Making Old Signs

What is it

about old signs!

There's something about the way

the written word marks a passage of time.

It takes me back generations

imagining a pioneer way of life.

Humble.

Simple.

Resourceful.

Planked Styling,

rough wood,

stencil look letters,

and a rusty patina

have all the makings of 

an old time sign.

Terri, my country cousin,

saw the "Toll Bridge" original

in the local cafe.

Are you like me -

whenever I shop or see things I love,

I always think I can make that!

It's a way of life.

So I was excited to take the challenge

and make this Toll Bridge sign.

Using pieced fence boards,

keeping all of the boards and edges dark stain,

and brushing on an off-white paint,

my sign base is ready for lettering.

I made the text in photoshop and pencil transferred to the board.

Then let the marathon lettering begin. ha!

Watching the CMA's while outlining and filling in 

with a sharpie helps.

I did take a liner brush with black paint over top

to strengthen the text.

(I know - I need to get a letter cutting machine!)

Yeah, that's cinnamon in the picture.

I should be making pumpkin pie

but that would be "Lake Girl Bakes".

 I'm using my cinnamon for 

Old sign worn detail.

After everything was painted and dry,

I brushed clear glaze randomly over entire piece.

Then sprinkled cinnamon over those areas

and brushed lightly.

There are so many ways to distress

new paint to make it look old.

I thought this method looked 

like the original aged patina.

Aren't the words fun!

This photo was taken in Terri's charming 

farmhouse entry.

Her country design is so inviting,

I think she's going to let us in

for a tour soon!

Thanks for your visit!

Always appreciate you stopping by,

Deb

Link Parties:

DIY Showoff

Boogieboard Cottage

I Should be Mopping the Floor

Sunday Showcase Party

Between Naps on the Porch

Coastal Charm

Cozy Little House

From Dream to Reality
A Delightsome Life
City Farmhouse
Stone Gable
Redoux Interiors
French Country Cottage
Jennifer Rizzo
Craftberry Bush
Common Ground
Funky Junk Interiors

Lettering Details

Good Morning!

Hope you all had a great weekend.

Finally - I sat my paintbrush down and relaxed on the patio,

in the boat, in the sand, and around the fire!

Now that was fun.

Time to get back to play, I mean work.

So this is what I have for you today.

Because I love old signs

and just the graphic impact they make in design,

It's a good way to put a color pop and expression

on your wall.

There are so many ways to letter.

Many times I free hand the text.

You could use stencils.

The vinyl cut machines for text are wonderfully precise.

I don't have one of those  (YET)

So for now, I lay out the text in Photoshop

and transfer to my board.

This way I can get the straight line look that I want

and know that the spacing will be exact

and the sign will have that commercial feel

I'm going for.

So if you have photoshop,

I hope this can help you

create an awesome sign.

I started with opening a new project, custom,

measuring 33" wide X 7.75" tall.

Use a white background.

Then clicking Text and choosing

"Adobe Caslon Pro" - Bold - 250 pt.,

type out your letters.

I double spaced between the words

LIVE  LOVE  LAKE

Set your lettering.

Now Click "Edit">Transorm>Scale

Drag the box so that your letters

fill the space

the way you would like to see it.

This way you can make them taller.

Now your ready to print.

When you click File> Print

the screen will appear with the text centered.

like this:

Where it says "position"

uncheck the "center" box

and working the "left" box, backspace down to zero.

Now you can print this page.

Then change the number in the "left" box to -7.

This moves the page position to the right,

Keep some overlap so you know how to line up the letters.

Continue increasing the negative number

in the "left" box

as you work your way down the layout.

-14.8 will be the next number you type in

so that you move to the right but still keep an overlap.

Continue all the way increasing the negative number

and printing each page.

You will end up with several pages:

Line up the overlap

and tape them together.

There are 3 ways I can think of

to transfer this now:

1.  Sturdy the paper up with clear packaging tape

and cut the letters out so that you have a stencil.

2.  Make a pencil line on the back side of the paper

so that when you press from the front, the penicl

line will transfer.

3.  Use a carbon paper underneath template to transfer

onto your board.

Now you're ready to paint

and you have a template you can use

over and over again.

It will look so nice and professional

(with old time style at the same time)

You can find more paint instruction

for beadboard signs here

at my post on "Making a Beach Sign".

Have fun with your Lettering!

Hope this helps, Deb