Scrap Wood Christmas Tree

I've been eager to work on a project of my own after filling oodles of orders over the past couple of weeks, so last night I decided to use some of my leftover scrap pieces of wood to make myself a wooden Christmas tree to display on my front porch.

The only piece of wood I actually cut was the "pole" that holds it all together.  Otherwise, I just arranged random pieces of odd-sized planks until it looked a little like a Christmas tree, leaving some space between them. 

To attach it all together (which I did before painting, but that could be done after as well), I marked with a pencil where I wanted each board to go, then pre-drilled holes & put screws in opposite corners to secure them to the back board.

I used the same painting process that I use to paint my signs to make eight little mini signs that read "May your days be merry and bright!" 

Once everything was painted, I took some rough sandpaper and sanded the edges and top layer to give it a distressed and aged look.

I was really pleased with the way this script font turned out & might just have to use it on a few more custom signs!

Here's a look at it from above.  You can see that each board is a little different, different sizes, textures, etc.

I'm just thrilled with how it turned out! I even had it set up out front before the clear coat was dry. :)  I know I'm going to love pulling this baby out each year.

Certainly, I'm not the first to come up with such a clever idea.  A quick search on Pinterest (follow me!) for "scrap wood tree" gives this lovely collection of eye-candy full of all sorts of creative versions of this hand-crafted decorating idea:

Now my house looks ready for the holidays! :)  How about yours?

^{Link Up: Tatertots & Jello, At the Picket Fence, The Shabby Nest, My Romantic Home, Creation Corner, Whipperberry, Serenity Now, Simply Designing, Someday Crafts, Lovely Crafty Home, 504 Main, Bacon Time with the Hungry Hungry Hypo, Be Different Act Normal, FunkyJunkInteriors, TheDIYShowOff, Iheartnaptime, Craftomaniac, Dittle Dattle, Sarandipities, Keeping it Simple, The Girl Creative, Making the World Cuter, Sumo's Sweet Stuff, Skip to My Lou, DIYHSHProject, Stories of A to Z, Sugar Bee Crafts, Not Just a Housewife, Today's Creative Blog, Linda-Coastal Charm, Crayon Freckles, WomenWhoDoItAll, Sugar and Dots, Someday Crafts, BlueCricketDesign, 733Blog, CreationsByKara, GingerSnapsCrafts, Delightful Order, The Shabby Chic Cottage, Somewhat Simple, Katie's Nesting Spot, Fireflies & Jellybeans, House of Hepworths, SavedbyLoveCreations, A Glimpse Inside, Momnivore's Dilemma, Space46,}