Paper Scroll DIY

Hey Friends Hey!  I’m Shea from The Fogue Abode, I blog and Instastory all things Farmhouse DIY.  I’m so excited to be guest posting today on Hazel + Gold Designs.  As an avid DIYer, I’m always trying to calculate in my head how I can recreate a piece of decor I’ve found.  If you ask me, DIY was born with the invention of the farmhouse.  Back in the day, people had to make due with what they had, and use some creativity for non-essential items like home decor.  I believe that’s why my frugal heart is drawn to this popular design style.  So in the spirit of ingenuity, I wanted to share with my new friends a fun and easy Paper Scroll DIY.  This will give you a lovely piece of wall decor that’s sure to be a show stopper.

Paper Scroll DIY

If you follow any home decor Instagrammers, then you’ve seen these amazing hand-lettered paper scrolls.  They’ve become a popular staple above mantles and large dressers or buffets.  As someone who has dabbled in hand-lettering mastered the art of faux hand-lettering, I thought this would be a fun and easy project for a blank wall I’ve been struggled to fill.  I’ll take you along on this super simple Paper Scroll DIY and let you all in on my faux calligraphy secret.  Ready to get started!?

Besides a large workspace, the supplies list is fairly short.  I already had everything on hand.  If you aren’t a craft paper hoarder like myself, these items can easily be found at a local supermarket or craft store.

Supplies Needed for your Paper Scroll

Craft Paper
Pencil
Straight Edge/Ruler
Measuring Tape
Paint or Paint Pen
Empty Wrapping Paper Rolls x 2
Twine

1 Inspiration

You can go about this project one of two ways.  If you know which quote you will be using and feel comfortable with your hand-lettering, then just jot down your layout on a sheet of paper.  If you aren’t comfortable with your lettering, that’s a-ok!  This tutorial is totally for you.  I usually find a great hand-lettered font and use a Word document to type up my sign layout.  If you find some inspiration online that’s ok too.  I like to have a sketch to help with spacing and letter placements when you get down to the real deal.

OK!  So we have an idea of what our sign will look like.

2 Math

Bet you didn’t think I was gonna say that, did ya!?  Next, we need to map out our words on our craft paper.  We want a nice centered sign with even spacing, right.  Start by measuring out the length of your sign…well first you want to unroll a ton of craft paper.  Leave extra paper on the ends to roll up later on… then we have the sign section that we will be working with.  Take the length of your workspace and divide that number by the number of rows you have.  That is how tall your rows need to be.  I am using a nice wide roll of craft paper and had a good and tall spot to hang it, so my lines were spaced 6″ apart.

Next, take your straight edge, I used an L to help make sure my lines were totally straight to the paper’s edge, and faintly draw out your lines with a pencil.  I love craft paper because it’s very forgiving with an eraser.  You can faintly see the lines I drew, I used photoshop to darken them up a bit so that you could see them better.

3 Faux-Letters

Now that you have your straight lines…and you’re not going to have to tilt your head along the angles to read it when we are finished…it’s time to actually draw out your words.  This is where your inspiration comes in handy.  I found this hand-lettered alphabet that I am using to draw my letters.  I take each letter at a time, unlike traditional cursive, and make sure to give plenty of space between the letter.  Don’t worry about everything connecting, we will go back and clean that up later.  

You should now have your entire quote drawn out.  The key to faux hand lettering is having a thick downstroke and a thin upstroke. The next step is to go back through your lettering and everywhere there is a downstroke draw in a second line.  We will go back through and color this in to create a thick downstroke.  Once you’ve added your downstrokes, then it’s time to make sure your letters are connecting.

Now you are ready to paint.  If you’re creating a large sign, like I am, it’s good to give those thin strokes more than one skinny layer.  You don’t want your thick strokes to out weigh your thin strokes so to speak.  With this step, I used black craft paint and a calligraphy brush.  But it’s just as easy, and preferred if you’re a faux hand-lettering newbie, to use a paint pen.

4 Glue

You have your sign painted, now it’s time for the finishing touches. Whoo Hoo! I used empty wrapping paper rolls to give the scroll some stability.  This is especially important when we go to hang the sign.  Just roll it in, towards your lettering, to the desired spot and hot glue it down.  Make sure to roll both top and bottom to give it a scroll appearance.

5 Hang

To hang your paper scroll, thread a piece of twine through your top roll and tie it off.  I’m telling you guys, this is an easy peasy project and provides some major farmhouse star power to your room.

This piece ended up being the perfect accent to a bare wall.  I hung it over this small hutch we have which contains all of our games and blankets.  The quote I chose to use were the lyrics from Home by Phillip Phillips.  I’ve always loved this song.  ?  I hope you enjoyed this fun Paper Scroll DIY!  If you are looking to learn more about creating your own farmhouse home, make sure to visit my blog.