CEO Mommy: Decorative Wooden Signs

Have you ever seen a project on Pinterest or Etsy and just thought to yourself, there's no way I could ever create that! But also felt that paying $45 for something so simple seemed a little outrageous? That's actually exactly how I felt about these wooden signs. And not only did I feel completely incapable of creating them, I was about to teach others how to do it. 

This month's CEO Mommy class created adorable wooden signs and, spoiler alert, it was so successful! We started out with a simple piece of wood and ended up with these personalized signs! 

Here's how: 

Supplies: 

• Wood - I used 1x8x8 Whitewood Ledger Board from Home Depot cut down to 11.5 inches {giving me 8 pieces}. Home Depot, and most other places selling lumber, will cut the wood for you for free. Simply tell them the measurements. Michael's also sells small slats of wood that are pre-cut.
• Sander, or sand paper
• Wood Stain - I used Dark Walnut stain for this project
• Stencil, or printed word/phrase
• Chalk
• Paint and/or paint pen

Supplies to hang sign: 

• Drill
• Jute + two pieces of tape to thread jute through holes

Don't let this list of supplies intimidate you! I promise it's so much easier than it looks! 
If all of the cutting, sanding and staining intimidates you {totally understandable!!}, Michael's also sells these simple wooden signs you can paint your words or phrase onto and get the same design {various sizes available}

Step 1: Sand 
After the wood was cut, we had a piece of wood that measured 1x8x11.5. I sanded the wood down on each side. I used an electric sander because I was sanding several pieces at the same, but if you're only sanding one piece sand paper will work just fine. 

Before and After staining, not sanding. Sanding isn't that magical

Step 2: Stain
Staining wood is so much easier than most people think. You can use either a clean rag or a brush. We actually used these brushes to stain the wood. Wood stain does have a strong aroma and can be very difficult to clean off hands and brushes. I recommend planning to throw away whatever rag or brush you use and possibly wearing gloves if you have them.

To apply the stain, brush a thick coat of stain covering the wood completely. Make sure to stain the sides as well. Once the wood has been covered with stain, leave it for 10-15 minutes, depending on how dark you want the stain. Once you return to the stain, wipe away the stain that was not absorbed by the wood {we just used a paper towel for this}. 
Leave the wood for approximately 24 hours before beginning to paint on it {for the class, I had stained several pieces prior to the class for participants to use. They were able to stain a piece of wood, then take the blank piece home if desired}. 

Step 3: Design
We used stencils I created using my Silhouette cutter. If you don't have a Silhouette printer, you can print a word or phrase from a regular printer then cut it into a stencil. 

We used a piece of chalk to trace within the stencil, this way if you mess up at all it can easily be wiped away with a damp cloth. 

Once the design is complete, go over it with paint or a paint pen. 

You can either stick with white, or get creative and incorporate different colors. 

You can finish here, or make it a hanging sign by adding some rope. 

Step 4: Hang Sign {optional}
To hang the sign you will need to drill two holes and thread the rope through. Mark on the wood with a piece of chalk approximately where the holes will go. 

Then drill a hole {we used a 7/32 sized drill bit}

Don't worry if the wood splinters a little, you will be tying a knot over the hole so any little splits won't be noticeable. 

To thread the jute {or rope} through, wrap a piece of tape around the tip to prevent it from fraying. 

The rope should easily thread through leading with the taped end, you may need to pull it a little to get it all the way through. 

Measure however much rope you'd like then do the same on the other side. Tie a knot to secure the rope, then cut the access. 

The great part about these wooden sign is they can be reversible! Several moms also painted the backside of their sign to celebrate different seasons. 

Again, I am amazed at how creative these mommas are! Every design turned out incredible! So, do you think it's something you'd try to tackle? Think of all the possibilities 

Here are the few that I created, I promise everyone else's was WAY better than what I did! I just forgot to take pictures of theirs. 

Add a little flare to the commode 

This is actually the back of 'The joneses" sign pictured at the beginning of the post 

Note: While at times I do share affiliate links on my site, I do not have any relationship with Home Depot or Michael's. I do not receive any compensation for linking to their sites. While I definitely think that would be amazing, I currently share links to their sites to provide you all with the supplies and products I truly think are best and are at the lowest prices I've been able to find. 

Thanks for visiting!