Fall Mantel with Wood FALL Sign | Vintage, Paint and more...

Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Fall Mantel with Wood FALL Sign


 Although we have escaped the worst of Hurricane Irma - I have to say it has been a roller coaster ride this week.  Our evacuation orders were rescinded, however, we still received some winds, rain, storm surge and tornado threats - much better than what they were predicting at the beginning of last week.  We lived in central Florida for 20 years and have many friends and family still there - my heart goes out to them - let's remember them in our thoughts and prayers as we go about our day. Let's also pray Hurricane Jose stays out to sea - it's way too soon to go through this again.
Besides the weather threats here we are also having some much awaited cool temps and fall-like days.  I have been anxiously awaiting these.  With these cooler days, it feels more like Fall so I thought I would share my Fall Mantel decor with you all today.

Vintage, Paint and more... a fall mantel done with a decoupaged wood letter sign, book page columns, chalkboard, paper leaf wreath, and fabric pumpkins



Fall Mantel With  Wood FALL Sign


Vintage, Paint and more... fall mantel with farmhouse chalkboard, vintage paper leaf wreath and book page columns, fabric pumpkins, and wood crates

I was at Hobby Lobby earlier this year when their fall items first came out and found this great wooden letter sign.  I think it was about $6.99 but with their 40% discount coupon, you can get it for much less.  I thought "why not?" and picked one up.  I decided to decoupage the letters with some fall scrapbook papers I had on hand.

Vintage, Paint and more... wood letters to make a decoupaged fall sign

For this project you'll need some scrapbook papers. These are the ones I picked out to use but finally decided on the goldish print paper.  These papers are some I had in my stash and are no longer available but, I am sure you can find some you love at your local craft store.

Vintage, Paint and more... scrapbook papers used to make a decoupage wood letter sign

You'll also need a pair of scissors, a paint brush, craft paint of your choice and Mod Podge.
Vintage, Paint and more... products used to make a decoupage wood letter sign

First, I painted the letters on all sides except the front with some craft paint.  I used a harvest gold color that came closest to matching the paper.  Then I simply traced each letter on the paper and cut them out.  It only took one piece of 12 x 12 paper to do all 4 letters.  Next, I coated the front of each letter with decoupage and smoothed the corresponding piece of paper on it.  You can use an old credit card to smooth out any wrinkles you may get.  Let it dry.  


Vintage, Paint and more... painted and decoupaged letter for FALL wood sign

After they were completely dry I took a small piece of sandpaper and sanded all the edges around the scrapbook paper.  You can see how the "distressing " looks after sanding it on the letter on the right.

Vintage, Paint and more... comparison of letters after sanding and distressing done on a wood letter sign

The distressing changed it a lot but, I wanted them to look aged also.  So, I used a Tim Holt Vintage distress ink and rubbed around the edges where I had just sanded to darken them and give them an aged look as you can see below. 


Vintage, Paint and more... finished sign after aging done

  To put the mantel together I first started with a large chalkboard I hung on our rustic wood backdrop that lives over the fireplace. I made This one from an old picture I had.  I simply painted the frame white and the glass with black chalkboard paint.  These are very simple to make using old pictures or mirrors I find in thrift stores and I have several in different sizes I like to use through out the house.  I use them to write quotes on or hang wreaths or just leave blank.  They give the room that farmhouse touch I like.  


Vintage, Paint and more... diy chalkboard with a diy paper leaf wreath with a burlap bow


On the blackboard I hung a paper leaf wreath I made a couple of years ago.  I think this is one of my favorite wreaths I have made. It's just so Fall looking with its bright aged leaves, burlap bow and bits of berries and flowers.  You can find the instructions to make this wreath here


Vintage,Paint and more... diy paper columns with little fabric pumpkins with twine stems

On the mantel itself, I placed some book page columns I made - these are quite simple to make out of old paper back books, you can find the instructions here.  On top of them I placed some of the little fabric pumpkins I made this year. Another simple project using bits of fabric I had in my stash - the tutorial for them can be found here.

