Family Birthday Calendar

 

Okay, this one is super easy. I came up with it in my crazy frazzled brain, so it'd have to be, right? It's a cute little project and spruces up our bare kitchen quite nicely. Although, if you have as much family as we do, it gets a little time consuming...

What you need:

1 wooden plaque (Mine is a 24" x 6" from Michael's)
Paint, 2 or 3 colors
Paint Pen (optional)
High heat glue gun/glue
1 1/2" wooden discs/coins
1 1/4" alligator clips
Letter stencils, 1 or 2 fonts
12 medium screw hooks
Ribbon

What to do:

Gather your supplies. Lay down newspaper or a drop cloth over your work surface, 'cause if you're like me, this gets messy. Plus, using newspaper gives you something to read while you're waiting for the paint to dry.
Begin by painting the plaque in your color of choice. If you didn't prime it (I didn't) it might take a few coats.

While you're waiting for it to dry, paint the discs. I used two colors, red and black, but you can use as many as you'd like. I painted just the front and sides, but you can paint the whole disk if you'd like.

Ooo, look! Steak!

Once the plaque is painted thoroughly and completely dry, choose your stencil. I suck at stencilling, so I used some cardboard letters from Martha Stewart Crafts for the word "birthdays" and just traced and handpainted the word "family" and the letters for the months.

I also used measuring tape to center and level the words. 

While that's drying, glue the alligator clips to the back of the painted and dried coins. Don't worry if it leaks through the middle of the clip, having a bit of overflow will help it grip the ribbon or string better. I didn't get a picture of that step, but it's fairly straightforward. 

Next, screw the hooks into the bottom of the plaque. The wood on mine is fairly soft, so I didn't need to drill holes beforehand. I just had my husband screw them in by hand. Go, hubby, go!

You may have noticed the white bits around my letters in "Birthdays." I accidentally left the cardboard stencils on top while it dried. Don't do that, it's not worth it. I touched it up with a thin paintbrush, then we were good to go.

I also didn't get step-by-step pictures of the rest of the project. Sorry. But I'll explain it as best as I can.

I used a green paint pen to draw the vine pattern on the board, but a stencil and paint works just as well. Or you can just leave it plain.

I used a white paint pen to write the first name of each family member and the day of birth on the coin. Easy-peasy. Actually, I started by using the end of a thin paintbrush dipped in white paint to write the names out, then I realized they make pens for that kinda thing. Duh. 

I measured out strips of ribbon and poked holes in the tops, about 1/3" from the tip. I used clear nail polish on the ends to prevent fraying, but you can use Ribbon Fray Check (or something similar) if you'd prefer. Place the ribbons on the hooks, and then clip the coins on them. Voila, birthday calendar.

To hang: you can staple ribbon (use a staple gun, not normal staples. I'm sad to say I know from experience that this does not work) to the back and loop it around a nail, tying it in a pretty bow or something. I nailed two brads in the back and looped a wire around them, then hung it on the wall. 

Well, that's pretty much it, simple enough, right? Hope you enjoy this project!