Let It Snow Cutting Board

Let it snow!

Turn an old thrift store cutting board into a festive, Christmas wooden sign with a few vinyl letters and a stencil.


Ok, so it's no secret that I am not a fan of snow. But I should probably be clear, because that's not actually 100% true.

You see, the thing is, I really like some snow.

Like December snow.

Snow on tree decorating day is good. A little dusting during an evening shopping trip in the village. Also good.

Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve snow? Good, good and good.

January through May snow? Bad. Very bad.

That's the snow I hate.

But like I said, any snow related the Christmas is lovely. And who can resist a sweet snowman? Certainly not this girl.

So it was a natural pick to go with Let It Snow when I was trying to come up with something to put the other side of my Farmhouse Animal Cutting Board.


When I grabbed this fun little paddle shape at the thrift store, I ignored this side, since it had words on it. However, staring at it the other day, surrounded by Santas and trees, I decided it needed a little festive flair.

So I flipped over and started painting it a creamy off-white.


Once it was covered, it was too new and bright for my slightly rustic, cottage kitchen.

A quick coat of brown antiquing gel fixed that in a flash.

I used a tiny bit of it, on a paper towel, and rubbed it over the paint.

I was careful not to go over the engraving too much though, I certainly didn't want them to be noticeable and the gel falls into all the crevices and cracks.


Next, it was time for lettering. I don't have one of those fancy cutting machines. I usually rely on stencils, hand lettering (neither of which I love - or am very good at) or stickers.

Stickers are my favorite.

I had picked up two sets of black vinyl poster board letters for a buck each, which were perfect for this job.


Here's a tip.

When working with these letters, don't push them down all the way when applying them.

Place the top down first and leave the bottom off the wood until all letters are in place.


This way if you need to adjust something you can, without having to rip them off the board.

Another tip?

I measure everything out and use a ruler and a pencil to assure things are straight and even.

There's nothing worse than a crooked bunch of letters. Rough and weathered is one thing...askew is another. No.


Once the letters were in place, I took a good long look at my sign and realized I didn't love it.

The black was too severe and crisp. I had to find a way to soften them up and paint was the answer.


Isn't it always?

I used the same creamy white that I used to paint the sign, put a little on a foam brush and went right over the letters.


When I was done, they had a chalkboard look to them. Neat.

Of course, now the sign needed something else, but I wasn't sure what, so I dug into my craft closet and came up with these brand new snowflake stencils.


Look at me, so prepared. I wish...I didn't even know they were in there. I just got really lucky!

Ok, but now what? The sign was already very light. Basically white. So what color was I going to make the snowflakes?

Clearly red was not an option.

Once again, I turned to my brilliant daughter who suggested that I highlight the outline of the snowflake. Hmmm. That could work. So that's what I did.

Sort of.

I stenciled the snowflakes on in a clear, bright white.

I used blue painter's tape to hold the stencil in place without damaging the existing paint and then a small foam pouncer.


When the snowflakes were dry, I outlined them with a very sharp pencil.

The gray of the pencil graphite matched the look of the chalkboard-ish letters. Perfect. Even though my outlining wasn't.


They popped just enough, without being too much for my kitchen.


And I think Santa really liked being surrounded by a little snow.

Believe it or not, I don't mind it either.

For now.

Are you a Christmastime snow lover? OH...before you go, one last tip. If you want your design to be permanent, coat it with decoupage gel. I didn't...yet. 

I need to live with it a bit before I commit. I really love this board's shape, so I may remove my stickers come spring and transform it yet again.

Big surprise!