Aren’t these the most darling lil crafts ever? These are what I am giving out as Christmas gifts this year…hmmm…hopefully my friends and family don’t read this before they get them!
I love these things, because they look really nice and rustic, but they’re actually not all that hard to put together! They make for a perfect Christmas decoration, and the lights in them give such a warm and cozy ambience to any room they may be displayed in! The wood is unfinished, and I put a light coat of gray paint on them to make them look nice and rustic. They are just perfect for a nice looking Christmas decoration!
You can hang this craft on the wall, or you can display it on a shelf or table. Regardless of how you display it, believe me, you will LOVE the way it looks!
Let’s get to the instructions on how to make this!
LIGHTED WOOD CHRISTMAS CRAFT
Materials:
- Unfinished block of wood (like a side of a crate) – I got mine at Amazon here. It’s perfect, because it has the hardware for hanging it on the wall already installed.
- pencil
- Stencil of the design you would like to paint on
- tape
- measuring tape
- drill (size of the drill bit is up to you – bigger = more light)
- dark grey paint
- white paint
- paint sponge
- paint brush
- toothpicks
- Craft glue (I use Crafter’s Pick – it’s the best)
- LED wire lights (you can get these here)
- cuttable cork board
- scissors
- Large thumbtacks (4)
Directions:
1.) Use your tape measure to place your stencil in the middle of the wood accurately. Tape in place, and do a light sketch of the stencil onto the wood with your pencil.
2.) Remove the stencil and draw in dots around your stenciled design where you want to have your light holes. Use a drill to drill holes over those dots.
3.) Mix your gray paint with a bit of water, and use your sponge paintbrush to paint your board gray. Let dry completely.
4.) Once the paint is dry, place your stencil back on the board in the same position you had it on there before. Tape into place, and use your paintbrush and your white paint to paint the stencil onto the wood. Carefully remove the stencil. Don’t worry if it’s a little sloppy – we will clean it up in the next step.
5.) Use a toothpick and both paints to clean up the stencil design on the wood.
6.) Flip the piece of wood over. On the back, glue your battery pack of your LED lights along the bottom of the wood. Arrange your LED lights in a pattern so that the lights line up with the holes you drilled. Tape into place, then glue into place by placing drops of glue along the wires (not on the lights). Allow the glue to dry completely, and then you can remove the tape.
7.) After the glue is completely dry, use your tape measure to measure a piece of cork board that you can lay over the back to cover up the wires and lights. Cut out the piece of cork board using your scissors, and then lay it over the wires, but keeping the battery pack outside of the cork board.
8.) Use four thumbtacks to secure the cork board into place, taking care not to poke a thumbtack into the wires.
You’re all set! The on/off switch for the lights is on the battery pack. Display your finished product proudly!
Enjoy!
Loving and Laughing 