DIY: Chevron Painted Garden Markers

Happy Friday, everyone! In case you’re feeling crafty this weekend, how about a simple DIY? Plant Propaganda is all about better gardening through design, so when I saw these gorgeous garden markers on the front page of Etsy, I knew I’d be asking their creator, Kelly Fischer, to put together a tutorial for me. And guess what? She did!

Kelly is the owner and creative force behind Sesame + Sparrow, a shop that specializes in refurbishing and repurposing vintage finds. She stumbled upon the original wooden garden markers at a thrift store, so there’s no doubt that she’s good at what she does. With all that being said, I couldn’t be more excited to share this super simple how-to, written and photographed by Kelly herself.

Supplies:

• Wooden garden stakes, as many as you need for the garden
• Painters/masking tap
• Multi-surface paint, at least two contrasting colors
• Stencil
• Flat paintbrush
• Stencil brush
• Briwax (optional)
• Steel wool (optional)

1. Start with sturdy, wooden garden stakes. (I used recycled redwood stakes.)

2. Using blue painters tape or standard masking tape (found at your local hardware/craft store), measure how large you want the painted section to be, and tape all the way around each stake.

3. Using a multi-surface paint, safe for outdoors, paint two coats with a flat paint brush on the taped-off section. I used Martha Stewart Crafts Multi-Surface Satin Acrylic Paint in “Wet Cement”. Let dry 20 minutes between the first and second coat, and let dry a full hour on the second coat (you may not need quite that long).

4. Remove the tape. Notice the clean line.

5. Lightly sand with steel wool to reduce any noticeable brush lines.

6. Use your favorite stencil (I made mine using a stencil sheet and exacto knife found at my local craft store). Make sure the stencil covers the stakes completely, so no extra paint gets on the stake where it shouldn’t. Lightly dab the stencil brush in the contrasting paint color. I used Martha Stewart Crafts Multi-Surface Satin Acrylic Paint in “Surf”, “Arrowhead” and “Habañero”. All you need is one coat on this step. Let dry one hour. Lightly sand with steel wool.

7. Rub each stake (only where the paint is) with Briwax. The Briwax adds an additional waterproof element to the stakes. Lightly sand with steel wool. Well done! You’re finished.

I think these stakes are beautiful and total genius! Use whatever color Sharpie you like to label your plants. You could even use chalk paint and make them reusable! As an extra bonus, I will be giving away this exact set of garden markers in my next post, so be sure to check back!

See more of Kelly’s fabulous refurbished goods at her Etsy shop, Sesame + Sparrow, and be sure to follow her on Facebook, too!

Tutorial instructions and photographs © Kelly Fischer.