Introduction: Faux Rusted Wedding Signs With Lettering
This is a guide of how to make faux rust signs with spray stone and how to letter them to look like calligraphy.
The last step is tips for displaying your signs but please note this guide doesn't have step by step for displaying signs.
Hope you enjoy! Post a picture if you make any please :)
-elana
The last step is tips for displaying your signs but please note this guide doesn't have step by step for displaying signs.
Hope you enjoy! Post a picture if you make any please :)
-elana
Step 1: Gather Materials
For faux rusted signs
1) surfaces for signs
I used wood signs from the "simply surfaces" section of Michaels
2) spray paint- multicolored textured by rust oleum
3) spray paint- metallic brown by rust oleum
4) brown paint for back of signs (to save $ on spray paint and to save time)
5) brush to paint back of signs. I used a foam brush
6) access to a place you can spray paint that is well ventilated I.e. Outside on grass
7) water to wash paint brush (not pictured)
For lettering on signs
1) chalk marker
2) thin paint brush (I prefer a thin flat brush)
3) another paintbrush a little thicker than previous paintbrush (to make painting signs little easier)
4) chalk finish paint. I used vintage decor chalk finish paint by Martha Stewart in the color "wedding cake"
5) paper towels / towel and water for wiping off mistakes during drafting stage. I used a sink for water for small signs. When I made large signs with this method, I used a hose outside. Running water is easier to work with (I'll explain later)
6) ruler
Displaying signs (tips in step 14)
1) stakes and wood glue
2) shepherds hooks and string
1) surfaces for signs
I used wood signs from the "simply surfaces" section of Michaels
2) spray paint- multicolored textured by rust oleum
3) spray paint- metallic brown by rust oleum
4) brown paint for back of signs (to save $ on spray paint and to save time)
5) brush to paint back of signs. I used a foam brush
6) access to a place you can spray paint that is well ventilated I.e. Outside on grass
7) water to wash paint brush (not pictured)
For lettering on signs
1) chalk marker
2) thin paint brush (I prefer a thin flat brush)
3) another paintbrush a little thicker than previous paintbrush (to make painting signs little easier)
4) chalk finish paint. I used vintage decor chalk finish paint by Martha Stewart in the color "wedding cake"
5) paper towels / towel and water for wiping off mistakes during drafting stage. I used a sink for water for small signs. When I made large signs with this method, I used a hose outside. Running water is easier to work with (I'll explain later)
6) ruler
Displaying signs (tips in step 14)
1) stakes and wood glue
2) shepherds hooks and string
Step 2: Making the Faux Rust Finish
Step 3: Paint Backs & Edges of Signs
If your signs only really need to be rusted on one side (back won't be seen a lot and you want to save time and money):
Use your black paint to paint the back and edge surfaces of your signs.
Let dry completely.
Do second coat if needed (if it's streaky).
If you want the sign(s) you're working on to be rusty looking on both sides then skip this step and repeat steps 4 through 7 for the backs first (before the front of the signs).
Use your black paint to paint the back and edge surfaces of your signs.
Let dry completely.
Do second coat if needed (if it's streaky).
If you want the sign(s) you're working on to be rusty looking on both sides then skip this step and repeat steps 4 through 7 for the backs first (before the front of the signs).
Step 4: Grab Supplies & Go Outside
Grab your signs & spray paint and head outside (or to whatever your well ventilated area is).
Step 5: First Color of Spray Paint
Spray your sign(s) with an even coat of the multicolored texture color of spray stone
Let dry completely
Do a second coat so your spray stone is completely covering your sign opaquely (no surface of sign is really showing)
Let dry completely
Let dry completely
Do a second coat so your spray stone is completely covering your sign opaquely (no surface of sign is really showing)
Let dry completely
Step 6: Second Color of Spray Paint
Take second spray paint color (metallic brown) and do little spritzes of it on your sign.
Make them as random as you can.
Let dry completely.
Make them as random as you can.
Let dry completely.
Step 7: Doing Lettering on Your Painted Signs
Step 8: Sketch Out With Chalk
Use your chalk marker to draft the text onto your signs.
It is important to get letter spacing and size correct. You want the words to take up appropriate amounts of the signs but also look proportional to the size of the sign.
This is where you can use a ruler to help keep general base line for the text.
It's VERY important that if you mess up that you wipe it off or run under water and pat dry immediately because if you don't then the chalk marker will stain the board and you'll have to respray the board
See next step for pictures of what to do about mistakes
It is important to get letter spacing and size correct. You want the words to take up appropriate amounts of the signs but also look proportional to the size of the sign.
This is where you can use a ruler to help keep general base line for the text.
It's VERY important that if you mess up that you wipe it off or run under water and pat dry immediately because if you don't then the chalk marker will stain the board and you'll have to respray the board
See next step for pictures of what to do about mistakes
Step 9: For Mistakes
Run mistake under water and pat dry (if wipe you might wipe around chalk. Patting gets unwanted chalk up without wiping chalk around.
Step 10: Let Board Dry Off
We need the signs to dry off before we paint them.
If you choose to blot your signs make sure you keep the paper towels fresh and blot your sign to avoid wiping off chalk marks you wanted and putting blot up chalk back on the sign where you don't want it.
If you choose to blot your signs make sure you keep the paper towels fresh and blot your sign to avoid wiping off chalk marks you wanted and putting blot up chalk back on the sign where you don't want it.
Step 11: Paint the Lettering
What I like to do for lettering is paint over the chalk marker with my thinnest brush.
Step 12: Thicken the Downstrokes
Next, use the same brush or a slightly thicker one to thicken the downstrokes of your letters (when you write the word out, wherever you make a down motion with the chalk marker is where you need to thicken)
This will give you a calligraphy look without actually doing calligraphy!
This will give you a calligraphy look without actually doing calligraphy!
Step 13: Admire Your Finished Signs!
Yay! Your sign(s) is/are completed!!!!
Time for some wedding bells to ring, eh?
Time for some wedding bells to ring, eh?
Step 14: Tips for Displaying Signs
You can use stakes and shepherds hooks to display your sign (among other things)
For stakes, make sure you have wood glue if you don't have access to nails and hammers (I think the glue route is easier)
For shepherds hooks, have scraps of jute or another string to wrap around where the sign is hanging and what it is hanging with to help stabilize the sign so it doesn't blow away and so it doesn't swing around so much in the wind
For stakes, make sure you have wood glue if you don't have access to nails and hammers (I think the glue route is easier)
For shepherds hooks, have scraps of jute or another string to wrap around where the sign is hanging and what it is hanging with to help stabilize the sign so it doesn't blow away and so it doesn't swing around so much in the wind