How to make a beautiful chunky framed farmhouse sign

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This was my project for the "Pinterest Challenge"  I host on my facebook page each week.  Its new and we'd love to have you join us.  (Find more info here.)

This project was inspired by the amazing free cut file from Kimber Dawn & Co. I instantly fell in love with the font (it's handwritten! so amazing) and overall look.

If you do not have a cutting machine you can still use the free file.  Dowload the .png option and open in word or something similar.  Then follow the directions on this post to paint your sign :)

This sign was built a little different from the typical framed signs you see everywhere right now. 

Here's one I build for my little guys room.  Yup love them.

 However I had this long thin board sitting in my garage and just begging to be used. Not exactly ideal to try and nail a board to the side.  So with a little tweaking I was able to build this beautiful chunky framed farmhouse style sign.  The best part is it is crazy inexpensive and so light. And I seriously love the thickness of this frame.

The board I used was the super thin plywood you find in sheets.  I think this one was around $6 and we cut 5 or 6 good sized signs out of it.  This board is very thin but long so I have enough for another good sized sign.  We borrowed a table saw to do the cutting but any type of saw will work.  

Here's what my board looks like.  You can use any size.  I'm sure other wood would work too just the thinner the better.  You'll see why at the end.

I painted it black (or whatever color you want your words)

Download the free cut file (found here).  Measure your board and cut accordingly.  My board was about 6 inches tall.  I cut my words so they are about 4 1/2 inches tall.  You want at least  1/2 an inch all the way around your board to attatch the wood.  

Apply your vinyl

Paint the board white (or whatever color you want it).  Be careful around the edges of the letters.  Its better to brush away then towards the vinyl.

Once its dry peel off the vinyl.  Sand it to distress to your liking.

Now for the frame.  For the Frame I used a 1x2x8 also called .  They are only around a $1 and depending on the size of sign you only need one (I used less then 1/2)

I made this up as I went so I don't have a ton of pictures.  Please read through before you start and let me know if you have any questions!

This is where it gets a little tricky but not bad.  Here's what your final cuts are going to look like (refer to this in case my explanation isn't great). The wide part of the board is what you see.  It is actually glued directly to your sign that is why you need at least 1/2" around that board.  

  

If you cut 2 small sample from the end of your 1x2 board it helps so much when measuring.  They only need to be a couple of inches long. Lay your sample boards across the top and bottom in the position you want your top and bottom frame to go.  Measure from the top to the bottom to determine the height of the side boards.  Cut 2.  

(Sorry I don't have pictures I was making it up as I went-here's a little help)

You will repeat the same steps to find the measurements for the top and bottom board.  Place your side frame boards where you want them and measure the distance between to determine the length.  Cut 2.  Refer to picture below for exact spot.

The top and bottom boards are about 1/2 inch on the wood.  The sides were completely on the wood.

It is easier to glue when you have more board/sign under you frame.  However, I would not recommend going all the way to the edge on the sides.  I did and this is what mine looks like.  Not too pretty.  It will be in a spot where you can't see the sides so I'm not worried about it but  just wanted to give you a heads up.  You can also stain that little piece too to make it blend in more.  This is also why the thin boards work better as well...less bulk in the back.  You can't see anything under the top and bottom where they are only on the board a 1/2".  It took a little more patients to glue but its secure. 

Once you have your wood cut you are going to sand and stain (or paint) it.  I used my favorite stain Jacobean by Minwax.

Once its dry use some wood glue to attach the frame directly to your sign. (This Glue is awesome) make sure you you do the 2 ends of the top and bottom pieces as well.  It will keep your frame nice and tight.   I put all the pieces where I wanted them to go and worked my way from top, bottom, side, side.  You will need to hold each piece in place for a minute or 2 before you move on (especially if you have less wood under it like I did on the top and bottom).   Let it dry for a couple of hours.  

(you can also use a nail gun going from the back to the front. Just make sure your nails to do not go all the way through.   I don't know how to use mine and my husband was at work.)  

Back view

 I can't wait to add this style of frame to more of my signs!

How to create a 5 minute Scrapbook layout with PicMonkey

Did you see yesterday's post on creating a Scrapbook page in PicMonkey for Free?  Well if you are looking for something even easier and create it in about 5 min then this is a great option for you.  Its also done with PicMonkey and Free!

Here's my layout and the hardest part is picking the pictures and deciding where I want the snowflakes.

Head over to PicMonkey and this time we are going to use the collage option.  It will create the layout for you and you just have to drop your pictures in.  Its great.

 Click the add images button and choose your pictures.

.

 I love that they sit on the side so you can see what you have to work with.

Next choose your layout.  (its blue on my screen)  You want to stick with something square.  Square Deal, Biggie Small, L-egant,  are all great options.  (tile boarder & Jigsaw work well too but are part of a paid subscription)  Choose a layout with the same number or close to the number of pictures you want to use.  

 Then go back to your pictures and drag them to your boxes.

 You can move them around within the box and also size your picture to fit how you want.  Click that little icon in the middle of your picture.

 This is why I like using collage-you can actually edit each picture.

 You do not have a lot of flexiblity with changing the layout but you do have some.  I'm not sure if you can see this picture below but look in the center by my arrow.  You can drag a picture to an area that is not a box.  It gives you limited options on size and places but you can get it to work for you.  you can also delete existing boxes to really create your own look.  So you are not limited by the layouts they show you.

