To keep this project under budget I wondered over to the Re-Store to see what they had.  The great thing about shopping there is they give back to the community, and you can really find some DIY home project materials there!   I lucked out and found this great piece of wood.  It had been treated previously and had a few nicks, which in my opinion gives this wood some character.  I did sand it lightly to help with minor imperfections and remove any sealer, then restrained it a shade darker.  I’m happy with the results.

Keep reading for more, or scroll down to see the easy tutorial!

Once the stain was on, I added the letters.  You can use a stencil for this, which would make it a lot easier…but I couldn’t find mine, part of the reno.  So I had to free hand these letters.  If you have to do the same, don’t press too hard with your pencil as the wood may be soft and mark easily.  Once the letters were painted and dry, a quick top coat was applied for a finished look.  Then I added my burlap strips and floral wire with a glue gun.  Finally a hook was added to the back.  Too much too fast??  Let’s take a look at the tutorial!

How to create a Fun and Cheap Rustic Bathroom Sign

What you’ll need:

• Three pieces of wood, they don’t have to be the same size!
• Sanding paper
• Wood stain
• White acrylic paint
• Letter stencils or a pencil
• Twine, burlap and/or floral wire
• Glue gun
• Scissors
• Wall plaque hangers

Step 1. If your wood has been previously treated, give it a light sand to remove any shiny sealer…otherwise your stain or paint will go on unevenly.  

Step 2. Stain your wood using an old cloth or stain rag.  Apply each coat according to the manufacturers label.  Apply as many as needed. I only used a small amount of stain and really spread it with the rag.

Step 3. Paint your letters.  I recommend using a stencil to make life easier, or you can free hand them.

Step 4. Apply a top coat for protection. I used a mat spray on sealer, anything shinier could clash the rustic look.

Step 5. Once the top coat is try, you can add any embellishment you’d like. I used a glue gun to adhere the burlap strips.  I recommend twine or burlap as it’s the best of the rustic look.  You could also consider adding some metal elements as that is very in trend right now!

There you have it!  We hope you loved this Fun and Inexpensive Rustic Bathroom Sign as we do!. Need ideas for other rooms too? See our list of Top 10 DIY Home Decor Projects

The post How to create a Fun and Cheap Rustic Bathroom Sign appeared first on And Then Home.

When making a signboard, picking a theme first can be very helpful and selecting a sign for a specific room is a great place to start. Be open to using unexpected materials in your sign like string, mason jars, flowers, and more. Of course for any message board paint, stencils and brushes will be almost mandatory as is, naturally, wood. Pallets make for great signs and sometimes you can salvage them from local retailers that may be willing to give them away for free. Whatever materials you choose, here’s a look at some great ideas for bringing this decor trend into your home.

Eight Wood Signs Ideas for Every Room in Your House

1. In the Kitchen

Customize your kitchen with a vintage, cooking related sign. Think of utensils, food and baking items for inspiration. Paired items are ideal for kitchens as there are so many items that could work. Bread & Butter, Salt & Pepper, Pots & Pans just to name a few. Home Stories A to Z made a good choice with Coffee & Tea – follow their tutorial here.

2. For the Bathroom

We didn’t have to look far for cheeky sign ideas for you bathroom. This one lives in Christine’s guest bath and I know I get a good chuckle every time I visit. Customize for your bathroom by changing up the colour.

3. Inspirational Family Rooms

The den is a place for comfort, where everyone gathers and relaxes together. The perfect place to have a sign to remember to appreciate the little things in life. Inspirational saying and quotes are perfect choices for signs in living and family rooms. This charming sign was made by our friends at Grey Luster Girl.

4. Welcome Home

There’s not too much a welcome sign has to say but that doesn’t mean you can’t have some fun with it. Try adding flowers or a monogram to your sign, or try greetings in different languages. Bonjour, howdy, aloha, ahoy and hola!

5. Bless Your Guests

Make those staying for the night (or more) comfy and cozy with a sign just for them. Whether its sweet or sassy, make your guests feel at home with a charming DIY signboard. Remodelaholic came up with this hilarious sign that will gently remind your guests when its time to go!

More ideas coming your way…..

