Sign Sign Signs or Techniques for Making Signs on Old Barn Boards

This weekend I spent some time making some new signs. I sell these in my booth and I realized Friday I was running low. I am lucky to have some wood on hand from my dear friends barn and shed as well as some wood from my nephew's remodel. Look for boards that have great old color if you are not painting them. If you are painting them look for the smoothest side of the boards to stencil.  I also used an old shelving board to make a sign for the organization where I volunteer. My hubby cut the boards I chose for this round of signs using his table saw.

I order stencils from Homestead Stencil Company ( I am not affiliated with them at all) because I do not own a stencil cutting machine yet. So your first step is to order or purchase some stencils. I used regular paint from Lowes for some of my signs but I have discovered I like the look of acrylic paint the best. After painting my boards with acrylic paint and letting them dry they were ready to stencil.

I have a couple of techniques to help make sign making easier and neater. First decide where you  foam plate, then I dab the sponge into the paint being sure to blot most of it off on the plate. Using the sponge I paint the stencil in a dabbing motion. As soon as I have all the letters finished I remove the stencil quickly. Stencils should be washed after every use. However, I do not have access to water in my workroom basement (I've got to work on that). So I put the stencil on an old towel and spray with window cleaner followed by cleaning the paint off with a wipe or paper towel. Later I take the stencil to a sink and carefully wash it.
want to put your stencil on the board. If you are adding anything like a bow or star to the top leave enough room for that. Then I use a square and a tape measure to be sure the stencil is on evenly. Next I use painters tape to hold the stencil in place. I have tried using adhesive spray to hold the stencil down, and it works great. But the clean-up is too much for me. Here's the best technique, super secret I have...use cosmetic sponges to stamp the paint on. I squirt the paint on a

Before Sanding

Be sure to go back and paint the connections with a small paint brush for letters like P, 0 and A that often have a divider in them.

 When the paint is dry I then sand it to give it a weathered look. After sanding I spray a coat of clear matte finish on each sign. The finish gives a bit of protection, and it looks nicer.




If you want your boards to have a color show up when you sand paint it that color first. For example, on the sign Maker's Space I made I painted the first coat black and the second white so that when I sanded it you could see the black through the white. I use a mouse sander.

The final step is to add wire to hang the sign. You can allow your wire to show or not. It's really all up to you. I do both ways. So get started and make some signs, sign, signs. Below are some of my finished signs.