Make a Rustic Fall Welcome Sign

Donna
by Donna
7 Materials
$12
3 Hours
Medium

A broken handmade tile inspires a festive fall welcome sign! I was devastated when I broke this tile, but it became the perfect starting point for this new addition to my fall decorating - a welcome sign featuring a collage of rustic textures and a warm greeting for visitors!

A Sad Start


I used to have this handmade ceramic tile hanging on my kitchen wall until it fell and broke. Luckily, it broke into only four large pieces. My husband thought I was crazy for saving it, but I knew I could use it someday for something.

The Plan


I thought it would be fun to make a welcome sign for fall made up of blocks, each featuring a different material/color/texture.


I decided to make my sign a square shape to be displayed on a mantle, but this sign could be made any size, and used for indoor or outdoor use. This sign can also be laid out in a straight line vertically (as a standing sign by your front door) or horizontally. My sign displays a fall greeting, but the slogan could be another word like "hello," "gather," or "thankful."


There are also a number of materials you can use as your background textures. I've included a list of suggestions, along with directions for this project, on my blog.

Directions


The first step is to decide the size and shape of your sign. I wanted my sign to be square and be framed with decorative trim (this is optional). I used the size of my backing ceramic tile to determine to size of each of my blocks. I have more details on setting the size of your sign on my blog.

Next, lay out your blocks and border (optional) with a pencil and ruler. Then decide the placement for each of your background materials. I decided to place my ceramic tile in the upper corner of my sign. I attached my tile using Liquid Nail.

Continue to attach your background materials using the appropriate glue.


You may need to cut and attach additional wood squares to build up some of your blocks to be equal depth so your letters will sit on the same level. My ceramic tile was thicker than the other materials I was using in my other blocks, so I built up some of these other blocks with additional pieces of thin plywood cut to size.

When your textural materials are attached and dry, you can add your letters. I painted my letters with acrylic paint before gluing them in place with hot glue. Try to make your textural elements as flat as possible and your blocks all level before attaching your letters.


I have more details about attaching various elements to your sign on my blog.

If you choose to add a frame, you may have to build up your border so that your frame is the same level as the surface of your sign. I cut 3/4 inch strips of plywood and attached them to the border of my sign with hot glue.

Adding a Frame


(Optional) You can paint your trim before attaching it to your border.

If you want to hang your sign, you can attach screw eyes on the back of the trim pieces.

I really love how my sign came out. I think my broken tile looks pretty good on display :) If you also like my stacked fabric pumpkins, you can find my tutorial here.

Resources for this project:
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Donna
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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