6. Don’t Forget Outside

There are endless options for outdoors signs but we like this twist – it does double duty as a table! I made this sign table two summers ago and its still going strong. The message is perfect for our house, and that’s important when choosing a signboard. Make sure when you make one that it means something to you.

7. Keep it Clean – The Laundry Room

Often the most overlooked space in a house, there’s no reason a laundry room can’t be glamorous and hilarious. From advertising for lost socks (looking for a soul mate?) to wash, dry, fold, repeat there are lots of fun options. We like this wanted ad by Unoriginal Mom.

8. Isn’t it Romantic? In the Bedroom

To cap off our list is the sweetest place in the house, the perfect place for a romantic, intimate sign. Love quotes, wedding vows, hearts and flowers are all great choices for this room. Vintage Romance Style has an inspired idea using song lyrics, let your partner know how you feel everyday with this sign.

We’ve covered a lot of ideas here for DIY wood signs! Hopefully this list will be helpful is your quest for the perfect signboard for your home. There are more rooms we didn’t cover here so please share your ideas and projects with us. Happy crafting!

The post Eight Wood Signs Ideas for Every Room in Your House appeared first on And Then Home.

DIY Bathroom Sign – Chic or Rustic and so funny!

• Wooden board
• White acrylic paint
• Grey acrylic paint
• pencil
• paintbrushes
• Optional – stencil with stencil sponge 

 

The post DIY Funny and Chic Bathroom Decor Sign appeared first on And Then Home.

This blog post may contain affiliate links or ads. What does that mean? We may get a little commission if you make a purchase using our links, at no extra cost to you.

Easy DIY Kids Height Chart

The first thing you need for this height chart is a plank of wood.  I stupidly thought this was going to be a hard task and I obviously hadn’t spent very much time inside of a hardware store.  I ended up buying a piece that was 1’ x 6’ which is the perfect size.  Let me tell you why…

  Remember that when you hang your board, you’re not going to hang it flat on the floor.  You’ll want to hang your board a couple inches above the floor, at least above the baseboards.  So, a six foot board will give you a growth chart of about 6’5, which means you can measure you kids when their adults!  They’ll love it, I’m sure.

The longest part of this project is staining the wood.  Make sure you apply the stain evenly and allow it to dry completely before moving onto the next steps.  Pick any colour you like, but keep in mind you want to be able to see the numbered chart and more importantly your child’s growth.  For these reasons I chose a light stain.  This way I could use a black sharpie (keep it simple!) for the chart and also any colour sharpie/paint pen to mark the growth of my kids.  I could even do one colour for each of my girls.

Here’s how to make this DIY Easy Wooden Growth Chart

• 1’x 6’ wood plank
• Wood stain
• Brush or sponge 
• Stencil
• Permanent marker or paint pen 
• Ruler

1. Stain the wood plank, follow the instructions on the side of the can.  Apply it evenly and allow it to dry completely.

2. Using your ruler, measure and mark every inch along the length of the board.  Don’t press too hard with your pencil as it could indent in the wood.

3. Using your paint pen/permanent marker, go over every mark with the ruler making a 2” line.

4. Onto the numbers.  Begin number one at the 6 inch mark.  Then add the other numbers every  12” until you reach 6.  Use your stencil or freehand it!

The post DIY Easy Wooden Growth Chart appeared first on And Then Home.

I put my own touch on my table by using a decorative sign that I found at a home décor store for the tabletop instead of a plain wood circle. You should feel free to use whatever catches your eye for your tabletop, just be sure to use something that you can screw into so you can attach the table ‘legs’. I also started with only one tomato cage but I found that I did need to add a second one for stability. An example of how this would look is from Holtwood Hipster – check out her table project here.

What You’ll Need:

• One or two tomato cages
• Spray Paint
• Strong wire cutters
• Tabletop
• Acrylic paint
• Spray on outdoor sealer
• Brackets and screws
• Screw gun

Step One:

Use the wire cutters to cut the pieces of wire extending past the circles on the tomato cage.

Spray paint the tomato cage – I used orange since our patio cushions are in reds and oranges.

Step Two:

Paint or stain your tabletop. In my case I added a yellow stripe to the top and painted the sides yellow.

After the paint is dry, spray the varnish over the entire tabletop. Be sure to get a good coverage over the entire surface since the table will be outside and exposed to the elements.

