Patriotic Banner

 

I decided to make this banner for the front of the house for the 4th of July.  I started out with regular old picket fence boards.  You will need two of them and they run $1.39 apiece at Lowes.

 

 

First you want to make a rectangle.  Mine was 16" (four posts across) by about 19".  First cut the two posts in two and line them up until you have four across.  Then you need a smaller board to add across the back to hold it all together.  I used screws to attach the brace.

 

 

On newspaper, draw your shape and transfer the shape to your square.  Then cut out with a jig saw.  This is what your front will look like.

 

 

Divide your piece into three sections.  Paint the top a medium blue, the middle white and the bottom a dark red.

 

These will be very splotchy colors because of the texture of the fence posts.  It is very rough.  I highly recommend using a inexpensive brush to do this painting because it literally eats up your brush.

 

Let dry thoroughly. (In our 90 degree Oklahoma weather today, it didn't take long.)

 

 

 

Now, switch to a navy blue and a burgundy color.  Just make sure there is a contrast between this coat and your base color.

 

Take a piece of cardboard and drag the darker color onto each section.  Not solid, just here and there.

 

This is definitely a layer upon layer project.

 

I learned this method from Deb at http://lakegirlpaints.blogspot.com

 

Go and visit her blog for really good directions.

 

 

You are going to have very splotchy painting again by dragging this darker color over the blue and the red.  Do not put anything on the white just yet.

 

At this point, you are going to mix a brown acrylic paint with a lot of water.  I used Asphaltum.  Brush it on and immediately rub it off.  Be sure and use a cloth rag because the board is so rough it'll tear up a paper towel.  Don't panic if you get it too dark anywhere.

 

 

At this point, you are going back with your original colors and dragging on more of them until you get just the look you want.  I wanted this to look old and aged.

 

Drill two holes in the top at an angle and insert two American flags into the holes.

 

I took the Asphaltum paint and squirted it into a plastic cup of water and put the flags down in it and left them for the afternoon.  I wanted them to look old also.

 

So, there you have a great shield/banner to proudly display for the month of July!

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy