FREE PAINT STICK SIGN TEMPLATES

Hey Ya'll! Let's give a try at making some shelf sitter signs and magnets from free paint sticks.

I've seen this idea around for a while now (saw a great one on Pinterest, but I can't find it now, but it was great! But I think they only made hanging signs,) and I am just now giving it a try.

Sounds easy enough right?
Lets see.

Here's what you will need:

-Some free wooden paint sticks 

12" long by  1 1/8" wide

(I just asked in the paint department if I could have a few for crafts and they said sure.)

-Printer and copy machine

-Holiday themed paper (A 50 pack at Walmart cost me $4.98)

-Handsaw or jigsaw

-A page of words you wish to make signs into

(I will attach a link to mine I made in Microsoft Word for you to use on your personal use items.

(Sorry I scanned it upside down!!)

You must click it top make it large and then SAVE the large image.

(For personal use only and to give as gifts.)

Okay, so are you ready to start making some cute Paint Stick Hanging Signs?

Here is the hardest part.  First, you will want to cut your free, wooden paint sticks down to 4 inches each in length. So as you see, each paint stick will give you 3 signs.  

Well, two of them will be perfect flat sides, but the third one of mine, has beveled sides.
That is because I'm using all the stick, including the handle part that is cut to fit your hand. You don't have to if you don't want.  But I don't mind.

After you have cut the paint sticks, go ahead and print out the words sheet I have posted above on plain, white computer paper.

Don't print this as a template, it is just a photo.

Okay, now having that printed out on the plain, white paper, now is the time to lay them down in your copy machine. 

And make sure you have loaded a sheet of the Holiday themed paper into the printer tray.  This is what your words will print out on.

And I just put the flat side in first, not the one with the hole in it.

Just go ahead and hit Make a Copy and be sure to print in Black.

And here it comes out:

I forgot I had messed with my margins in Word for printing, so I had to print mine again.

And finally, now we can start to see how this is all coming together.

You see, we are going to put these words and decorative paper on our wood sticks.

And the best part about using the holiday themed card stock paper is that we will not use up all the ink in our printers by printing so much colors!

Okay so now we just need to paint the paint sticks a similar color to your paper signs.

And cut out your signs to fit on the stick and leave a little space around it.

Ok now just use some mod podge and kinda glue your sign down with it.

Let it dry and then take a little bit of the same color paint as your stick and lightly dry brush some on to the edges of your paper sign.  It just helps the edges look better.
Let it dry and then do a top coat of mod podge to seal it all in.

Here are a few more:

Notice these next few I added the red to the edges after the final coat of mod podge and it doesn't look so great.

I definitely will do the corner dry brushing before having mod podge on top.

It looks more rustic.



Okay, now what to use these little cuties for.

I am mainly keeping them as little shelf sitters or tucks as some call them.
Just prop in front of crocks, jars or spoons.

And some of them I am turning into refrigerator magnets. It's always hard for me to find cute, country magnets for my kitchen.
 I am just attaching a round magnet to the back with e-6000 glue. I get the strong, 3/4" ones from Walmart and one is all that is really needed. And it holds a few sheets of paper by itself!

And the others I am turning into little hanging signs.
I'm just gonna drill two small holes in them at the top corners and attach some craft wire.
 Just however long you wish.

And then gonna hang them on my little primitive grapevine trees.
I may even attach a few of them (with the wire hanger) to Christmas presents instead of a bow!

The uses really can be endless if you think about it.

See ya'll next time!
~Lisa