Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Wood Sign with Vinyl Tutorial


Finally a tutorial....I'm warning you I am pretty bad at writing these but it's easy peasy!

Supplies You'll need-

Gorilla Glue ( I have tried a couple of their varieties and the one pictured holds the best IMO, in some of the pics you'll see me using another variety, ignore that I switched and didn't retake my pics, Go me. )
A damp rag
1x4s ( no tools? no worries, home depot, lowes, etc. will cut them to the size you need, i've never been charged but they may charge a small fee )
Vinyl
Sander or Sandpaper ( I highly recommend a sander, I just recently got one and thought I'd died and gone to Heaven, saves so much time. )
Clamps or something heavy for each end while it's drying.
Paint
Paintbrush



****Because the Gorilla glue does expand and may get a little messy, please do this somewhere won't it won't hurt the surface your working on. Garage floor maybe?


For my piece of vinyl I needed Nine 24 1/2 inch 1x4s, always cut or have them cut you a few extra pieces in that size just in case you get a bad piece that won't lay flush.


After you have your supplies all gathered up take your damp rag and wipe your boards down really good. Then you will want to get them all laid out to how they will be glued to make sure they are flush with each other.




Now one by one start gluing and putting them together, remember this glue will expand!


Because I'm not cool and have no clamps of any kind, I had mine out on the floor with heavy objects on each end to keep it together. Leave it here for 24 hours, yes it's a longggg wait. Be patient.


After 24 hours you'll need to sand off some of the glue that expanded out, give it a good sanding on the top and on the edges as well. After wiping it down you can paint, I did a creamy white and afterwards sanded again for a little bit of antiquing.



Now it's vinyl time, this isn't as scary as it seems. It's easy, just takes a little time to get it on there perfectly. Lay it out on the board to place it where you want it. Follow the directions that will come with the vinyl, just peel back a little at a time and for smoothing it out I instead used a wooden paint stirrer.  I also started at the bottom with my vinyl, that just seemed to work best for me. Go Slow!


Now if you made it through the vinyl you should end up with something like this :) It's totally worth it!! Yes you have to buy the vinyl, then the wood, it's not the thriftiest of projects but you end up with an expensive looking piece of art that you will have for many years, rather than just applying the vinyl to the wall which is not repositionable once removed.



Makes a very nice anniversary, or wedding gift! I actually made this one for my Dad and Stepmom :)


and Remember the other one I made here? I love this one and it's all mine, hehe :)


Oh and I've done smaller versions with paint and stencils I made, isn't it cute??


And this one for Fall, yeahhh I can't wait for Fall!!! These were all made with 1x4s and Gorilla Glue :) I made do a tutorial on the pumpkin one as it's soooooo easy!

Alrighty I think that's it, Happy Crafting :)


I'm linking up with Gina over at The Shabby chic Cottage for Transformation Thursday, head over and see all the other great projects!!





I'm linking up with Wendy over at the Shabby Nest for Frugal Friday
Join us Saturdays at tatertotsandjello.com for the weekend wrap up party!




15 comments:

Unknown said...

I love that idea. I want to make one like you made your dad. So cute.
Brooke

Unknown said...

Awesome! Love it!!
I just did my first piece of vinyl art, too. AND posted a tutorial as well. I really enjoyed it - and cannot stress the GO SLOW part enough. LOL

Randi~Dukes and Duchesses said...

I love those. Thanks for sharing the tutorial!

Lisa at Paint in my Hair said...

these are gorgeous, thanks for the tutorial - I especially like the "Bless Our Nest" one

Nikki said...

I really, really like these. Are you cutting your vinyl or buying the shapes pre-cut?

Alison @ Oopsey Daisy said...

WOW! I am in love!! I adore the idea of gluing the boards together and then painting. What a neat effect! Thanks for sharing!

~Alison
http://oopsey-daisy.blogspot.com/

Lil' Luna said...

Wow - I love it!! I'm dying to know what font you used for the monogram vinyl... and where you got the tree clipart for the other board. I also LOVE your pumpkin sign vinyl. So stinkin' awesome!! If you do anymore let me know, and I'd LOVE for you to do a tutorial on my blog. :D

XO,
Kristyn at LilLuna.com
mylilluna@gmail.com

Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures said...

I really like your projects. Where do you get your vinyl pieces?

Stephanie Lynn @Under the Table and Dreaming said...

These look fabulous! I just love the tree - gorgeous! Fantastic work. Hope you are enjoying your weekend! ~ Stephanie Lynn

I {heart} Nap Time said...

Love this! Such a great idea!

Unknown said...

Can you tell me where I can get the Family Tree vinyl?? I'd love to make that for my new home! :)

Thanks!
emilyallphin(at)gmail(dot)com

angie said...

these are all super cute! now to find some cheap vinyl prints....

Shabby Vintage Threads said...

I really like the bless our nest sign. So cute!!

Anonymous said...

Great post Nicole! I mentioned it on my "weathered wood signs" post at my blog about linking the best in DIY out there! Thanks, ~ Heather

Mela said...

Love this! Can you tell me what font the K is? twopeasboutique@gmail.com