DIY Reclaimed Wood Christmas Yard Decor
It’s everywhere you look during the holiday season. From the store aisles to your neighbor’s house, my bet is your eyes have been saturated with holiday yard decor.
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In the spirit of Clark Griswold and Betty Lou Who, it’s almost become a contest to see which neighbor could outdo the next.
In fact, I believe our new HOA holds a contest. But, that wasn’t what speared me into decorating our yard this year. It was my mom.
I’ve never really been one for holiday decorating. And that goes for holidays spanning the calendar. I hated the idea of getting things out for a month, then having to put them all back up again.
Too much hassle. Just call me Scrooge.
And then in August, my mom passed away. The emotions from her passing have been overwhelming at times.
Debilitating honestly.
But, as one friend on Facebook called it, I’m looking for “purposeful grieving.” Or, finding purpose through my grief.
Being intentional about making purposeful choices… all in my mom’s honor.
You’re probably wondering what this has to do with
crafting with reclaimed wood.
You didn’t stop by to read about my grief, I assume. I promise, it’s coming. Stick with me.
My mom loved to sew. My dad loves woodworking.
As hard as I try with fabric, it doesn’t always cooperate with me. But wood? I love the smell of it. For me, the best part of walking into a home improvement store is the smell of all the lumber.
Cedar is my favorite. I love the smell, as well as the look and texture. Pine is beautiful with all of its knots and the look of the grain.
So, back to reclaimed wood. After my mom passed, we began helping my dad clean up around his house.
As a carpenter who enjoys doing everything he can around the house, he had piles of old wood around his backyard. I found a wonderful pile of cedar shiplap that I collected and am holding to use here at home as soon as I find the right spot.
Additionally, he had several fence panels that I claimed and I spent hours pulling staples out of every picket this past week.
And this is where the project comes in!
Reclaimed Wood Christmas Yard Decor
Using a couple of old fence pickets, my Cricut, and some chalk paint, we created a reclaimed wooden sign for our front yard Christmas Tree Farm display.
Measure your wood and cut based on the size you want your sign. We used two 6″ wide pickets to cut four equal pieces.
Then, we measured the length of the four cut boards and, using a picket we ripped down the middle, we trimmed two pieces to fit across the back.
Using 1 ¼” screws, we attached the smaller pickets across the four front ones to hold them together.
Next, I pulled Cricut Design Space up on my computer and designed my sign using fonts and clip art I owned.
Not going to lie, making the stencil vinyl was easy… laying it was hard. It doesn’t really like sticking to rough surfaces. But, with the help of some painter’s tape, I finally got the stencil laid.
As my family played Escape Room around me, I used a foam brush to dab chalk paint into the stencil (which I apparently never even stopped to take pictures of) for the finished look.
Even I was surprised at how well it turned out!
Now, what did that have to do with my parents?
Spending time with my dad—learning his craft—was priceless. It was much-needed time well spent with him.
And, second, remember how I mentioned that I didn’t like to partake in seasonal decorating? Well, this is the first time we’ve decorated our yard.
Why did we do it? Because I told Colby before the holiday season began that I wanted to “go all out” this Christmas.
It was my mom’s absolute favorite holiday and I wanted to decorate in memory of her. Purposeful grieving. It’s helping me get through the season without her.