This past summer, I was given the honor of preparing a very special surprise gift for my Auntie Margie during her wedding vow renewal ceremony! Auntie Margie is so very special to me! She has been battling stage four breast cancer and is the picture of the Lord’s strength and grace throughout this trial in her life. She is such an example to me! You could imagine my excitement when the church asked me to prepare a special gift using one of her favorite passages “I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth” Psalm 34:1

I used 8″ wide lightweight boards from the hardware store and mounted them on 1′x4′ horizontal boards. Using a wood stain that I had on hand, each board was stained, waxed, and accented with watered down blue & green paints to create subtle color and texture.

The lettering design was created in Adobe Illustrator, printed, traced, and hand painted with a fine brush. Warning: This takes a very long time! If I had the tools, I would create a stencil and speed the process up quite a bit. But it was totally worth it for this project and I’d do it again in a heartbeat!

I love the final result so much, that I totally want to make one for my own home! I keep checking craigslist for a vinyl cutter at a good price… the search continues.

It looks just fabulous on her mantle! And don’t you just love her Christmas decor?
Lots of love,
Mary