Gift Signs

[Site Man]

OLD FORUM POSTS

Posted by Mike Jackson on March 16, 2002

Here are a few signs we did for Christmas friends last year as gifts. (fishing buddies)

We make the backgrounds and frames out of scraps I pick up during the year, or leftovers from signs. I usually make the frames and do the layout and Darla does the lettering with acrylics over a latex background. We don't have a lot of expense in them!

Darla took Dennis Gerathy's class at Boise a couple of years ago and had a blast doing those retro signs. He's a great craftsman, filled with ideas, and full of spirit.

Mike Jackson

Billy Bob

Are they selling well? Where do you sell 'em and for how much?

Carol

Gifts.
Didn't he say gifts?
Mike, are you charging for gifts now? Is that why I haven't got anything lately?

Mike Jackson

These were Christmas gifts, but we do sell some. When we do sell, them we get the customer out of the design loop...they pick one of the frames and panels we have made up, give us the words and we do all the rest the way we want. Most of them average around $125. Since they are "antiqued", we only give them one coat of background paint, and one coat on the lettering. She whacks them with a ball peen hammer, chain, and grinds dirt into them and sands some of the top finish off. We can usually do them fairly quick. Since we sell the most around Christmas, the money from them helps with the seasonal expenses. I know we could sell more if we tried...but then that would be work.

Mike

Mike Jackson

Just for reference, each of the three signs were around 12" x 18" (the vertical one is the same size but I made it larger in the photo to use the available space better). I set up a jig for some of the frames and made quite a few random sizes based on the free cdx plywood and scrap backgrounds. I pick up that stuff along the side of the road, next to dumpsters, and in scrap piles by the road when I am driving around town. The cost is next to nothing one these things, so it is just our labor. I usually make the designs on the computer to fit the panel size and she makes a pounce pattern. Over the years, I have assembled a pretty good morgue of outdoors artwork and it becomes only a matter of making all the parts work.

Mike