DIY Rustic Wood Craft Stick Coasters

It’s Silhouette Saturday time again! I know not all of you have a Silhouette, but keep in mind that even if you don’t have a craft cutting machine, you can still do so many of these projects with some craft store stencils. And Christmas is coming and a Silhouette CAMEO would be a great idea to give Santa this year (that’s how I got mine 3 years ago…my family all chipped in!).

This week’s project makes a great little handmade gift idea and it’s even something the kids can help make.

What You’ll Need to Make Your Own:

• Silhouette CAMEO (or Portrait)
• Wood Craft Sticks
• Craft Glue (I used Aileene’s Tacky Glue)
• Stencil Material (what I used) or Vinyl
• Paint (I used white acrylic, metallic vintage gold and a gold shimmer paint)
• Spar Urethane
• Paint Brushes
• Rubber Gloves (option but recommend for Spar Urethane)
• Designs used: Leaf Garland Frame and Deer Head from Mounted Deer

The reason I love the Stencil Material for projects like this is (1) it’s reusable which is super handy when you’re using the same stencil over again and (2) it’s thicker which makes more intricate designs like the leaf garland frame so much easier to work with. The “W” in the leaf garland frame is a stencil I made months ago for these DIY Monogram Napkins as one of my Silhouette Design Team posts actually!

I started by making four coasters. I made them square which took 11 craft sticks. I glued 3 more sticks crosswise on the bottom as shown. Then I carefully flipped them over and set heavy book on top while they dried.

Next, I white washed them by mixing a 50/50 mix of white paint and water. I did two coats of the white wash. After they dried, I cut my stencils with my Silhouette CAMEO. I did one coat of the metallic vintage gold and one coat of the glitter. I carefully removed the stencil while the paint was still wet. Wash and pat dry the stencil material so you can re-use it for the remaining coasters.

When they were all dry, I painted one coat of Minwax Spar Urethane to protect them. This is better for sealing them than polyurethane, since polyurethane tends to yellow after time, especially on white projects.

Easy, inexpensive, useful, and literally endless possibilities for colors and designs!

If you’re a blogger with a Silhouette and are interested in guest posting on a future Silhouette Saturday, please email me with your blog URL and a few post ideas! 

Linking up on Tatertots & Jello Link Party Palooza

Happy crafting!

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