Wooden Garden Sign

Draw or trace your design and lettering onto the birch board. Our featured bloggers of the month, Leo and Jane Windham, decided to trace printed lettering and draw an original sunflower design onto carbon paper which transferred onto the birch board behind it. Note that cedar would also work well for this project as it typically withstands weather conditions outdoors.

Attach the 192 High Speed Cutter to your 3000 rotary tool. Run the tool at speed 10 and carve out the traced design. Leo and Jane used the 192 cutter to carve out the body of the letters and stem of their sunflower design. When carving out fine areas of the design such as the outlines of the sunflower leaves, they'd recommend switching to the 193 High Speed Cutter.

Place a 511E EZ Lock Finishing Abrasive Buff onto the EZ 402 EZ Lock Mandrel and attach it to your 3000 rotary tool. Run the tool at speed 6 and lightly sand and smooth the carved grooves in the flower and letter engravings as needed.

Finish your garden sign as desired. Leo and Jane decided to stain their birch garden sign, sanded it lightly, and then followed up by painting their sunflower design and letters with acrylic craft paint. If pursuing a similar aesthetic for your sign, allow the stain to dry completely before sanding the piece lightly with fine sandpaper as desired. Finally, apply acrylic craft paint in several light coats to add detail and color to the sign.

After your chosen finish has dried, seal the finished wooden garden sign by spraying it with a polyurethane sealer. Allow time for the sealant to dry, following the instructions provided on its container. Place the completed wooden garden sign in your desired location. Leo and Jane decided to place theirs on an old wooden easel in their garden and surrounded it with flowers and gourds. Other display options would include hanging or mounting the sign.