Earth Day Garden Sign

I am a garden club advisor at Pinckneyville Middle School. The students wanted to make a garden sign featuring the new garden name, Green Panther Garden, for our annual Earth Day plant sale. Since the garden focuses on being green, we decided to reuse items we had to make our sign.

One of the challenges of the project was remembering that the letters needed to be drawn in reverse on the contact paper. The other challenge was drawing the letters large enough to be seen. If I did the project again, I would print out the letters using an appropriate size font as patterns.

This project can easily be adapted for birthday banners and graduation signs.

Step 1: Materials

• String
• Lids
• Contact paper
• Tomato cage, optional

We did not purchase any new items for this project. For string, we used macrame cord bought at the thrift store. The lids are from large coffee and nut cans. I had the blue contact paper, and the herb contact paper was bought at a yard sale. We used a tomato cage someone donated to the garden to hang the sign.

Step 2: Tools

• Scissors
• Masking tape
• Pencil
• Round stencil, optional
• Scrap paper
• Hole punch

For a stencil of the lid, we used a Tupperware container that was the size of the flat part of the lid.

Step 3: Make Letters

To make a letter, trace the round stencil on scrap paper. Draw the letter inside the circle. Make sure to draw the letter large.

Cut out letter.

Place letter on contact paper in reverse and trace.

Cut letter from contact paper.

Repeat for all letters.

Stick letters to lids.

Step 4: String Letters

Using a hole punch, punch two holes in the top of each lid, about 1 1/2" apart.

Place a piece of masking tape around macrame cord to make a "needle".

Thread string through lids to spell out words.

Step 5: Hang Your Sign

Hang your sign. We used clove hitches to attach the sign to tomato cage stakes.