Step Three:

Use the brackets and screw gun to attach the tabletop to the tomato cage legs.

I am in love with this easy little table. The warm colour palette matches our patio set perfectly. I think I might make another for our basement patio too! For more summer patio accessories check out this DIY – Summer Vintage Wood Serving Tray.

The post Easy and Affordable Tomato Cage Patio Table appeared first on And Then Home.

What You’ll Need:

• Serving tray (either an unfinished one like I used or one you already own that you are refurbishing)
• Acrylic paint
• Stencil
• Dabber or makeup sponge
• Silver spray paint
• Stencil adhesive

Step One:

Spray paint the inside of the tray silver. Use even strokes, holding the can about 6” away from the surface to avoid drips. Let this dry and apply a second coat if needed.

Paint the sides of the tray blue and let dry. Paint the bottom of the tray and let this dry too.

Spray the stencil with some removable stencil spray so that it won’t move or lift. Then lay the stencil down on the inside of the tray, on top of the silver. Use a dabber and blue paint to stencil the design onto the tray. Lift the stencil and let dry. Finish the tray with a clear coat of varnish to protect the finish.

Now you have the perfect accessory for your next party. Be sure to share with us your version of this project; show us what colours and designs you picked. Need something to serve at your next BBQ? Try these recipes – Steame – An Iconic Montreal Dish and Festive July Forth Strawberry Parfait

The post Summer Vintage Wood Serving Tray appeared first on And Then Home.

 

 

The other thing I love about this project was using bright spring colours against the dark stained wood.  Teal is one of my favourite colours so it wasn’t difficult for me to choose it.  The white stamps are beautifully contrasted with the dark wood and the flower accents help represent spring tying the letter “S” in nicely. I chose the letter “S” because it is a monogram of my last name and conveniently works for the word Spring but you can pick any letter you’d like.  With that said, let’s take a look at the step by step.

How to Paint a Chevron a Spring Door Hanger

• wood plank hanger
• a large wooden letter
• embellishments (paper flowers used here)
• spray paint
• large piece of crafting paper
• black marker
• glue
• masking tape
• pencil
• ruler
• flower stencil (optional)
• white paint (if stencil is used)

This project is beautiful once finished.  

You can see it from the road and I have had a lot of great comments about it.  The chevron is stunning on the letter and worth all the hard work.  If you have a creative eye you can always ‘eyeball’ the design and go straight to the tape, but if you want to be sure it’s straight, do it the long way!

The post How to Paint a Chevron – Spring Door Hanger appeared first on And Then Home.

What You’ll Need:

• Three Wood Plaques of varying sizes
• Three Mandala stencils
• Krylon Easy Tack Repositionable Spray or other brand of stencil spray
• Stencil Pouncer
• Acrylic Paint (I used Folkart Home Décor Chalk finish in Sheepskin)

Step One:

Spray the back side of your stencil with the stencil spray.  Be sure to read the directions for the brand you are using.  The Krylon brand requires 2 mins of shaking the can and after spraying, waiting for 60 seconds before pressing down to the wood.

When the glue is ready lay the stencil, glue side down, onto your first wood plaque and press the edges to seal the stencil down.  This will ensure that none of the paint leaks under your stencil when applying the paint.

Step Two:

Take your pouncer and dip it into your paint.  You don’t want too much paint on the pouncer so just dab the brush onto a paper towel once or twice if you picked up too much paint.  Using a dabbing motion cover the entire stencil area in paint.

Peel the stencil away from the wood plaque to reveal your mandala.  Set aside this plaque to dry.

If your stencils are all on the same sheet like mine I recommend washing and drying your stencil now. (some paint will probably remain on the stencil, this is fine, you want to take the wet paint off)  If you skip this step and move ahead, you will most likely end up with stray paint marks around the plaques from excess wet paint on the stencil.  When ready to move on, repeat steps one through four on the remaining wood plaques.

All done!  I hope you love your finished Mandala Wood Plaques as much I do!

Like these Mandala Wood Plaques?  Try this project: Family Menu Planner for Easy Mealtimes

The post DIY Chic Mandala Wood Plaques appeared first on And Then Home.