We have been in our new home going on 5 months now and I am still putting the finishing touches on things. I keep kicking myself for it not being “finished” but on the other hand I know that it takes time to completely settle into a new home. During the past few months I’ve also been busy crafting for others, shows, and my new booth. So every now and then I am squeezing in some crafting for myself. I finally completed our bookcase and got our last boxes unpacked; the next thing on the list was finishing my kitchen decor.
Here’s how I made my DIY Kitchen Food Signs…..
There are some large spaces above our kitchen cabinets that were just begging for some decor. I attempted to put some random stuff up there….but it ended up cheapening the look of the kitchen and cabinetry. It just didn’t feel right. I decided that I wanted more of a streamlined unified look. So I decided to create my own kitchen decor.
We had a scrap 1×6 board out in the garage that I knew would be perfect. I just measured it out and decided what I wanted my 4 sign lengths to be. Since my cabinets were two different sizes I ended up making the signs two different lengths.
I went back and forth between wanting to paint the boards or stain them. In the end I decided to grab some dark stain that I had and use it on the boards. I used some Minwax stain in Espresso Satin.
After a couple coats of the wood stain (and dry time) I cut out some vinyl with my silhouette. Instead of weeding out the “negative” part of the vinyl and keeping the “positive”, I kept the negative to use as a stencil. I placed the vinyl on the wood signs using some transfer tape. I wanted to try and prevent as much paint bleeding as possible, so I used some Mod Podge first on the vinyl stencil.
Then I used some craft paint on the stencil once the Mod Podge was dry. I used some Buttermilk paint because I wanted it to look aged and not crisp white. When that was dry it was time to remove the vinyl. Now I’m gonna be honest with you….sometimes projects go exactly as planned and sometimes they don’t. When they go wrong they either go horribly wrong and the whole thing is a wash OR they end up actually being better because of it. In this instance the mistake made things better.
For some reason when I went to remove the vinyl the paint started coming up with it. Especially in the corners. I had to push the paint back down to even get the vinyl started. At first I was terrified that the whole thing was ruined. However as I continued to peel the vinyl off most of the lettering was sticking to the sign with only little bits getting pulled off. So what I had in the end were some distressed looking lettering. Which is what I really wanted anyway.
I sprayed the signs with some matte clear spray to finish them off. Once they were dry I pulled out the trusty ole step stool and popped these babies on top of the cabinets. I placed the two smaller signs over the two skinnier cabinets and the larger signs over the larger cabinets.
In the closeups you can see some of the letter variations and “flaws”. *love*
The faux greenery was purchased at Michael’s using coupons. I wanted to keep things simple on top of cabinets, so I added the greenery to all of the cabinets in hopes of keeping things looking unified. I like the color and texture that they add up there.
For the words I ended up going with Milk, Eggs, Sugar, and Flour. I liked the idea of using very basic and simple words for the signs. Almost with the idea that they very well could of been salvaged signs used in an old market. Words that invoked homey thoughts of gathering and baking together in the kitchen.
It may just be me but I feel like they are an awesome mix of vintage and sophistication. Maybe that’s not the best word….but I just feel like they all look so polished and nice up there.
I really can’t lie. I kinda love them.
Ok now for a question…..would you add another sign above the pantry? Or leave well enough alone?
Thanks for checking out my DIY Kitchen Food Signs, I’d love to hear what you think!!!
I think you have enough……….looks great!
Thanks so much : )
Looks beautiful. I love that wall color. It is just so peaceful looking.
Thank you Jen! I love it too! It’s the first thing we did when we moved in….paint the whole house! The light grey is super soothing!!!
These are so great! They look perfect above the cabinets! I’ve been trying to decide what to use for mine as well! 🙂
Now I just need a silhouette!
Thank you Lindi! I LOVE my silhouette…it’s amazing to be able to design your own home decor just the way you want it. I visited your cute blog and I gave it a follow on bloglovin! Thanks so much for stopping by!!!
Your kitchen looks great. I think you have just the right amount of signs. I wouldn’t add another.
Thank you Naomi….that’s kind of what I’m thinking!!! : )
What a great use of the space above the cabinets! Lovely!
i like them as they are. the lettering looks like it has dimension to it!
love the signs~ would not add more…’less is more’! thanks for the tip!
I think I agree Michelle! The more I live with them the more I’m loving them!
Love the signs . And your kitchen.
Thank you Sandi!
Hi Courteney, I love your signs. I am always looking for ways to help make the process easier and will definitely try your idea. Your kitchen is beautiful! I personally would also put a small similar simple sign across the wreath. Maybe saying “Welcome” or “Pantry” to finish the look, but that’s just my take. Your look is amazing, clean and fresh. Thanks for sharing!
How about a sign that says “bake”….
I tried the modpodge over stencils before, and found that the mod podge basically sealed the stencil down as if I was glueing it… then when I tried to peel the stencil off, the paint and mod podge came with it. Did you let everything dry completely, or did you pull it when it was still damp? Or did you water it down a bit, to make the mod podge a little thinner?
I am thinking taking an exacto knife to the edges is the best way to get a crisp line.
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Not saying I would, but if I were to add something above the pantry, I would add a CLOCK! But plenty of signs, they look perfect!
I just found these and I love them! SOO cute!
Modpodge works wonderful when you apply it as you did. Let it dry. Then apply your paint as you did, but DO NOT LET PAINT COMPLETELY DRY. I have learned the hard way.