DIY Farmhouse Style “WELCOME” Sign

I did it.  I made a sign.  Why is this big?  Well, because it is just that-big.  Aside from my Beach, Sun, Sand sign I made a few years ago for a friend, this is the largest project I have created with my Silhouette Cameo.  And, paint and vinyl, they scare me.  I see so many people posting that the paint was bleeding, or the vinyl wouldn’t stick, and on and on. So, I was a bit intimidated.  But I wanted one of these farmhouse style “Welcome” signs so badly.  Only one other house in our neighborhood has one, and I look at her porch with sign envy.  Come to find out, it wasn’t hard, it wasn’t intimidating, and now I want to make more signs!  I thought I would share it with you!

Materials:

Wooden board {I used a reclaimed piece of wood right from our garage!}

White spray paint

Gray spray paint

Painter’s tape

Mod Podge

Paint brush

651 Vinyl

Vinyl cutting machine, or a stencil {you can buy the stencils at the craft store}

Directions:

First, tape the edges of your board with painter’s tape, if you want to keep the natural wood look around the edge.

Lay your board on a protected surface, and give it a nice coat of white.  I only sprayed it once, so the wood details would show through.

While this is drying, set up your file in your cutting software.  This is where the custom cutting screen comes in handy.  My board was 40 inches tall, and my longest cutting mat is only 24 inches long.  So, this was the first time I had cut without a mat {EEK}, as well as a very long cut.  More on that process to come!

When your vinyl is cut, weed out the excess, and you are left with this:

Cover your decal with transfer tape.  Center it on your board, and burnish it REALLY good so it sticks.  Carefully peel off the transfer tape.   

Next, use a very light coat of Mod Podge over each letter, paying special attention to the edges.  Don’t glop it on, you are just creating a small seal so the paint doesn’t bleed under your letters.

Now, give it another coat of a darker shade of spray paint.  Allow this to dry about 5 minutes, and then peel the letters off.  And done!

I LOVE this!  I am so tempted to do the other side in a holiday theme, so I can just flip it around for my Christmas decor.  What do you think?