Hello, friends!!!
It’s me again, Sarah. The gal from Making Joy and Pretty Things.
I’m so thrilled to share one of my favorite DIYs I’ve ever made. A rustic farmhouse-inspired DIY shiplap sign. {try saying that 3 times fast!}
Shiplap is all the rage these days. I guess we have Joanna Gaines to thank for that!
While I’m secretly planning on shiplapping my whole house, I took a more realistic approach with this DIY. I think many of you may be in the same boat as me; gimme the shiplap, but, wait, I don’t have the budget or the place to actually use it.
Now, I have been working on this sign since January. No, that’s not a typo. January. That’s how many times I changed the look of the sign because I couldn’t quite get the look I wanted.
So, if you see winter clothes, a totally different looking sign than the finished product, or some flurries in the background, don’t think you’re going crazy 😉
Despite this taking me 6 months to complete, in reality it’s not difficult at all!
First, I stopped by my local Home Depot and picked up two 8 in. shiplap siding boards, one 84 in. shelving bracket (I’ll explain this, I promise!!), and a pack of 1/2 in. lath screws.
I LOVE the look of the shiplap even before paint. It has texture and an inherent rustic nature, making it perfect for farmhouse style decor.My husband cut the shiplap into 4 x 24in pieces. Since we weren’t attaching the shiplap to the wall (as you would normally do if installing a shiplap wall, etc), we had to figure out how to keeps the boards together.
Well, here at Making Joy and Pretty Things, we come up with crazy unique ways to do things. { Remember that wreath we hung with electrical tape?? } My husband used the aforementioned lath screws and closet shelving bracket, yes that same bracket you would use to hang shelves in your closet, to attach the shiplap together. It may not be pretty, but it works!
We kept the boards equally spaced apart by placing a piece of chalk in between them.
Next, I had my husband drill two 3/8 in. holes on either side of the sign.
I strung 3 pieces of sisal rope (you could use any thick rope) through the drilled hole in the back side of the sign, so that the ends were sticking out in the front. If you wrap the rope in thick tape, it’s easier to fit the fraying pieces of rope through the tight hole.
{This is one of those times you should pretend the sign isn’t a gray color with wording painted on it}
Then, I tied these 3 pieces into a knot and trimmed the excess down to about an inch. I wrapped jute twine around the ends of each piece to create a more finished look, but also to prevent the ends from fraying.
Once I was finished with that side, I braided the 3 pieces of rope and then inserted the ends into the other hole. Then, I repeated the above steps for that knot.
At this point I decided to paint over what I had already done (the gray + wording seen above) because it just didn’t feel right. It wasn’t exactly what I was looking for.
I used my favorite Rustoleum Chalked Paint in Linen White to roughly paint over my previous design.
Then, I stared at the sign. I didn’t know what word(s) to paint on it. Originally, I had painted the saying “do small things with great love”, which is an all-time favorite saying for me. But, it was too busy. The saying wasn’t standing out, it was drowning in the sign.
So, I chose to paint simply “love”. “Family”, “joy” and “home” were also considered before deciding that love really represented what I wanted the sign to mean.
I had some large uppercase stencils I picked up on clearance from Target that I thought would look perfect for the sign.
I actually measured where to place the 4 letters since I wanted them equally spaced. This is big for me, I don’t usually like to measure 😉
Then, I used one of my kid’s paint brushes (tell me I’m not the only one!!) to paint each letter with a chalkboard acrylic black paint I had on hand.
For the final touches, I painted two jelly jars with Martha Stewart Vintage Decor Paint in Linen and distressed them a little with some sandpaper.
I attached these jars to the shiplap using pipe clamps. { My FIL spray painted the clamps a copper color for me (because I am HORRIBLE at spray painting) }
My husband drilled the pipe clamps into the shiplap using the same lath screws we used to attach the closet strips to the boards. {the ends of the pipe clamp had to be cut down a bit so that they weren’t sticking out}
Lastly, I picked up some clearance faux wildflower florals that added the perfect pop of color to the shiplap sign.
We decided to hang the sign on an exposed brick fireplace (that doesn’t work). I LOVE how perfect the sign pairs with the rustic look of the brick.
I love the sweet colorful blooms that really stand out against the white shiplap. I don’t normally use bright colors, especially pinks, so this is such a nice change of pace. But, you could stick with neutrals here, as well. A few sprigs of simple greenery would be perfect!
Here’s a close up of the rope knot with twine-wrapped ends:
That’s all for today, friends!
If you’re looking for more farmhouse-inspired projects, I’ve recently finished DIY Farmhouse Shelves and Simple Farmhouse Decor: Upcycled Frame and Wreath.
I so hope you try making your own shiplap sign! Or, if you’re more about shiplapping your whole house, I’m right there with you, too!
Wishing you a joyful day!
Shawnna says
Hey girl this is so cool! Love it!
Kristi says
Isn’t it sweet Shawnna? Sarah is so creative!
Sarah @ Making Joy and Pretty Things says
Aww thank you Shawna! I’m so glad you love it!
Alysha says
Love this it’s beautiful!
Kristi says
Thanks Alysha! Sarah is always coming up with the prettiest projects!
Sarah @ Making Joy and Pretty Things says
Thanks Alysha! I’m so glad you like it!
Kristen @ Making Home says
Another great farmhouse project!! Love it!!
Sarah @ Making Joy and Pretty Things says
Thanks Kristen! I’m so glad you love it 🙂
Kristi says
Thanks so much Kristen! Sarah always has the best ideas!!!
Kendra @ www.joyinourhome.com says
Such a pretty sign with the perfect farmhouse look! Great job, Sarah!
Kristi says
Isn’t it pretty!
Becca says
We used your tip for the metal closet strips to hold all the boards together on the back. It worked perfectly! Thanks so much!
Julie says
You are too funny!! Love your humour and “down to earth” truthful attitude! Keep up the good work! I will look forward to seeing your stuff in the future!