Vintage, Paint and more... stained wood crates with scarecrow, bushel basket of faux fall flowers, fruits and pumpkins and twine wrapped pumpkin

 In front of the fireplace, I placed two wood crates that I bought unfinished.  I stained them and did some wood burned labels on each end.   I will be sharing a tutorial on how to do this at a later date.  On top of these, I placed an old bushel basket I painted white and filled it with bits of faux flowers, fall fruits and pumpkins.  On top of the crate is my twine wrapped pumpkin. I will be sharing a
tutorial for it later also. 

Vintage, Paint and more... a fall mantel done with paper leaf wreath on a chalkboard, fabric pumpkins on book page columns and a decoupaged wood letter FALL sign
Here is a full view of the mantel with all these fun projects I completed.  I love the Fall sign and the little fabric pumpkins I did this year but, I think the wreath is still my favorite.

Vintage, Paint and more... rustic fall mantel with chalkboard, paper leaf wreath, book page columns, little fabric pumpkins and diy FALL sign

What have you been making for Fall - I love to hear from you so tell me about it in the comments below.
Make sure you never miss anything by signing up for my emails in the bar at the top of the page.


I will be linking up to the parties listed on the Where I Party page.  Please go by and visit each one as you will find all kinds of great projects and inspiration.



If you like this post you may also like these:

                                                         Using Scarves in Your Decor


                                                         10 Great Fall Pillows Under $10

                                                                                Colors of Fall

29 comments:

  1. That is a great looking mantel! I love it. The FALL wood letters is my favorite. I like how you really aged the edges! found it through the creative inspiration party:) pinned!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is beautiful and I love the rustic theme. Great idea to decoupage the letters rather than paint them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Sandra. I love working with paper and decoupage is one of my favorite ways of doing so. Thank you for stopping by.

      Delete
  3. Cathy,
    The Fall sign is just too cute with the leaf for an A. I like your choice of papers you used in decoupaging it. The Fall sign goes perfectly with your leaf wreath.

    Judith

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love that little leaf and think it just be what sold me on picking this sign up. Thank you for stopping by.

      Delete
  4. Your Fall mantle is wonderful. Another tutorial! thanks! Glad Irma was good to you. I'll be glad when this hurricane season is over. Happy Fall!

    ReplyDelete
  5. very nice mantle perfect for fall. I think the wooden word with tree is perfect as I always think of changing leaves as I am sure many do when they think of fall
    come see us at http://shopannies.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much - I also thought the leaf was a perfect sign of fall. Thanks for stopping by.

      Delete
  6. Your mantel has loads of rustic charm! Just lovely. So many great ideas for Fall, too. Thanks for the inspiration. (So glad you and your family made out well during Irma).

    ReplyDelete
  7. Cathy, everyone must be drinking the same tea! I've seen so many cute fall signs made with paper and letters. And I just made one myself. Yours is really nice. Love the frame. Thanks for sharing at Happiness is Homemade Link Party 189.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Cathy, Your fall mantel is beautiful! So great to see some of your awesome older projects displayed too! Great job on the fall sign!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Laurie. I like pulling out some of those older projects so I can enjoy them.

      Delete
  9. So pretty, Cathy! I love the leaf for the letter A :) Thanks for sharing @Vintage Charm!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Cecelia. I think the leaf is what sold me on getting this sign.

      Delete
  10. Your mantel is perfect, Cathy! The wreath is gorgeous, and I think the book page columns are awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love your fall mantel Cathy. Thanks for sharing this at C&C with J&J.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Each picture has a wonderful detail that is so adorable. Love the wreath. I can see why it may be one of your faves! Saw this on The Scoop link party! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh your mantel is gorgeous and this sign is the perfect touch. Featuring when my party opens tonight!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thank you Carol and thank you for the feature.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love, love, love your mantel...I have shared it over on FB! Where did you live in central Florida? I am in Celebration, and made it through with just a couple of trees down, a bunch of branches and leaves in the yard and a broken gate. We feel blessed! Thanks so much for sharing at Celebrate Your Story! I look forward to more of your holiday decor!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much Chloe. If we were still in Florida - we would be neighbors as I lived in Kissimmee. So glad to hear you had just a little damage from the storm.

      Delete
  16. Love your mantel and thanks for the how-to!
    Thanks also for sharing at AMAZE ME MONDAY!
    Blessings,
    Cindy

    ReplyDelete