As my boys get older the fun of holidays is starting to sink in a little bit more so for the first time we've been putting up some holiday decor! I've had some scraps of plywood left over from other projects that I've been hanging onto for um, well like 2 years. I was just about to throw them away when I realized they would make the perfect hand painted signs! So I did a couple small ones for Halloween, but I saved the nicest piece of scrap wood for Thanksgiving:
{Ignore the stickers on the apples :)}
I LOVE how it turned out! Just a quick recap of the process:1. Sanded, then stained wood (dark walnut by minwax)
2. Designed "give thanks" on the computer then printed it out and traced it onto the wood (I ran a piece of white chalk over the back of the paper and then traced the out line with a pencil. It worked great!)
3. Filled in the traced out line with white acrylic paint. (be patient, this takes time!)
4. Distressed the letters a little bit to hide my less than perfect paint job.
5. Applied a light coat of furniture paste wax to seal it. (you could use any sealer, I just had this one on hand plus it gives more of a matte finish rather than a high gloss which is what I was going for)
6. Attached a saw tooth hanger and put that baby on the wall!
It hangs above our kitchen table and I love that it is a beautiful reminder to be grateful. On an even sweeter note one of my 2 year old twins asked what it said. I explained it was a reminder for us to say 'thank you.' When his dad got home that night he excitedly brought him to the kitchen and said "Wook, Dad! Dat say 'say dank you!" I melted into a little puddle. Two year olds are the most aggravating and adorable creatures on earth!
(Linking this to the Dare to do-it-yourself Series at Primitive and Proper)