 Here's the downside of using collage-if you want a background color you are limited to a solid color and you need to do while you are still in the collage mode.  Its the bottom icon.   You can also change spacing and round the corners. I chose to keep mine white.

 Before I move on to the next step I want to mention the 3rd icon.  If you have empty boxes you can add some of their cute paper to fill it.  Here's a quick sample.

Okay back to the tutorial.  Once you are happy with your layout you want to click on export to editor.  Once you do this you will NOT be able to change anything you have done.  This becomes your background.

 For this layout I used the Themes icon (2nd to last).  I was able to pick cute fonts (found at the bottom) and some embellishments that went along with my snow theme.  If your layout does not fit a theme you can use the overlay (the butterfly) and text icons.  My post from yesterday goes over these options in detail if you need some help.

 Once you are finished save it to your computer.  You can upload and print at your favorite place.

 Here's the final product one more time.

PicMonkey is a really great option especially if you do not have a program to use.  Its free and you don't have to download anything to use it.  I love that!  The biggest issue is you can not save it and work on it later.  Once its saved you can not change what you have done.  Also if you have not save your work and lets say your one year old shuts off your computer your work is gone and you have to start over.  Believe me I know from experience.  Did you notice the small difference in the last 2 pictures of the tutorial?  This happened and i didn't get it exactly the same the 2nd time.  Good thing its quick.

I'll be continuing this series for the next couple of weeks.  Some of the posts will include where to find backgrounds, cute embellishments (and how to use them), great places for fonts, best places to print, how to make a printable, and a little about projects life.

Here's yesterday's post 

How To Digital Scrapbook in PicMonkey

I'm so excited to share this with you today!  Have you ever wanted to try digital scrapbooking but don't know where to start?  It can be a little overwhelming at first but its so fun and when you are done you have a beautiful way to share your favorite memories.  I'm going to be sharing some tips and tricks over the next few weeks to get you started (you can use these same tips to make your own printables as well!)

There are many programs you can use to make your own pages and prices and complexity vary.  I  use My Memories (I shared about it here and have a coupon code)  about 90% of the time.  It has some limits but for the most part I can do what I want and its very easy. There are several options like this.  You can also use programs like photoshop and have complete control over your design.  It would be awesome but I don't know how to use it and it is expensive.  If you already own it and know how to use it this could be a great option for you.  Today I am going to show you how to make a page with a FREE Option-PicMonkey. 

I use PicMonkey all the time to edit photos, make collages for my blog, make printables, and add my logo to my pictures.  You can do most things on PicMonkey for free but there are some options that you have to pay for.  I do pay for the yearly subscription but for this you can get away with using the free options. 

So here we go! Just a heads up there are going to be a ton of pictures to walk you through this.  Its not complicated just a little hard to explain unless you can see what I'm doing :)

You can apply these same steps to make printables-(just leave out the adding photo step).  I'll be adding a printable specific post in this series.  Watch for it!  Hopefully this will help you out until then.

When you get to PicMonkey this is the screen you will see.  Click on design at the top.

You will be starting with a black white page that just happens to be the right size for a 12x12. You can resize it to 3600x3600 if you want. 

First we are going to add your pictures.  Click on the little butterfly logo (overlays) on the side.  Then add your own.

 Select my computer or where ever you store your photos you want to use.

 Add however many you want.  Move them around adjust the size etc.  (remember you can always move them later)

 Now for the background.  1st option: I used this cute background I had saved to my computer.  You can find lots of free ones (search pinterest).  Save them to your computer and upload just like you did your photos.
(I'll be sharing a post on my favorite places to to find products and how to save them to your computer very soon)

 Option 2: you can leave it white or use a solid colored background.  Go to the wand icon.  Click on canvas color and it will change your background color.  (if you use this option you can skip the next few steps)

If you used option one you will size your background paper to cover your entire page.

 right click and hit send to back.

 This is what it should look like now.

 Now for the fun part-adding the embellishments. Still in the overlay section there are a ton of option.  Click on any of them and drag them where you want them.  I used one from the great outdoors and 2 from nautical (all 3 are free)

 I wanted to use a banner as a text box (still in overlays-towards the bottom).  I clicked on the first one and moved it into place.

 I wanted one end under my picture so I right clicked and hit send to back.  (you can use send backwards but it was taking forever).

 This is what I ended up with.

 Remember that background paper?  Right click on the background paper and send it to the back.

 Your banner should now be behind your picture.

 Size it and change the color.

Next Head over to the text box.  Hit add text, pick your font and start typing.  You can size and change colors.

 I added text to the circle and the banner.  I used the fonts Black Jack and Bruno Book.  Once you are done save it to your computer.  *Once its saved you can not go back and change things.  That is probably my least favorite thing about using this program to scrapbook.

 Here's my finished project.  It took me about 5-8 minutes to make.  Most of it was choosing the embellishments :)  You can upload to your favorite place and print.

There are some limitations with PicMonkey but you can create really fun and beautiful pages with it.  Its a great place to start to see if it is something you enjoy.  

Grandma's Easy and Delicious Blonde Brownies

This is my grandma's recipe and one of our favorite desserts.

Blonde Brownies
2 cups flour
1tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2/3 cups butter (unsalted)
2 cups browns sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
Chocolate Chips or M&Ms

1.preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix ingredients in this order.
3. spread dough in a greased 9x13 cake pan.
4. Bake for 24-28 min. (my oven takes about 26 min.)