DIY Wood Coat Rack & Welcome Sign

This project has been on my to do list for almost 10 years...seriously. I don't know why it took me so long because this was a super easy DIY. I don't have a coat closet for guests so when they come over their personal items end up on the hearth, or in a pile on the floor. Well I finally fixed that. With the left over supplies I decided to make a cute Welcome Sign to hang next to my front door too.

Supplies:
1x8x8 hardwood board ~ I found mine at Home Depot 70% off original price = $2.81 (always check the clearance/remnant bins, it's perfect for projects like these)
Stain ~ Home Depot = $4.78
3 inch Chip Brush ~ Home Depot = $1.48
Polyurethane ~ Home Depot = $7.78
5 Coat Hooks ~ Lowes = $19.85 (3.97 each)
Palm Sander
Sand Paper
Rags
Cricut
Vinyl
2 inch Wood Screws
Drill
Level
Pencil
Tape Measure
Picture hanger
Hammer

Boards:
The first thing I did was have my hubby cut down the boards to the lengths I wanted. The coat rack is 28 inches long and the welcome sign is. Next I took my handy palm sander and smoothed out the boards and went around all the edges so they were nice and smooth and splinter free. Then I cleaned them up making sure they were free of any dirt or sawdust.

Next I took a cheap chip brush and the stain, I used Minwax in Dark Walnut, and evenly applied it all over the boards, going with the grain of the wood.

 I let the stain sit about 5 minutes and then I wiped off the excess stain with a rag.

I only needed one coat of stain to achieve the look I was going for, you may need to do multiple coats depending on what you like.

I let the boards dry for about 8 hours and then I applied a couple thin coats of satin polyurethane to my coat hook board and then let it dry another 24 hours. (I apply the polyurethane to the welcome sign a little later into the tutorial.)

The Coat Rack
I bought coat hooks and placed them onto the board and made a mark through the screw holes where I wanted them to go. Then I pre-drilled, just so it would be easier on me to attach the hooks once the board was hung up.

Then I found a stud in the wall, with a stud finder (best invention ever!), to screw the 1x8 into, I wanted this to be sturdy and not fall off the wall and I don't plan on moving it. It happened to work out that the screw that went into the stud, was behind a hook, so I decided to "hide" the other screws behind where a couple of the other hooks would go.

I screwed a total of 3 screws into the wall and then I screwed in the 5 coat hooks, lining them up with the pre-drilled holes I made earlier. Voila! Instant coat rack! I just love this and I'm sure my guests will appreciate it too.

The Welcome Sign
I just used my Cricut and some white vinyl to finish this project. First I cut out 6 inch letters.

Then I measured and found the middle on the board and made a small pencil mark. Starting with the C and working my way out I placed the letters as evenly as I could. You can always measure and make it exact if you want to.

I nailed a picture hanger into the back and finished with a couple clear coats of polyurethane. I used Minwax Polyurethane Satin, and I let it dry 24 hours before handling it.

I had these brick hangers and they worked perfectly to hang this sign. I just love how this turned out and it really dressed up the front of my house.

For a couple projects that were less than $40, I am pretty happy with the results! Thank you for stopping by & have a wonderful week!