• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Start Here
  • Shop Favorites
  • About
    • Welcome To My Repurposed Life Home of Repurposed Furniture
    • More About Gail
    • Disclosure
    • Privacy Information
  • Gallery
    • Repurposed Furniture
  • Repurposed Items
    • Building Supplies
    • Miscellaneous Household Items
    • Picture Frame/Chalk Board
  • DIY
    • Home Reno
    • outdoor living
    • Painting
    • Shop Talk
    • Tips for Around the House
    • Build It
      • Furniture
      • Home Decor
      • Storage
    • Crafts
      • Dollar Store
      • Easy
      • Holidays Seasonal
  • Furniture
    • Chair
    • Desk
    • Dresser/Chest
    • Headboard | Bed Parts | Cribs
    • Kids Furniture
    • Table
    • Kids Furniture
My Repurposed Life® Rescue Re-imagine Repeat
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • About
  • Start Here
  • Project Index
  • Furniture
  • Subscribe
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Crafts » Subway art for Granny

    Subway art for Granny

    Published by Gail | Published January 10, 2011 | Updated November 18, 2022
    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Pin
    Share
    Tweet
    This easy gift idea is for anyone who wants to do a truly handmade gift for someone special. No special tools needed. #MyRepurposedLife #easy #subwayart via @repurposedlife

    Easy Subway Art for that someone special!

    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.

    Shop My Amazon Storefront to See my Favorite Tools and Products

    Materials for DIY Subway Art

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

    When 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. Then 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

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

    Lay out of subway art stencils

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

    Using tracing paper as a stencil

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

    I decided that white transfer paper would work best on the red paint.

    Stenciling with a Paint Pen

    I 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.

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

    I used lots of different fonts to make it fun!

    Since 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.

    I 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.

    Lucky was my word!


    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.
    Don't you agree that 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.

    Pin
    Share
    Tweet

    Related Content:

    • Avengers Subway Art
      Avengers Subway Art
    • Family rules sign
      Family rules sign
    • Rustic Sign | Bless The Food Before Us
      Rustic Sign | Bless The Food Before Us
    • Old Beds | New Signs
      Old Beds | New Signs
    • Pet Projects - DIY ideas for your furbabies
      Pet Projects - DIY ideas for your furbabies
    • Wooden Spindle Sign For Christmas
      Wooden Spindle Sign For Christmas

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      See comments Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    1. Sue

      January 30, 2023 at 2:36 am

      You have just given me the most amazing idea for a memorial quilt I want to make from my deceased husband's check and striped shirts. I didn't know what to use the make it personal so will now ask the family for their descriptions and I will fabric paint them to some blank patches. Thank you again
      Sue

      Reply
      • Gail Wilson

        January 30, 2023 at 6:38 pm

        ohh, Sue! What a wonderful idea. I am so so happy to inspire you to use my idea as your own!!!

        wishing you luck, I am sure the quilt will be so special for your family.

        gail

    2. 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

    3. 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

    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. 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
    6. Sylvie Créative

      January 16, 2011 at 11:15 am

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

      Reply
    7. Holly

      January 14, 2011 at 5:49 am

      I adore this...my favorite Gran-gel

      Reply
    8. 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
    9. 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
    10. ohiofarmgirl

      January 11, 2011 at 1:49 am

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

      Reply
    11. 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
    12. 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
    13. 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
    14. Katie

      January 10, 2011 at 3:25 pm

      So sweet!!

      Reply
    15. 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
    16. 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

    Primary Sidebar

    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!

    More about me →

    Join Our Mailing List

    ​

      Click the topics you're interested in below:

      Subscribing above means you agree to our Privacy Policy​

      Footer

      ↑ back to top

      SEEN ON

      Might I Suggest

      • Start Here
      • Furniture Makeovers

      Newsletter

      • Sign Up! for emails and updates

      About

      • Gail's Favorites on Amazon
      • About

      As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

      Copyright © 2023 My Repurposed Life · Privacy Policy · Disclosure