Sawdust 2 Stitches

Faux Metal Vintage Sign

 Love these ? Me too.  Here is my semi-successful attempt. 

Let me premise by saying  I would love to learn to weld.  Until then,  I   will have to stick to a faux metal finish.

I  began by drawing my desired shape on a piece of OSB (Only because I happened to have it on hand. In retrospect  I would had DEFINITELY  used a smooth surface board  ie:  plywood, or paneling).

Using a jigsaw and a circular saw I  cut out my shapes (Arrow and the letters E.A.T.)    I also wanted mine to have a raised edge, so  I cut out 1.5″ wide strips  that  would go around the perimeter of  my signs.

Next,  I drilled holes in  my cutouts so that  I could insert  short carriage bolts. I thought giving it rivots would make look more realistic.  (I also think it would be really awesome to insert lights instead!)

In retrospect I would have added the carriage bolts  at this point  so that they  would get painted at the same time.  ( I added  just a dab of hot glue on each one to ensure they stayed put.)

This next part  was a little bit of trial and error,  I started by giving the wood a  base coat of “Metallic Aluminum”  spray paint.

Once the silver layer was dry  I  used a matte black and did  some eratic  dusting all over the signs (edging strips included)  in order to give it some dimension.

I then repeated  the same process with  Metallic Oil Rubbed Bronze. ( I pretty  much repeated the erratic  dusting method with any metallic spray paint I had in my arsenal),
* Like I said earlier,  in retrospect  I would have added the bolts (rivets)  before the painting process.*

Using a finish nailer  I fastened the  1.5″ wide slats of wood and tacked it to the cutout.  I just liked that it gave it dimension and created the look of a  vintage metal sign.

Once everything was secured I took a rag with a little bit of stain and added it to the creases  to give it more depth.

Overall…   I don’t think it is half bad for $4.00 in materials.

( Like  I stated earlier,  if I were to do it over I would have used a smooth board.)

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  2. Corey Decker says

    Thanks Tina, I just went and added a “follow me through email” just for you! If you follow me on Facebook you will be able to see more photos than what I add on the blog as well! Thanks!

  5. John Marcella says

    Love your stuff.
    You could go an extra step and put in string lights (you can get anywhere or patio lights) instead of carriage bolts and have an authentic looking old fashioned light.
    Awesome stuff.

    • coreydecker@gmail.com says

      I like how you think, I ended up doing another project a few weeks later, and I did just that! Great minds think alike. Thanks for reading~!

    • coreydecker@gmail.com says

      I would recommend using lath. When I made this, the kids were napping so I just cut strips of paneling, instead of waiting for a trip to the store. Haha.

  10. Hildy says

    You are just amazing and I’m becoming addicted to your blog ! I love all your projects but this time I’m trying to do the Pottery Barn Lamp Spotlight and came to this post to get more details on the finish you used and I have a question, what kind of stain did you use ? Would you use the same for the Spotlight giving that here you were working with wood and there is a different surface ? Thank you !

    • coreydecker@gmail.com says

      Hildy, Sorry that was a little vague wasn’t it !? You are right, you don’t need to use stain seeing as the metal will not absorb it the way porous wood, would. I would just use the technique of layering/misting different spray paints to achieve that worn and weathered look! Good question, I will make sure to go back and clear that up! Thanks so much for following and “addicting” is totally what I am going for! Thanks so much!

  11. Maryanne says

    Hiya. I’m just wondering did you use any kind of primer before the spray paint? Cheers 🙂

    • coreydecker@gmail.com says

      Primer always helps! I would use a gray primer, it will be easier to cover, and if you miss a spot in the “misting” process no biggie.

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