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How to make a Hand Painted Wood Sign

Today I have a fun project for you that is perfect for Valentine’s Day or any other day for that matter, this “Bless your Heart” DIY Hand Painted Wood Sign tutorial! If you like this project you may also like this “BEE my Valentine” printable.

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

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I grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah.  I was born and raised there. I went to college there. While I was in college (I went to BYU incase inquiring minds want to know), I met a boy from Kentucky. As soon as I heard where he was from, my interest peaked. I had met many cute boys from Utah, California, and Arizona before, but he was the first one Kentucky.  We chatted a few times before I got up the courage to ask him out on a date. He said yes, but the date didn’t really go well. After the date we saw each other a couple of more times. During one of those times he told me he wasn’t interested in dating me. If you just went HUH?!?, then I feel ya, there is quite the story there, but it will have to be saved for another day.  Two days after he told me he didn’t want to date me, he started showing up at my apartment everyday. Long story short, we got married.

 

We stayed in Utah for two years after we were married,  then he found out he got into graduate school in Kentucky and we moved to Louisville. It was his home town, and my first time living outside the state of Utah. When we moved I made a decision to “bloom where I was planted” and have tried over the years to embrace all the good things that my new city and state had to offer.  Kentucky is in the South, some people say it’s not, but don’t tell that to a Kentuckian.  Sweet Tea and Bourbon are popular here (two things Kentucky things I have not indulged in), it’s a million degrees and insanely humid in the summer, seersucker and bowties are popular, and everywhere you go you are greeted with a warm, genuine smile.  It didn’t take long for me to pick up on some of the local vernacular, and soon “y’all” became a part of my daily vocabulary.

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

One of the sayings that I hear frequently is “Well, bless your heart”. It’s cute and sweet and I love it. When my twins were babies and we walked around the mall I’d hear that expression a dozen times a day. I think people knew I really needed the “bless” part of that saying in my daily life.  People also day “bless” a lot, but not in the way you think.. usually when they are exasperated.. For example, they’d say “My teenage son leaves his socks all over the house” then exhale deeply and say “Bless”.  It’s cute and seems like quite a polite way to complain about your teenagers (wink).

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

I was thinking about Valentine’s Day and dreaming up a few projects to share with you and immediately thought that I needed a “Bless Your Heart” sign for my house. I thought you might like one too, so I’ve designed a FREE CUT file so you can  make your own hand pained wood sign at home.  I use the term “hand pained” loosely, since this is a quick CHEATER way to make a hand painted wood sign… and I say when it comes to crafting cheating is encouraged!

Do you want to make one? Here’s how!

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

SUPPLIES:

You need click on the links for sources, contains affiliate links:

12×12 piece of wood (you can buy it on Amazon or at your local craft store)

12×12 picture frame

Chalk Paint (I recommend using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint -in Louisville, you can pick it up at Vintage Style & Designs)

Wax for the Chalk Paint

Black Acrylic Paint

Gold Metallic Acrylic Paint

Bless your Heart Cut file (CLICK HERE to download it for free on the TEMPLATES PAGE)

Piece of Vinyl, any color

Vinyl Transfer Tape

Cricut or other e-cutting machine

Sandpaper

INSTRUCTIONS:

Begin by cutting out your “Bless your Heart” stencil. Pull the file into the Cricut design space. Click on all of the layers and then click “WELD”.

Resize your image to close to 11″ wide.

Cut it out.

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

Peel away the letters, leaving the stencil behind (make sure you leave the insides of the letters)

Apply the transfer tape to the top of the vinyl, and peel the vinyl off of it’s plastic backing.

Paint your 12×12 piece of wood with 2 coats of white chalk paint (chalk paint works better for this, as it absorbs the stencil better).

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

After your paint is dry, apply the vinyl stencil to your wood board.

Peel away the transfer tape.

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

Paint in the letters with black acrylic paint. Then paint the heart with gold paint. It will take two coats.

When the paint is dry, peel of the stencil.

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

Using your sandpaper, sand the sign down as much as you’d like.

To finish apply a coat of wax. Apply the wax, let it dry then “buff” it with a clean white cloth.

Slide the sign into the frame (I painted my frame, it was white to start with) and you’re done!

How to make a hand painted wood sign- This "Bless your Heart" sign is such a cute craft idea for Valentine's Day or for everyday!

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8 Comments

  1. You do know that in the South, “Bless your Heart” is really an insult- a Southern way of saying that you are an idiot, but we are too polite to say that to your face

  2. Not always. As with many “word combinations” , intent is determined by tone. Having spent my entire life (over 65 years) in the deep south, I’ve found the most common usage to be for warm encouragement . However, it can be used to convey a (not so subtle) opinion if desired. The south does have it’s own language nuances.

  3. I had the file set to auto upload with the post this morning. Looks like there was a glitch. I’ll get it fixed this afternoon

  4. This is adorable! Loving it from the South in NC as well! But where exactly is the download for the cut file? Can’t find it on either templates page… 🙁 Help!

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