Country Critter Wall Plaque

How to Make a Country-Style Hanging Plaque

"Instead of counting sheep, talk to the shepherd"

Make just one or a series using different country critters.

Plaque Materials

• 4 x 3 ¼ x ¾--inch wood lamb or other country critter
• 4 ¼ x 2 ¼ x ¾-inch wood rectangle
• Dremel Tool or electric drill with fine bit for drilling holes
• Plaid acrylic paint in Apple Barrel Colors - Satin Cream, Black, Brown Oxide, Dutch Blue
• Paint brushes
• Old toothbrush for speckling
• Paper plate or paint palette
• Krylon Matte Acrylic Spray
• White craft glue
• 15 inches coarse wire (type found in hardware store) which is easy to bend
• Wire cutters
• Pliers for wire bending if needed
• Raffia

Assembling the Plaque

Use Dremel tool to drill two small holes for the wire at the top of the critter.

Lay the wood pieces on newspaper or protected surface for painting.

Paint the lamb and rectangle with country colors as follows:

• Base color and eye - cream
• Face, legs, lettering and heart outline - black
• Heart, dotted line border, dotted line swirls for wool and decorative squares - blue
• Lamb's cheek - brown

Let paint dry completely.

Paint speckles impart an aged countrified look. Practice on newspaper first to get the desired speckle effect.

Thin a small amount of black paint slightly with water. Dip toothbrush bristles into the thinned paint. Move the toothbrush above the newspaper while you run your thumb over the bristles to spatter paint.

Once you have your technique down, apply speckles to the two wood pieces. Let dry.

Spray with two coats of clear matte acrylic in a well ventilated area. Let dry.

Put a drop of wood or white craft glue on the critter's feet to join the lamb to the base. I used thick rubber bands to "clamp" the parts together; then weighted the assembled plaque with a stack of heavy books. Let dry overnight.

Run the wire ends through the holes and twist to close. Twist a loop at the top for hanging.

Optional: grunge the wire by rubbing black paint on it. Let dry.

Tie a raffia bow around the twisted wire as shown.