Golden Acorn Craft Sign

Last week my mom brought me a bag of acorns that she’d collected from her yard.  They were beautiful and I knew I needed to use them in a project.  I cleaned them up and dried them in my oven.  

And then I glammed them up and created this golden acorn craft sign, which is perfect for my fall home decor!

That little squirrel in the word “GATHER” totally makes me smile.  

To me, the word “GATHER” is synonymous with fall. It’s a time of harvest, where crops are collected, and it’s a time of family, where people come together. This sign, with its cheeky squirrel and his prized acorns, reminds me of that.  

Supplies Used for this Acorn Craft

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• Acorns
• Gold Rub ‘N Buff
• Plain wood plaque
• Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Primitive and Vintage
• Foam brushes
• Americana Decor Creme Wax in Clear and Dark Brown
• Letter stencils (or Silhouette machine and vinyl)
• Squirrel silhouette
• Leather cording

How to Make This Acorn Sign

First, if you haven’t already preserved the acorns, wash them off and bake them at 220 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 2 hours. This will prevent the acorns from getting moldy.

Once cool, apply a light coat of Rub ‘N Buff to the bottom portion of each acorn.  If the caps have fallen off, reattach them with hot glue.  

Hot glue the acorns to leather cording that has been cut to a length slightly longer than the wooden plaque you’ll be attaching it to.

Paint the wooden plaque. I used two coats of Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Primitive.

Once dry, affix a vinyl stencil made on an electronic cutting machine that reads “GATHER” (with a squirrel silhouette serving as the “A” in “GATHER”).

Alternatively, affix letter stickers to the plaque. If you want the “A” to be a squirrel and you don’t have a cutting machine, download an image of a squirrel silhouette and trace that onto the plaque.

Paint over the vinyl stencil or the stickers. If you’re using stickers and have drawn in the squirrel silhouette, be careful and paint around the squirrel.

Remove the stencil and/or stickers to reveal the contrasting paint beneath.  Seal the paint with creme wax, and add some dark wax for a vintage look.

Staple the leather cording with attached acorns to the back of the wooden plaque.

Voila! Your acorn craft project is complete.

Isn’t this a great way to use some acorns from the yard?