Hello my friends! Last week I showed you how we installed board and batten in our kitchen/dining space as part of a mini makeover. Part of the transformation included adding a fun sign over the microwave that boldly ‘states’ where we’re from {pardon the pun, not really}.
DIY ‘CALIFORNIA’ SIGN
The space above the over-the-range mounted microwave was awkward and often overlooked. It’s 7″ wide and since part of the ‘makeover’ was to add height to the space, and draw the eyes up, I knew I needed to fill that spot somehow.
For this small wall, I thought I’d make a sign with the name of our state, ‘California’ on it. If I made the letters tall enough, I thought, it would be centered on the wall, and as a bonus could be a great conversation starter, and a ‘state’ment piece.. HA, I kill me!
Make your own DIY STATE SIGN:
Materials:
Wood
Spray paint in two different colors
Vinyl letters {stickers can work}
Level
Pencil
I started by cutting a spare piece of wood I had in my garage down to 44″, and sanding it lightly.
{You can buy an inexpensive pre-sanded strip of wood at a home improvement store}
Next, I added a coat of gloss white spray paint to one side of the wood piece.
While that dried, I worked on my lettering.
The piece is 5.5″ wide so using my Cricut machine and some left over scrap vinyl, I cut the letters out for my sign.
Each letter is 4.5″ tall
Then, using a level, I carefully spaced out the letters to spell out ‘California’, marked the perfect spot with a pencil. Carefully peeling the backing, I gently placed the vinyl on to the wood, smoothing each letter out to make sure there are so gaps or air bubbles.
I sprayed the entire piece in a rich chocolate brown paint, and let it dry for about 30 minutes.
Lastly, I carefully removed the vinyl letters to reveal the white underneath. I thought about distressing the piece but I just love how sharp the white looks against the chocolate, and decided to leave it as is.
If you are making your own sign, I suggest you add a sealer to protect it {polyurethane}.
I used an inexpensive saw tooth hanger that I already had to hang it, but this can also be found at any home improvement store.
This sign took all of 2 hours to make including drying time! Your state or area may not have as many letters as mine, so you may be able to get it done in even less time {although it may be even longer…’Pennsylvania’ anyone?}.
Easy, isn’t it? A sign this large would cost close to $100 at the store, but I made it with materials I already had! That’s my kind of project!
What have you DIY’d lately?
Crystal says
Love the sign!! I love projects that are cheap. My recent DIY was spray painting a bar stool which I am using as my nightstand. It turned out great and much cheaper than buying a new nightstand.
Barbara @ Chase the Star says
That sounds beautiful Crystal! Thanks for your sweet comment!
Erlene says
I love that this is so simple to make. I want to make a Hawaii one with an image of the islands too. This is definitely going on my project to do list.
Barbara @ Chase the Star says
The island image sounds great!
Kim (TheKimSixFix) says
SO cute! I love your sign.. but I am partial since I’m another California blogger! Nice job!
Barbara @ Chase the Star says
Kim, HA! We are Cali-sistas! Love it:)
Marty@A Stroll Thru Life says
I love it, what a fun idea. I would love for you to link up to my Inspire Me party that will go live this afternoon. http://www.astrollthrulife.net Hope to see you there. Hugs, Marty