Saturday 6 November 2010

How to make rustic plant labels

I made a batch of plant labels to put in my garden. They are cheap, easy, and - best of all - not plastic, so I thought you guys might like to see how I made them.

Snap the ends off some wide craft sticks (the ones that are about 18mm wide - that's wider than the average popsicle sticks). You can use your fingers, but pliers will make the snapped end a bit tidier.

Sand the ends to get rid of any splinters.

I like to paint a light wash of brown watercolour paint over the sticks, so they aren't quite so garishly "new" looking.

Use a fadeproof and waterproof pen to write your plant names.

If you like you could decorate the sticks further with stickers and rubons.

Use a small saw to cut a chopstick in half. Sand the cut ends.

Use a waterproof wood glue to glue the stick to the chopstick, with the tapered end pointing down. Let dry.

Seal with a coat or two of clear varnish.

Then pop in the garden. These have lasted at least a season in my garden, and as they age they start to blend in more with their surroundings. Much more attractive than white plastic labels!

6 comments:

  1. I love this! I am going to make some for my new potager garden.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I agree much more attractive than white plastic. These are just so beautiful. I'd be inclined to vanish the label too. It rains a lot here.

    ReplyDelete
  3. They are look great just wish I had neater handwriting.

    ReplyDelete
  4. must be the season for it...i spent last night doing some poker work to make labels for my roses in the vineyard. I do like your version, they are on my list to make.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi,
    They are lovely. I was going to make some labels from old spoons and a metal stamp but this looks a lot easier.
    Tracy

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think labels are going to be like the garden seat for me; on the one hand a finishing touch that is still a wee way away but on the other hand something you should have right from the start. They are beautiful.

    ReplyDelete

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...