I made this piece of art work for my brother for his 25th birthday. I cannot tell you how inexpensive it was to make it! I used 3 different colors of paint that I had purchased at Lowes for $2 a pint. It is just your everyday indoor wall paint for the home, but I find that this paint is less expensive than an acrylic at the art store and lasts a lot longer because it is made to last! The wood I painted on was just laying in my parents backyard, but if you do not have parents like me who have a mecca of free DIY supplies in their backyard you can always visit your local home improvement warehouse, or any place that sells custom wood cuts. Just go straight to the lumber section and ask where their scrap wood is. Lowes gives their scrap wood away for free, whereas if you go to a smaller mom and pop they might charge you a few dollars or cents. Either way, creating a piece of art on a piece of wood that would have ended up in a sad scrap pile is so rewarding! I had to sand the wood a bit because it was a little splintered and had some dirt crusted into the grain. After the sand I just treated it with wood seal that I purchased at Lowes for $1.40. All you need to seal wood that is too be painted on, is a primer or a clear sealant. I went with the sealant because I wanted the natural color of the wood to show through. I painted a solid white paint layer onto the wood and let it dry. After it was dry I took my buffer (sanding block) and roughed it up a little so it would take on the rustic look of a vintage sign. It is a simple step that takes about 5 minutes and it really brought the painting to life! Hope you are inspired enough to try this on your own!
Peace, Love & DIY!
Elisabeth
