How To Make a Sign Out Of A Dropcloth

If you want to make an inexpensive and creative sign or backdrop this post is for you! Follow along and let me show you how to make a sign out of a dropcloth.

You can make so many things using this method. Also, you can use other fabrics, as you will see in one of the projects I will show you.

scarves with words

Years ago, my mom and I had this idea to create scarves with words on them. I ordered
Pashmina scarves and these fabric markers and we wrote inspirational words on the scarves.

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I just free hand the lettering, so it’s not perfect. However, that was kind of the idea. Handmade, and perfectly imperfect.

I even made a few in school colors with football related words for spirit wear.

boothspace backdrop

After we made scarves, I opened a booth space in an antique mall and needed something large to hang on the back wall of my booth.

I remembered the scarf project and decided to do the same concept on a large drop cloth.

My business name is Vintage Home, so I wrote out the definition of vintage and the definition of home on my booth backdrop.

You can even see one of the scarves in the foreground of this photo. And pardon the poor photo, who knew I would be writing blog posts year’s later and need good photos??

Since then, I have used it many times in booth spaces and now I use it at the barn sale that Shannon (aka My Little White Barn) and I host at her white barn in the Spring and Fall.

You can see the backdrop in the background of a couple of these pics. (I didn’t have a pic showing just the backdrop at the barn sale.)

wall decor

More recently, when I was decorating the 807 Cottage (our new Airbnb guest house) I needed a large statement piece for the hallway. I wanted unique, but didn’t want to spend a lot of money.

I remembered a canvas map I had purchased at a neighborhood garage sale a few months ago. The size was perfect, but I didn’t really want a map. So, I turned it to the backside, which was blank canvas and wrote one of my favorite scriptures on it.

It turned out great, and was just what that space needed.

seasonal decor

This week I pulled out my Halloween decor. I wanted a cute sign, so I made a smaller version of my backdrop, using a drop cloth.

The only drop cloth I had on hand was an old one I had used to paint furniture on. I was going to purchase a new one, then I realized the one with some old paint on it might look a little more like Halloween, so I just went with it.

Fortunately, it already had some grommets across one side, so I just cut a large square out of the drop cloth and used the side with the grommets, so I could hang it by those.

details about writing on the cloth

In the past, I have always free handed the lettering. But, on these last 2 projects, I used a quilters disappearing ink pen.

I wrote the words out with the disappearing pen first, then went over it with my fabric marker. The ink disappears typically within 24 hours.

I use these fabric markers with a wide tip if I am creating something large and need large lettering. If I am creating something smaller and need more narrow lettering, I use these fabric markers.

The markers come in tons of colors. I typically use black or gray which are the colors I linked above.

But, it’s fun to use colors to adapt to any season, event or decor color.

I hope you enjoyed this project on how to make a sign out of a dropcloth. If you try one of your own, I would love to hear about it!!

As always, thank you so much for following along and supporting my blog! I am so grateful for you!!

blessings and happy crafting,
michele

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