"This is my favorite paint finish, but I'm not sure how to do it.  Can you explain how it's done?"

This is a FABULOUS finish!  APT VINYL did a great job creating a rustic washed out look for this sign.  To achieve this look, you need to use acrylic paint.  We prefer the Deco Art Patio Paint as it has just a little sheen to it.  The only drawback is that it doesn't come in many colors. 

1)  With a foam brush, paint the board black and let it dry.

2)  The next step can be done two ways: a) Either take the cream paint, and with a 3-4" foam brush, paint over the black color and quickly wipe the paint off, lightly showing the black through the cream. Or,  b)  Slightly water down the cream paint (our preference) and use a 3-4" foam brush to paint over the black.  The black color will naturally show through.  If you don't mix your paint and water well, it will cause a variegation in the opacity of the paint (like below) which is also nice. 

3)  After the paint has dried, sand the edges.  We like to use a belt sander as hand sanding takes TOO long and is too uniform. 

For a finished look, stain the sanded edges with a foam brush using a water based stain (be sure to shake it well) and quickly wipe off any excess with a wet rag.  Experiment on practice boards first.  It may take a few tries to get the hang of it. Make sure the surface is completely dry before applying vinyl.

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"How about the following photo?  How did they do it?"

This is another fabulous inspire-me project by WENDY STEENECK!  To create this look, use the same painting technique as described above, to create the background.  Then create a reverse-weed vinyl stencil and apply paint in the negative spaces.  Depending on the type of paint you use and how dry it is, determine how quickly the stencil should be removed afterward.

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"I purchased your Alphabet #2 and I am having trouble understanding how I place a name or letters in the blank space on the bottom.  Any help would be appreciated."

When creating monograms, you need to work in layers, regardless of the cutter software that you're using.  Simply import the monogram into your cutter software, then create a text box and overlay that text on the monogram, working in layers.  When everything is positioned and ready to cut, just highlight all the elements and proceed to cutting.  The process is the same for all the alphabets, including the reverse-weeded name in Alphabet 3.

"What font should I use for my name on this monogram?"

Any bolded, serifed font like Times New Roman or Georgia will look nice on Alphabet 2, Alphabet 3, Alphabet 4,  Alphabet 5, and Alphabet 6.  A bolded, non-serifed font like Arial will look best on Alphabet 1.  For a trendy, chunky look to the name, regardless of font, stretch it wide at the bottom, ignoring all the rules of proportion.  It gives a fun and funky look to the monogram!