How to Make a Vintage-Looking Wooden Wall Sign

Making vintage wall plaques is a unique and customizable craft that can be enjoyed by all ages. If you like rustic or an antique-looking home décor, this is an interactive, inexpensive and fun alternative to tedious and pricey antique hunting. Read on to learn more.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Picture, illustration or map you want to mount
• Lighter or other flame source
• White glue or decoupage glue
• Small plank of wood
• Hammer and nails
• Picture hanging bracket
• A ruler

1. Find a picture, illustration, trademark sign or map that you think would look good as a vintage style piece of home décor.
2. Burn the edges of your art with a lighter, candle, or other source of flame to make them look older. Make sure to only slightly burn the edges so you don’t burn off any of the picture.
3. Glue your art on a piece of weathered wood that is proportional to the size of your picture.
4. Spread a thin layer of white glue or any decoupage glue over the entire picture and plank of wood and let dry completely. Repeat this process at least two more times until you are happy with the finished look.
5. Flip the dry finished piece over and use a ruler to position a picture hanging bracket on the top center of the wood. Nail your bracket securely onto the back of the finished piece.
6. Hang your new vintage wall plaque anywhere in your house or wrap it up as a unique gift.

Tips & Warnings

• A panel from a favorite brand of beer or soda box works great for this project.
• Make sure the picture you choose does not have ink that will smear or run when wet, because you will be applying liquid glue directly to it.
• An aged piece of wood, such as scrap barn wood or any other weathered wood, adds to the vintage effect.
• Do not use irreplaceable photos in this project; you risk ruining them. Make a copy with a computer scanner and printer and keep the original safe.