl off the signs. 


You can use a sealer of some kind (spray acrylic or Mod Podge would both work well) if you want a slightly glossier finished product, but I liked the matte finish.

Happy crafting and have a great Thanksgiving!

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