Tutorial: Mock chalkboard frame signs

I created these signs for my craft fair booth recently, and I am just so proud of them. I thought people might like to see how I made them.

This tutorial is written for Adobe Photoshop CS5 on a Mac, but it should be pretty easily translatable to other programs and operating systems. For Windows, the keyboard shortcuts should work by replacing "Command" with "Control."

First off, download a picture of a blank chalkboard background. You can find them easily by doing a Google image search, but here is where I got mine. So, here's what you'll start out with. (Click on the images to enlarge.)

Next, you'll want to crop the picture to the size you want. Select the crop tool,  and set the dimensions to the size you want your sign to be. I suggest setting the resolution to at least 200 pixels so the sign will print nicely.

Crop the picture. Use as much of the original picture as possible. The tool should snap to the edges for you if you drag it outside. Next, press Command+A to select all and Command+C to copy. Go to File > New to open a new file. The dimensions will be set to the dimensions of the image you just copied. Make sure the background color is set to white.

Press Command+V to paste the image onto the background. Make sure it pastes in a new layer. You should have a white background, and your blank chalkboard image above it in the layers menu as Layer 1. Next, select your text tool.  I used the font KG Flavors & Frames. There are 5 different versions of this free font, so you're sure to find a frame you like. The frame I used is the lowercase b. You'll need to play around with the font size and horizontal scale until you get it to the size you need. Here's what I used.

Your image should now look something like this.

Make sure the text layer is selected, and then select the magic wand tool. Click on the areas of the image not covered by the frame. Hold down Shift while clicking to select more than one area at once. With the areas outside the frame selected, go to the Layers window and select the chalkboard layer.

Press delete to erase those areas of the chalkboard image. Then, right click on the text layer in the Layers menu, and click Delete Layer.

Now, your image should look something like this.

If you'd like, make sure the chalkboard layer is selected in the Layers menu, click the paint bucket tool and fill the area between the outside and inside of the frame with the color of your choice.

Finally, we can add the text. I used DK Carte Blanche, bolded, at the top and Dazzling Divas on the bottom. Note that DK Carte Blanche does not include numbers. For some more ideas of fonts to combine, check out some of these posts.

Tinsel and Twine

I paid a visit to the Tinsel & Twine Summer Market on Saturday, and let me tell you, it was great. It took place at Homestead Manor on a beautiful green lawn. It made for a great late spring day. I spent more than I planned, but I got some great stuff and saw some inspiring booths.

Here is the booth for Two Green Olive Trees. I got the cutest little shirt with a striped tie on it for my son, and I love her linen banners.

These beautiful cuffs are by the talented Peggy Vessels who was sharing a booth with Charlie Duncan of Gravel Roads Finds and Designs. Unfortunately, I did not get a website for her, though I'm pretty sure I found her on Pinterest. I also know they will both be at Bella Rustica in August. The display for these was so clever. It's painted PVC pipe hanging on some cord. I also bought some great old wooden trays from their booth. I'm planning to use them for display in my booth, and I also found they make a great backdrop for photos for my Etsy shop.

Here's the booth for Perfectly Picky. I almost bought that little green set of drawers in the back. I'm still thinking about it. I love it, but I have no idea where it would go. The kitchen, I guess. I love their sign, too.

I love the big flowers at the top of the booth for Where Roses Bloom. I didn't get it in the picture (Darn it!) but they had a sign for their shop sitting in an old typewriter. It was so clever and different. They also had a bunch of great vintage suitcases. I bought a beautiful black beaded clutch purse from the 1960's from them.

I didn't get the greatest picture of the booth for The Faded Farmhouse. The had a pretty big booth, so it was hard to get a picture with a good idea for the look of the whole booth. They had a lot of great old furniture. I bought a framed sign for my son's room that says, "Future Man Cave," with a moustache on it. Very cute.

My Outdoor Craft Fair Booth

I had a booth in the Flatrock Music and Arts Festival last weekend. It was a fun event. The weather was beautiful, and the music was really good. There were a bunch of food trucks out there as well. I didn't get a chance to try any of them. (In fact, funny story. I packed pasta salad for lunch and forgot to pack a fork.) But, I saw a lot of people walking by with some very yummy-looking food. It was my first outdoor craft show, and for a first attempt, I think my tent turned out very well.

Here's an overview of the booth. I printed a couple of signs on cardstock that said that I accept credit cards and take custom orders. I'll probably place them somewhere else in the future. I don't think people really saw them.

I got the ladder at an antique store in town. I absolutely adore it. A friend of mine made the sign at the top. I made the baskets holding the bracelets, and I got the little bucket and the bin from Target.

Here, I covered a bulletin board with some burlap I bought at Jo-Ann and attached the necklaces to the board with push pins. I found some cute ones at Target.

I bought some cord from Jo-Ann and hung it from the corners of the tent to hang some clutches and market bags.

And, here's my table. I got the shutter at the same time as the ladder. It worked great to hold those little brooches. I printed up cards on some blue cardstock scrapbook paper and punched holes in them with a tapestry needle to hold the brooches. I adore the little coke crate wagon, and it got a lot of compliments. My husband's grandfather made it for him, and now it's my son's. I borrowed it for the day to use as a display.

-Katy