With the last name of Johnson, you might not be surprised at our family’s Swedish heritage. After coming across this slightly-faded Swedish flag, I decided to make a special holiday gift for each of my two sons by combining the flag design with a hundred-year-old Swedish needlepoint textile bearing the phrase, “My Home – My Very Own Little Corner.”
I started with an inexpensive piece of birch plywood, then picked two Minwax® Water-Based Wood Stains to replicate the Swedish flag colors. I both taped off and scored shallow lines with the tip of my hobby knife to prevent the stains from bleeding onto each other.
I often use a Minwax® stain and a sea sponge to stencil letters to my projects, but this time I experimented with rub-on letters. Before I did, I applied three coats of Minwax® Polycrylic® Protective Finish to seal the stain, protect the wood, and give the rub-on letters a smooth surface to adhere.
As a finishing touch, I added a piece of oak trim to frame each plywood flag. Before nailing it on, I stained and finished the trim pieces with a single Minwax® “Chestnut” Wood Finishing Cloth. It was also water-based, so the combination stain-and-finish dried in a matter of minutes, enabling me to complete this project with plenty of time to spare.
Until next time,
Make it a “Hand-Made Holiday!”
Bruce
