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    Crafts » Subway art for Granny

    Subway art for Granny

    Published by Gail | Published January 10, 2011 | Updated June 28, 2021
    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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    Easy Subway Art for that someone special!

     

    DIY-easy-subway-art

    Granny is really my Aunt. She is my mom’s sister. My mom passed away when my daughter Jamie was just nine years old. That is a very young age to no longer have any grandmas. During all the family gatherings, all the other kids would call Aunt Dot “Granny”. Jamie was the only child that called her Aunt Dot. My Aunt Dot and Uncle Roscoe basically adopted Jamie into their family. They even presented her with a certificate signed by all of the family members.
    To personalize this sign, I asked each of those family members to give me a word that they felt described this wonderful woman, their mom, mother-in-law, granny and aunt.

    *this post contains affiliate links, read more here*

    Materials for DIY Subway Art

    • Scrap sheet of Luan
    • Scrap 1,x 4
    • Gorilla Glue 
    • Gorilla Tape
    • Paint
    • sewing transfer paper
    • Paint Pen

    gorilla glueWhen I  make  these type of signs, I use scraps of thin Luan cut to size. I rip 1x4’s into widths of 1 ½ inches wide. I make a sort of “frame” of the 1x pieces on the back of the Luan, using Gorilla Glue to secure the 1x’s.

    Using Gorilla Tape as a clamp

    making subway artI use Gorilla Tape to hold the 1x’s in place until the Gorilla Glue sets up.

    Lay out of subway art stencils

    diy subway art

    I tested the layout to see how things were coming together.

    Using tracing paper as a stencil

    100_9096I gathered some old sewing transfer paper I had in my Nana’s sewing kit. You can find some sewing tracing paper on Amazon

     

    tracing words subway artI decided that white transfer paper would work best on the red paint.

    Stenciling with a Paint Pen

    how to center subway artI carefully measured the words using another sewing tool, a Hem Guide. Laying the transfer paper under the printed word, I traced the word onto the board with a ballpoint pen.

    transfer paperThis is the result of the tracing, the white transfer paper shows up pretty well.

    transfer wording

    tracing paint penI used lots of different fonts to make it fun!

     

    paint pen for subway artSince I lack the patience to use a brush to paint in the letters, I used a Elmer's Paint Pen. I did get some new paint brushes for Christmas, so we’ll see if my painting improves.

     

    subway art for grannyI spaced the words at the beginning, not knowing exactly how many words I would have. This is the sign not quite finished. It took several days to get in contact with all the family.

    how to subway art

    Lucky was my word!

    Red Subway Art
    Most of the words are self explanatory, however there are a couple of them I will tell you about. Dumplin is the pet name my late Uncle Roscoe had for my Aunt. My cousin John, nicknames his loved ones. His word is right there in the middle, Grangel. Granny-Angel= Grangel.
    I think this is a wonderful gift, I think my Aunt Dot liked it when I gave it to her for Christmas.
    gail
    Pin It

    Have you seen my Family Rules Subway Art?
    See more stenciling projects here.
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    1. Linda

      September 27, 2017 at 10:55 am

      I am working on a project now and was trying to figure our how to get my letters transferred onto the wood. DUH! I already have the sewing tracing paper. You are genius!

      Reply
      • Gail Wilson

        September 27, 2017 at 8:13 pm

        Oh my Gosh! I'm soooo happy you found this project! I don't even know if people even use sewing tracing paper anymore.

        good luck with your sign, I'd love to see it. Maybe you could share it on Facebook on a Sunday Share Day and reference this post so I know it's you. 😉

        gail

    2. carol

      February 06, 2014 at 6:30 am

      I love it but it doesn't say how you got the letters and different fonts onto the tracing paper.

      Reply
      • gail@myrepurposedlife.net

        February 06, 2014 at 7:20 pm

        Carol,

        I printed the words from my computer. I laid the tracing paper down, and then the printed word on top of that. I traced the printed word, which transferred the letters onto be board via the tracing paper.

        I hope that makes sense.

        gail

    3. Colleen @ MuralMaker&More

      January 17, 2011 at 5:22 am

      What a sweet idea! And YAY! for hand painted! I don't own a Cricut or Silhouette so I always appreciate when someone handpaints words. Time-consuming, but I love the finished product.

      Would love for you to link it up to Passion for Paint next weekend.

      http://MuralMaker1.blogspot.com

      Reply
    4. Colleen @ MuralMaker&More

      January 17, 2011 at 5:22 am

      What a sweet idea! And YAY! for hand painted! I don't own a Cricut or Silhouette so I always appreciate when someone handpaints words. Time-consuming, but I love the finished product.

      Would love for you to link it up to Passion for Paint next weekend.

      http://MuralMaker1.blogspot.com

      Reply
    5. Sylvie Créative

      January 16, 2011 at 11:15 am

      I love it! I'm thinking about the magic words 😉

      Reply
    6. Holly

      January 14, 2011 at 5:49 am

      I adore this...my favorite Gran-gel

      Reply
    7. Liz

      January 14, 2011 at 3:52 am

      What a sweet sign! So thoughtful.
      I'd love for you to link up with my party: http://fastdaze.blogspot.com/2011/01/linky-fridaze-1.html

      Reply
    8. Lisa @ Fern Creek Cottage

      January 11, 2011 at 5:11 am

      That looks like ALOT of work!! But it looks really wonderful!! Such a sweet thoughtful gift!

      Reply
    9. ohiofarmgirl

      January 11, 2011 at 1:49 am

      Love, Love, Love....please make more!!! Dianntha

      Reply
    10. Midwest Cottage and Finds!

      January 11, 2011 at 12:44 am

      i LOVE this...saw it on diy while on vacation and thought how special that had to make Aunt Dot feel....once again--class act!!
      hugs,
      chris

      Reply
    11. Suzanne@Meridian Road

      January 10, 2011 at 6:46 pm

      You know, what's great about this is that it's all so totally custom made for her. That's something I'm sure she'll treasure for the rest of her life.

      Reply
    12. Mandy Coffey

      January 10, 2011 at 4:17 pm

      Let me tell you why I love this so much- there are so many projects (especially subway art) going around the blog world lately using fancy vinyl machines that sometimes the people without Cricuts and Silhouettes miss out on cool crafts like this! Thanks for the tutorial! I'm featuring it on my blog tomorrow, smallfineprint.blogspot.com

      Reply
    13. Katie

      January 10, 2011 at 3:25 pm

      So sweet!!

      Reply
    14. Theresa

      January 10, 2011 at 2:47 pm

      I love this, what a great way to honor someone that means so much to you!
      Thanks for the tutorial, I have seen lots of subway art and wondered exactly how to do it.
      Thansk for stopping by my blog and commenting as well! I'll be back to yours!

      Reply
    15. My Cottage Charm

      January 10, 2011 at 11:21 am

      A very sweet and thoughtful gift! 🙂 I'm sure your Aunt Dot loved it a lot. (oh that rhymed! lol)
      Love ya girlie
      Missy

      Reply

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    Hi, there! I’m Gail Wilson, the author and mastermind behind My Repurposed Life. I’m obsessed with finding potential in unexpected places and believe that with a little hard work and imagination, any old thing can be made useful again—myself included! I hope you’ll enjoy the journey and pick up a few tools along the way… literally!

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