Scavenger Chic

DIY Sign Mistletoe Christmas Trees, Pallet Wood Sign

• By Joan
• December 1, 2021
• 2 Comments

DIY Sign, Mistletoe Christmas Trees

Hi friends, I have one more project for you before I take off for the month of December.  It’s a vintage style DIY Christmas Tree sign that I made for my daughter-in-law last year.

Knowing that she wanted a sign, I sent her a bunch of possible ideas.  All she had to do was pick her favorite.

This is one of the ideas I sent her and it is the one she ultimately chose. Apparently it’s a pretty popular style, I found it in a doormat, a pillow and even personalized with a family name.

I don’t believe this one is copyright protected because I saw tons of people on the internet selling the exact same sign.

These are just a few of the sign choices I gave her. 

Hot Cocoa served here I found all over Pinterest but couldn’t find the original poster.

This sign was from my own shopping excursion at a Christmas Bazaar.

This North Pole Milk and Cookie Co. is an Etsy find.

This assortment of holiday signs can also be found on Etsy.  If you don’t want to create your own sign you can purchase one here.

So many choices, how can you choose just one?

So many choices but, like I said, she did choose the Mistletoe Farms Christmas Tree sign.

After deciding on this final image I stretched it vertically so it wasn’t as flat.  When you create your own DIY sign you can do whatever you like and with photo editing software, you really don’t have to have an artistic bone in your body.  It helps to be crafty, but not necessarily artistic.

Import your picture into Microsoft Publisher, Block Poster, or any other software that allows you to print out your image to the exact size you would like your finished sign.

This website is Block Poster where you just have to figure out how many page widths your sign will be and it will do the rest. This sign is 4 page widths, or approximately  32″ wide.

Download and print out your sign.  Tape it back together.

Gather the wood for your sign.  I’m using pallet wood to get a nice rustic finish, but any scrap wood or plywood should work.

For this sign I used 6 pieces of pallet wood, about 3 1/2 inches wide.

I really did use 6 pieces of pallet wood.  This was a second sign I was making at the same time which only used 4.

Attach your pallet wood together from the back with scrap wood and either builders adhesive, nails or screws or some combination of the three.

Back on the front, sand the pallet wood so that you get a nice smooth surface to paint on.

Because this is vintage style sign, I wanted to create some layering of paint.  The only way to do that is to layer the paint!  Start with black chalk paint and once dry add a second coat of white.  

For this project I prefer to use the chalk paint since it covers extremely well in just one coat.

To transfer your poster onto your pallet wood, create your own DIY carbon paper.  On the left I’m using black pastel and on the right, a pencil.  Either method works. 

With your pencil or pastel, scribble all over the back of your printed picture. 

If you’re transferring onto a dark surface, coat the back with a light pastel or white chalk.

Tape the poster to your pallet wood backing so it does not move.

Trace over all the outlines of the  images with a pen to transfer the pastel or pencil to the wood.

My tracing is so light but it is there.

Once your image is transferred, it’s just a matter of filling in the lines with a fine paint brush.

Finished paint job with no distressing.

I can make it look older than that! 

Here is the same sign with just a little of the white chalk paint sanded off, mostly on the edges, to reveal the layer of black chalk paint.

I finished the entire sign with a coat of clear wax.  Paint on the wax and rub off the excess with a paper towel or rag.

On the edges only, I added just a couple drops of antique wax to the still wet, clear wax.  Again, paint on and rub off the excess while you blend the antique wax with the clear.

All you have to do now is wait for your wax to dry and add hanging hardware.

If you’re looking for more vintage style signs, either to create or buy, make sure you check out my Pinterest page. It’s full of ideas for all occasions to hopefully get you inspired.  Signs also make great Christmas presents.

Have a wonderful December and I’ll hopefully see you back here in January.

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