How to make a rustic monogram with surprising ingredient

Hi friends! Today, I am so excited to share with you how to make a rustic monogram using a surprising ingredient. This farmhouse style rustic frame DIY was such a creative and budget-friendly craft to make. Monogram décor seems to always be popular, not to mention this beautiful monogram DIY project is able to be kept out throughout the whole year. Feel free to get creative with this cute monogram DIY décor!

Materials needed:

7 jumbo Popsicle sticks
3 popsicle sticks for the back to hold the frame together
8 half beads ( You can snag them HERE)
Wood letter
Dark grey acrylic paint (I’m using graphite grey )
metallic silver acrylic paint
Brown acrylic paint
baking soda (surprised? This will thicken your paint and make it look like real rust!)
Hot glue gun and glue sticks

How to:

Step 1. Using 5 jumbo popsicle sticks (you will need more than 5 jumbo sticks for the entire project, but this step only uses 5), I purchased mine from Walmart, cut off the ends of each stick, getting rid of the rounded ends so the stick is completely straight. Next, lay the sticks down flat so that are pressed up against each other as we are going to create our frame.

Step 2. Using a smaller sized popsicle stick, hot glue 3 sticks across the back of your frame made out of the jumbo popsicle sticks to secure and hold everything into place. Allow to dry, turn frame over to the front.

Step 3. White chalk paint the front of our popsicle stick frame. Dry completely. Then flip over and white chalk paint the back of your popsicle stick frame. Allow to dry completely.

Step 4. Take 2 jumbo popsicle sticks, cut off the rounded ends, and lay one at each end of your popsicle stick frame (one going across the top of your frame, and one going across the bottom of your frame, almost like a border). Then, take some wooden half circles and place them evenly spaced across the popsicle stick going across the top of your frame, and then place some evenly spaced going across the bottom popsicle stick of your frame. Once you have them even spaced and lined up, then use hot glue to secure them into place onto the two jumbo popsicle sticks. Allow to dry.

Step 5. Using a darker grey colored paint, paint both of the popsicle sticks that have the half wooden circles going across them. Allow to dry. Once dry, use a metallic silver color of paint and sparingly paint over the same popsicle sticks. You just want to add a touch of this silver paint here and there, do not paint completely over top of the darker grey. This touch of metallic silver will make the project look more rustic/farmhouse style. Allow to dry.

Step 6. Mix some brown paint and a little bit of baking soda together and then gently dab this mixture, using a paint brush, over top of the two popsicle sticks with the half wooden circles. This will create a beautiful rust color over top of the metallic silver and darker grey. Allow to dry.

Step 7. Take your popsicle stick frame that is chalk painted white, and use some sand paper or a sanding block, and sand over the front of the frame. Then, use the same brown paint and baking soda mixture and paint sparingly over some of the frame just to make it look like rustic wood. Allow to dry.

Step 8. Hot glue the two popsicle sticks with the wooden half circles to the front of the frame. One will go/lay across the top of your frame, and one will go/lay across the bottom of your frame. Allow to dry.

Step 9. Using whatever monogram letter of your choice, paint it the same darker grey, allow to dry. Then, gently and sparingly, paint on some of the same metallic silver you used for the half wooden circles. Allow to dry. Next, use the same brown paint and baking soda mixture and paint over the letter to make it look rusty/metal-like. Allow to dry.

Step 10. Hot glue your monogram letter onto the center of your frame. Allow to dry and enjoy!