This post is sponsored by Free Spirit Market.   All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Move over paint nite, pallet sign making workshops are where its at.  I recently attended Free Spirit Market’s pallet sign making workshop and it was a blast.

Pick a Stencil that Speaks to You

The scene was set for a night of creativity with a beautiful white tent and pretty patio lights.  Supplies for each lady were laid out at every chair.  All I had to do was pick out my stencil.

Picking out a stencil was no easy task.  There were easily over 70 designs to chose from.

My advice?  Get there early for best selection.  You can even combine elements from a couple of different stencils to get exactly the look you’re going for.

I was drawn in by the feather stencil.

Side note: if you’re going with a group of people, you’ll want to get there early to make sure you can all sit together.  Flying solo?  Don’t worry, you’ll make some new friends by the time the night is over.

Specialty Drinks and a Delicious Eats

While we waited for everyone to arrive and pick out their stencils, we were treated to a delicious spread of BBQ Beef with buns by the Danish Oven, veggies and dip, crackers and cheese, and even a birthday cake!

An old washtub was filled to the brim with specialty beers, wine, and sparkling juice.  I tried the Cawston Press Rhubarb and was very pleased with my choice.  It was a nice combination of sweet and sour.

All the food was delicious, but the stand outs for me were the Better Than Your Boyfriend BBQ sauce and Gourmet Village Maple Apple Jam.

Not every class comes with food and drinks, but if you can get into one that does, it’s worth the extra 10 dollars.  If I’d have known the snacks were going to be so substantial, I wouldn’t have eaten supper.

With our food and drink in hand, we started making our signs.

Sand and Glaze

First we gave all the edges a light sanding.  No splinters here!  Then we painted on a dark glaze and wiped it off with a wet cloth.

It’s easy to try and over-think this stage.  My advice is to do it and let it be.  The sign is supposed to look rustic!

Next, we taped our stencils to the boards and chose our colours.  This was probably the hardest part of the whole project.

Thankfully, if you’re having a hard time deciding, your painting neighbours or the staff will have some great ideas.  Both of the ladies I sat beside had been there before and had great ideas.

Choose Your Colours

All of the paint is by furniture and my kitchen cabinets.  It’s really easy to work with, and the clear tough coat actually lives up to it’s name.

Related: Painting Your Kitchen Cabinets with Chalk Paint?  Read this First!

Now for the fun part. . . adding the colour!

I got a little carried away for my first feather and used way too much paint.  It looked fine, but the colour bled through the stencil.  If it’s your first time, make sure to wipe off the excess paint and then dab with your sponge.

Add Your Special Touch

The bits that didn’t get filled in can be touched up with a paint brush after you remove your stencil..  It’s much better to sponge lightly and fill in the colour than be too heavy handed and have your colour bleed.

That’s it!  Seriously, anyone can do this, even if you don’t have an artistic bone in your body.

Let your sign dry for a week, then follow up with Country Chic’s Tough Coat to make sure your sign lasts for a long time.

Here’s my sign.  I’m super pleased with the results!

As promised, here’s the five tips to make a pallet sign you’ll love:

What are you waiting for?  Grab your girls and head on over to the next Pallet Sign Workshop!

Free Spirit Market is located at 615 Main Street, Humboldt, SK.  To get all the latest class and product updates, follow them on Facebook or Instagram.

Sign up for one of the next two pallet workshops at the Albert Community Centre in Saskatoon, SK on Tuesday, September 26th or Tuesday October 3rd.  More dates and Christmas classes in Humboldt and Saskatoon will be announced soon!

Kristen Raney

Kristen is a former farm kid turned urban gardener who owns the popular gardening website, Shifting Roots.  She is obsessed with growing flowers and pushing the limits of what can be grown in her zone 3b garden.  She also loves to grow tomatoes, but oddly enough, dislikes eating them raw.