Happy Homemaker
May Project
Spring
is here and as each of us begin to freshen up our front porch, patio or entry,
here is an idea for new decoration. This
project is very easy and the project supplies can be changed up to use what you
have on hand.
Supplies Needed:
Fabric—Something
stiff. I used burlap, but other stiff
fabrics like denim, broadcloth, old feed sacks, etc. will work.
Craft
Paint—3 different colors
Paint
Sponges or Sponge Brushes
Sewing
Machine
Thread
Scissors
Twine
or Ribbon for Hanger
Stuffing
Directions:
1.
Cut two rectangles from the
fabric—14” x 12”. Round the edges of the
fabric. I just estimated it, but if you
want precision, use a plate or other round surface to cut.
2.
Separate the fabrics, and use one for painting. It is a good idea to place the fabric on a
piece of cardboard with wax paper lining the back. This will keep the paint that soaks through
from sticking to the cardboard, but also give you a hard surface to paint
on.
a.
Paint the first layer with a
light color like white. I taped off
about 1-inch from the edge, so that the burlap showed through, and my painting was
not right on the edge. As I painted on the burlap, it was easier to use a large
sponge brush and dab the paint on.
Burlap is HARD to paint on it will look very globing with the first
coat. I added 2 coats of the white
paint. If you are using a smoother
fabric, you will may not have the globing problem like me.
b.
Once the white paint was dry, I added the second color—green. Once again, I moved into the fabric another
inch, to show off the white—like a border.
I once again used the sponge brush to dab the green paint on. Because the green covered the white well, I
only used one coat. Use your best
judgement, if you need to add a second coat, add one!
c.
Lastly, I used a stencil and stenciled the wording on with yellow
paint. If you don’t have a stencil, free
hand some wording, use stamps, or get creative!
3.
Once the paint was good and
dry, I removed the fabric from the cardboard, and matched the second piece of
fabric to the painted one. I pinned
around the edges, wrong sides together, leaving space to add some stuffing once
the fabric had been sewed.
4.
Using a coordinated thread, I zig zagged the fabric closed. I tried to keep the zig zag along the outside
edge of the white paint.
5.
Stuff the sign with stuffing.
Depending on where you plan to hang your new sign, you could use regular
stuffing, old hosiery, or old batting if it will be hung out of the
weather. If you are planning to hang it
outside, stuff it with old plastic grocery sacks. Depending on your paint choices, watch that
the bags you use will not show through.
Once the sign has been stuffed, finish stitching up the sign with the
zig zag stitch.
6.
Thread some ribbon, twine or other string through each side of the
sign, along the top edge for the hanger.
Make sure to make it long enough to hang freely from the hook you will
be hanging it from.
