After I realized I could turn handwriting into a craft, I’ve fallen in love with the concept.  I made my sister the same sign I put in my office and also made something for my mom & grandma.  I wanted to do something special for my best friend who lost her dad earlier this year, but also just had her first baby!

I thought the lil man could use something in his nursery with an nod to his grandfather, so found a piece of wood to turn into a sign and got crafting!

Note: This post contains affiliate links, so if you purchase something from them a little bit goes back to help support my blog!

Stenciled Nursery Art

What you’ll need:

• Wooden sign
• Navy blue htv
• Stencil vinyl
• Cricut Maker
• Weeder tool
• EasyPress
• EasyPress mat
• Transfer paper
• Scraper tool
• Gray acrylic paint
• Small sponge brush

I still had the program from the funeral service, so I pulled 2 things from it: First some scripture that would go on the front, and then another scripture that would go on the back next to her dad’s signature.  The second scripture was part of his confirmation and wedding, so it seemed perfect as a reminder of her dad.

First, I created a design with “The Lord is my shepherd” in Illustrator, saved the svg and uploaded it into Design Space.  I typed out the second scripture, centering all the words.

Next, I asked her sister if she had a card or note from her dad where I could get the signature.  Erica was the best and sent me a few samples!  I uploaded the signature into Design Space using the same method I used for my own sign.

Then I resized everything so it would be the right size for my sign. I found the wood at Hobby Lobby which was ready for personalization, and confirmed the nursery’s colors with her husband – gray is always a safe bet 🙂

I cut the first scripture on stencil vinyl since I’d be painting it and cut the second on regular iron on.  I weeded out the excess – the outside keeping the letters on the clear for the iron on, and getting rid of the letters and leaving the background for my stencil.

I applied the scripture to the flat, back of the sign using my EasyPress.  Cricut’s recommended settings will tell you what temperature & timer to set the EasyPress to.

Now for the stencil – like the other stencils I’ve made, you’ll put the transfer paper on top, apply pressure with your scraper, remove the paper backing and place the stencil on your sign.  Use the scraper tool again to make sure it’s on well and slowly remove the transfer paper.

Dab the paint on your stencil, being sure you keep it on the blue stencil.  Let your first coat dry and do another if it needs it (mine did).  I touched up a few places within the crevices with a brush.  Once the paint dries, pull the stencil vinyl away and your sign is done!

I snapped a few pictures then put it in the mail to her!  I love being able to make little presents like this for family & friends – it really is so fun to create something meaningful for others!