How to Decorate Outdoor Country Signs
Bring business into your store or create a landmark for friends and family to find your home by putting up a country-style sign. These can be found pre-cut at a shop that sells wooden trinkets or online with custom designs. If you decide to decorate your wooden sign with paint, you will need to prepare it for outdoor weather and changing climates. Think of a story you would like to say with your sign in order to choose the right color palette. For instance, use pastel colors for country shops, but choose a tartan plaid or bold color for family shields or name signs. Use faux finishing paint techniques to give your sign an aged or antiqued look.
Things You'll Need
- Primer or gesso paint
- Pencil
- Acrylic paint
- Water spray bottle
- Paintbrushes
- Rags
- Sandpaper
- Water cup
- Letter stencils
- Acrylic top-coat varnish
Instructions
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Cover your wooden sign with one or two layers of primer or gesso. If the surface is flat, sand in between coats of paint, making sure to cover all areas on the front and back. Let dry for up to five hours.
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Paint the entire sign in a dark undercolor. Once it is dry, brush on a liquified lighter color and rag it off, using a circular motion with a clean rag.
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Stencil letters on the sign, as well as design elements such as hearts. Draw the outlines with a pencil, then fill in the colors with detail brushes. Accent with other colors from the palette you chose, allowing each layer of paint to dry completely before adding new layers.
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4
Use sandpaper to sand down parts of the letters and designs you painted, allowing patches of undercolor to show through.
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Apply a top coat of varnish to the painted sign. You may need two coats to make certain your sign is sealed and protected from the elements.
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Glue on country-style accessories to decorate your wooden sign. These could include mosaic tiles, barbed wire, or wooden pieces in animal shapes.
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Tips & Warnings
Mix water into the acrylic paint to achieve a consistency you want to work with. Keep your brushes wet in a water cup when you are not using them and wash them out with mild detergent when you are finished painting. Instead of painting your sign, you can stain it with an all-weather stain that does not need a primer or a top coat. Adhere mirror mosaic pieces to your sign to attract attention as a roadside reflector.
