Make a Creative Garden Sign with Rustic Wood

Grab an old board—the more rustic, the better—and make yourself a thrifty, one-of-a-kind sign for your garden.

For more, also see favorite garden signs with a dash of humor.

Supplies for creating a rustic garden sign.

Make a Rustic Garden Art Sign

Rustic garden art sign with cardinal design.

This DIY garden sign was made entirely from items found around the house. I’ve listed complete instructions below.

I had nick-named our garden The Cardinal Cafe after watching masses of birds appear each time I put out fresh food, so I thought it was time to put a sign up and make it official!

The secret ingredient for the lettering is a roll of pre-twisted rush (used for making old-style rush seats). I cut it to form the letters and attached it with upholstery tacks.

You could also use any jute rope or twine that is pliable enough to form letters.

Materials

Wood board (I used an old piece of pine barn board)
Jute rope or pre-twisted rush
(50) Upholstery tacks (black upholstery tacks on Amazon) – you may need more or less depending on which words you choose
Cardinal decoration
Twigs for the bird nest
(8) Cup hooks
Garden décor – little watering can, doll-size garden bench, bird house, snowflakes, suet feeder. You may want eye hooks for hanging them on the cup hooks.
(2) 1/2 inch wood screws (attached to back of sign for hanging) and picture wire
(3) 1 inch wood screws (for hanging on fence)
(4) nails (for holding the bird nest twigs in place)

Love crafting with natural materials?
You might enjoy Naturally Crafty—see it here.

Tools

Scissors (for cutting rush)
Hammer
Screwdriver
Pencil, measuring tape
Level

Steps

After gathering your materials, the hardest part is deciding what you want the sign to say!

1Plan Your Design

Pencil your saying on the wood. I used uppercase letters so there were minimal curves.

Leave room for any decorations you want to attach (like the cardinal).

If you make a mistake, just erase the pencil and start over.

Related: DIY garden art hose guards

2Cut Material for Lettering

Cut out the rush using your penciled letters as a measuring template.

3Attach Lettering

Attach the rush using upholstery tacks.

4Add Decorations

Attach the decorations. I used an upholstery tack to attach the cardinal. And tacks and nails to form a little twig nest.

5Add Hangers

There’s lots of ways to hang the sign. I used picture wire and two screws on the back.

TIP: I used 3 screws (each 6″ apart) on the fence to keep the sign from shifting around. Use a level to mark where you want them.

6Add Cup Hooks

Attach cup hooks to the bottom of the sign. I put a bunch so I can hang a variety of garden trinkets throughout the seasons.

7Add Trinkets

Add garden trinkets. Right now I have a little watering can, a doll-size twig bench, a bird house, snowflakes, and a fresh batch of “unsuet suet”.

I make this bird treat from peanut butter, shelled peanuts, and birdseed (see how to make it here – it’s fast and easy and the birds LOVE it). Truthfully, it’s the peanut butter that attracts the birds from miles around. It’s amazing how that scent travels!

I’ll be changing my sign decorations as the seasons go. I’m thinking about adding another little sign from the cup hooks saying “All you can tweet”. We’ll see.