Easy Rustic Wood USA Sign

by Kati @ Houseful of Handmade

4 Materials

$10

2 Hours

Easy

We have been busy decorating our home for the 4th of July. Don't you just love rustic American decor? I needed a big statement piece to complete our patriotic mantle so I grabbed some reclaimed wood and made this super easy wood sign in just a couple hours.

I had some boards left over from ripping down my parents old fence. They have a beautiful gray color to them and I knew they would be perfect for our rustic mantle.

To make this build super easy, I bought some precut wood letters from my local craft store. I laid them on top of my reclaimed boards to determine the size I needed to cut them. My sign ended up being 10 1/2" tall by 24" wide (before the frame).

After cutting my boards it was time to make a frame. I used a new piece of 1x2 to make it cause it was the right size and only $1. I cut the frame boards so that each end was at a 45 degree angle with inside (smaller) edge the same size as my boards. These simple cuts can be done easily with a hand saw or miter saw.

I decided to stain the frame so it would blend better with my reclaimed wood. I gave it a quick coat and let it dry while I painted my letters.

My store bought letters were already painted white, but I wanted to add some red, white & blue and I wanted them to be chippy and worn so they matched the rustic reclaimed wood. I started by sanding a bit around the edges of the letters. Then I used a little vaseline randomly rubbed around the edges to make spots where the paint would not stick and painted them with a couple coats of craft paint.

While they dried I could finish the frame.

I added wood glue to the corners and then clamped them tight while I used my nail gun to put three 1 1/4″ nails into the corner to hold it tight. After assembling 3 corners, I put the pieces of reclaimed wood into the center of the frame before I closed up the 4th corner because it was a tight fit (which is what I wanted).

Then I secured the reclaimed wood to the frame with a few more nails.

Now all I needed to do was to attach my chippy painted letters. I used my nail gun again and secured them with a couple 1" nails from the back of the frame. Then it was time to display it!