DIY Just Breathe wooden sign using my Cricut

My friends, this sign! I have needed it in my life. The reminder to “just breathe” is perfect for an anxious, stressed, worry-wart like myself. Does anyone else have those issues? I’m constantly looking for uplifting reminders to just relax and not stress and this metallic Just Breathe wooden sign couldn’t be more perfect. Not just the sweet reminder, but the white background and pretty adhesive foil metallic vinyl is relaxing too!

My Cricut Explore Air 2 made it so easy to create this shiny, beautiful wooden sign. This machine is so fantastic and I have about a billion project ideas that I hope to use it for….okay, a billion is a lot, maybe just a million. 😉

Here are on the details on how to make this sign for yourself!

(If you missed my first two posts about the Explore Air 2 machine, please click here Cricut Explore Air 2 Mint Machine; First thoughts and Cricut Explore Air 2; My First Projects!. I also need you to know that this is a sponsored post where I received free product in exchange for my honest review; all opinions are truthful and are mine. There are also some affiliate links in this post which simply means that I get a small commission if you purchase through those links, at no cost to you. More details can be found in my Disclosure page. Thank you for supporting my small venture!)

SUPPLIES:

• 1×6 board cut to length of sign width
• 1×3 wood boards cut to length to frame around 1×6
• Minwax Dark Walnut
• rubber gloves
• rags or an old sock for staining
• white paint
• sander
• Cricut Explore Air™ 2 machine
• Cricut Cutting Mats, Standard Grip, 12×12-Inch, 2-Pack
• Adhesive Foil Stainless Sampler
• Cricut Vinyl Transfer Tape

Building the wooden sign:

The first thing I did was cut the 1×6 board to length. I chose to cut mine at 20″ long. I then cut two pieces from the 1×3 boards also 20″ long. These will frame the top and bottom of the sign. I the clamped those pieces together as they would be assembled and measured the length of the sides in order to know how long to cut the frame sides. Boards are not always exact measurements, so this is the best way to be sure you have the right length.

Once you have the frame pieces cut, go ahead and stain ALL the wood pieces with your stain. You don’t have to stain the main piece, but I like to because you can see the dark color underneath the white paint when you distress. I love the effect.

Once the stain has dried (probably minimum of 8 hours) paint the main board white. After that has dried for a few more hours, then go ahead and distress with your sander. I have an orbital sander and just run it along the outer perimeter of the main board, not worry about making it even.

Now that the main board is ready, glue and clamp the long top and bottom pieces of the frame to the main board. Once that glue has set, do the same with the short sides.

You now have a beautiful framed board ready to be made into a gorgeous sign!

Designing:

To create the design for this sign, I went into Cricut Design Space™ and typed in the wording. Clicking edit gives the option to change fonts, and I always go through many of them to get the perfect look for what I want. Since this sign was meant to be relaxing, I used a nice simple font and all lowercase letters. The Design Space has many options for fonts through Cricut, but it also pulls in fonts from your computer which is awesome. I ended up using a Cricut font called Cake Basics for this.

Once your design is ready, choose your vinyl, place it on your mat, and get ready to cut. Since I used the adhesive foil, I turned the knob to the “other” setting and on my computer I selected “adhesive foil”. By doing this, it ensures that the cutting will be perfect for the material you are using.

Follow the instructions, load your mat, and push that little Cricut button to get the cutting started!

Applying Adhesive Foil:

Once your design is cut, you’ll unload the mat and trim the words down to make it more manageable.

Next you’ll need to weed your design by removing all of the negative space foil and leaving the letters. I found this really easy with the adhesive foil.

You’ll need some transfer tape to transfer the design to the wood without getting the letters all messed up and uneven. I actually cut the transfer tape to size before I try to place it on the letters, it just makes it easier. I also start by peeling the backing paper back just a little, placing the transfer tape down on the design, and slowly pressing the transfer tape down while peeling the backing off at the same time.

Alright, so line up your words perfectly (I always use a ruler to measure and double check that everything is lined up), then apply the vinyl to the sign. Again, the method I use is to tape down one side to the board. I then flip it over, slowly start removing some of the backing paper, flip it back over and press the vinyl down onto the board slowly and evenly, while simultaneously pulling the backing paper off. After it’s applied to the board, go ahead and peel off the transfer tape as your final step.

FINISHED!

And there you have it! A gorgeous, golden, metallic, foil Just Breathe wooden sign. Admire your work, then find a great place to hang it to remind you that stressing doesn’t help and sometimes you need to JUST BREATHE!

I hope you love this project! I absolutely loved making it with my Cricut Explore Air 2 machine and would definitely recommend this machine to anyone who wants the ability to cut their own vinyl projects. Did you know it cuts more than just vinyl though? It also cuts fabrics, cardstock, vellum, leather, and so much more. It also writes and scores! The options truly are endless with this machine.

A few projects I still have on my to-do list are a leather cuff bracelet with geometric cut design, some custom logo t-shirts, and some awesome wall decals for my daughter’s bedroom! All of which I will be sure to share with you guys as I finish them.

Any questions? Please ask!
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If you loved this project, please pin this image on Pinterest!

Thanks again for reading, my friends! I hope you enjoyed this project. Let me know if you make one too!

~~Sheri~~

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Cricut. The opinions and text are all mine.