I was cleaning out my workshop the other day and found this cool panel of wood among my scrap wood.  My first thought was a kitchen sign. But to make it a little more Unique, it became a multi-functional kitchen sign.

This panel came off a piano I repurposed into a bar a few years ago. It was too pretty to throw away and at the time I had no idea what to do with it. Until now that is, my idea was to have a functional kitchen sign with a built-in clock, a chalkboard to-do list, somewhere to hang some tea towels and of course a key rack.

DIY Multifunctional kitchen sign

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Prepare the wood surface

The wood I used for this project was a panel from an old piano I repurposed, but any wood will work.

To start, I wanted to change the colour and clean the surface. The old varnish was all cracked and worn in places, so it had to all come off.  I tried an orbital sander first,  but the sander lifted all the loose veneer around the edges where it was worn.

Next, I tried some paint stripper which I added to the surface using a paintbrush.  To stop the stripper from drying out, I like to cover the surface with clingfilm.  This will keep the paint stripper moist while it works.

After a few hours, I used a credit card to remove the paint stripper.  I cleaned the surface with soapy water and 0000 steelwool. They recommend mineral spirit for the residue, but soapy water worked well for me.

I added some dark mahogany stain and sealed the surface with some water-based polyurethane.

Add the graphics

I made the graphics on this kitchen sign using my Cricut vinyl cutter.  If you don’t have a vinyl cutter you can always just buy the decals off the internet.  If you do have a Cricut, find the images you want to add and download them into design space.

Cut out the images onto oracle 651 or M7 which is a permanent vinyl. Next, weed the image, this means to remove the excess vinyl you don’t want in the project. This will leave you with just the image you want to transfer.

Transfering the graphics onto the sign

To transfer the image you need to use some transfer tape.  Place the tape over the image and rub it with a scraper. This will transfer the image onto the tape ready to be put onto the wood.

Mark out where you want the decal to go and place it down onto the surface.  Using a felt scraper again rub over the surface this will push the image down onto the wood. You can now slowly pull the transfer tape off.

You repeat this step with all your images.  The quotes I used in this project were free ones that I downloaded off the internet.

Adding the chalkboard

I was super excited to do this chalkboard because unlike my previous chalkboard projects this was not painted. This was a roll of vinyl film that I bought, similar to contact paper.  It was a simple as cutting it off the roll and sticking it to the wood. It works in the same way as the painted chalkboards without all the mess and the dirty looking board. You wipe it with a damp cloth and it looks like new again. I added a white border to the chalkboard vinyl to give it a nicer look.

Adding hardware

To make this kitchen sign more functional, I  added some hooks that can be used for coats, hats or tea towels along the bottom.

The hardware I used was simple to attach, I drilled a hole and countersunk the hole at the back.  This will allow the sign to sit flush with the wall once the hooks are fitting and the sign is hung.

The board needed somewhere to store the chalk so it will be handy when needed.  I used an old drawer pull turned upside down and screwed it to the board, the chalk can sit inside the handle.

You can add some smaller hooks to the sides that can be used to hang keys, dog leads or hats.

The clock I used for this project, I bought years ago from a budget store.  It was a clock that you can add to the wall and use photo frames as the numbers. To hang the clock, you just have to remove the tape and hang it straight onto the board. The clock then pushed into the foam.

Hanging the sign

To hang the sign I used some keyhole hooks screwed into the back of the frame. When taking the photos I used fishing line to hang the sign up because I was not keeping the sign for myself. You will need to hang this sign with these or similar hooks to support the weight of items hanging on the sign.

Here are some close-up images of the completed multi-functional kitchen sign.

More projects for you

This outdoor wall mounted bar was made from an old pallet.

Here is another option for a kitchen sign.

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