Restoring a "Love" Sign
6 Materials
$7
8 Hours
Medium
I was at Goodwill seeking inspiration for a bookcase. Used signs weren't even a thought. However, when I saw three such signs I couldn't pass them up. They were all different and they all needed work to become presentable again. I particularly liked the "Love" sign in silver letters.
Original sign
I wanted darker wood as it would help the silver letters to stand out more. I hand sanded the sign and used an emery board around the letters. I cleaned the letters using Wright's Silver Polish. Any polish would work. I'm going to spray paint the wood with Krylon ColorMaster in Satin Brown Boots. But first, the letters need to be taped.
Taped letters. Frog paint tape
I began to spray paint. I first sprayed the back side and let that dry for 10 minutes as instructed. Then I turned the sign over and sprayed the front, sides, and bottom. I let that dry 10 minutes and then removed the tape.
Spray painted
As you can see the tape left small areas unable to be sprayed. Once upon a time, there was black paint outlining the letters. This was a good idea as it made the letters stand out even more. The Brown Boots paint made a good base color but not much character. I now had to do the fun part, adding character.
Paints, brushes, and emery board.
To begin developing the look of grain, I used two different colors of brown (or more). I began with one color at a time. You want to stroke your brush quickly and lightly in a horizontal staggered pattern A dry brush or your finger is then used to bend the dark brown with the spray. If it's "too" of anything, add a drop water to the paint. Continue this pattern with each paint color until you're satisfied with the grain look. If you want a deeper grain, use a black thinned with a drop of water or less. I now painted the black edge of the letters. All this painting and turning of the sign caused the silver to be slightly smudged. I cleaned that off using toothpaste. Back to my emery board to remove the paint where the sign would naturally be worn. This created a slightly aged look. And I was finished.
Finished Love sign
Resources for this project:
See all materials
Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Hometalk may collect a small share of sales from the links on this page.More info
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?