Countdown to Christmas Blocks

Sometimes it seems like I'm working on Christmas decorations year-round. I have to keep telling myself that's okay.... it will make it easier if I can get it all done ahead of time, right?

The countdown to Christmas blocks was my latest project. How fun! Here's how I did it.

I started by cutting three pieces off a 3-1/2 inch wooden post. I made the base 7 inches, and then cut two 3-1/2 inch pieces to stack on top of it. If you do it right, it will look just like the picture below. I tried to make the two small pieces add up to exactly the lenth of the long piece, but realized it's okay it it's a couple of millimeters off!

After cutting the wood I sanded the pieces to make them nice and smooth. I recommend wiping them off with a damp cloth - damp with a little bit of water or mineral spirits. After cleaning them I painted them with ordinary toll paint. I used Rockwood Red by Americana.

The next step involved cutting 3-inch square pieces of paper to put on the sides of the wood pieces. Each small block will hold six pieces. The bottom block will use two 3-inch square pieces for the sides and one 6-1/2X3-inch rectangle for the front. I cut the pieces from three different sheets of scrapbook paper, choosing three separate designs that are unique but go together well.

After the paint dried I used modge podge to stick the paper to the sides of the blocks. Brush on a little bit of the modge podge on the wood, place the paper and then brush on some more modge podge to smooth it out and cover the entire surface of the wood with a light coat. After that dried (about half an hour), I was ready for the next step.

The next step was where I got to play with the vinyl! On the first block I put numbers 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. And on the second block I put numbers 0, 1, 2, 6, 7 and 8. When choosing a font for the numbers (that's where I can help you!) be sure to select a font with which the 6 can appear like a 9 when turned upside down. On the long block - the base - I put the words "days until Christmas".

And there you have it! It's a cute and classy countdown to Christmas decoration.

Check out some of my other holiday decoration ideas on my Etsy shop, ArtaBella Vinyl Designs. You can order the vinyl as you see here, or if you would like a different font let me know and let's see what we can do!