Have you seen those pallet flags that people display on their porches and in their yards? Today I’m showing you how to easily make an American flag pallet for your own home!
I love creating and displaying patriotic colors during the summer! There’s just something about that red, white, and blue that puts me into a festive summer mood, ready to enjoy the warm weather and time with friends and family.
Do you also love to display your red, white, and blue all summer long? A pallet flag is an easy way to do that! If you’re like me and don’t have a flag pole, this is the next best thing. And I’m so excited to show you how to make it.
Make a wooden flag in just minutes with our step-by-step DIY tutorial below. Yes, you can have a cute pallet flag for your summer decor both indoors and out!
I’ve even got a simple trick for making those stars quickly and easily without having to draw each one out individually.
Note: I first posted this tutorial over at Crafts Unleashed where I am a paid contributor, but I thought I would post it here in case y’all missed it.
Wooden Pallet Flag Supplies Needed
- 15 x 9 Wood Pallet Sign
- Chalk Paint in red, white, and blue
- Foam Star Stickers
- Paint Brushes
- Sand Paper
- Stain (optional)
- Ruler
- Pencil
Instructions for How to Make a Pallet Flag
Since you don’t have to put together the actual pallet, making your American flag pallet won’t take you very long. Just follow these simple instructions and you can get it done today!
Step 1
Start by going over the entire surface with a coat of white paint.
I am going for a really rustic look with my wooden flag so I used a dry brush technique. To do this, just get a little bit of paint on your brush and move it rapidly across the surface. This will give a light coat with wood showing through in a few places.
Step 2
Use a ruler and a pencil to mark off an area for your stars.
Step 3
Add the star stickers to this area as shown below. We are going to use these for a mask when painting.
Step 4
Then use your blue chalk paint for the entire area and around the stars. Be cautious around the stars and use a light coat of paint so that you don’t accidentally paint under the stars and ruin the star shape on the white background.
Step 5
Once the paint is dry, all you have to do is remove the stickers and you have beautiful stars on our wooden flag!
Step 6
It’s time to make our red stripes! Use the red to paint every other board of the pallet flag. By using the boards, you have nice and easy built-in straight lines to follow!
I used my dry brush technique again here to achieve that rustic look I was going for.
Step 7
Allow everything to dry completely.
Once it’s dry, you can use sandpaper to remove even more of the paint and add to that rustic appearance, if you want. On the other hand, if you’re happy with the look, you can stop here and just display your wooden flag.
Easy peasy, right?
Pallet Flag Project Tips
Want to add even more of a rustic look? Here’s a fun tip!
Add a dark stain over the top of the painted wood. Paint on the stain, allow to sit a few seconds, then rub away excess. You can see in the image below what a difference this makes as the top has been stained while the bottom is just painted.
Really gives it that rustic vibe, right?
I like the look so I went over my entire surface with the stain to give the entire pallet flag a rustic and worn appearance.
Then just allow your wooden flag to dry and add to your summer decor.
If you love all things rustic, this project is definitely for you! Just a note not to forget the sides of the project as well. Be sure to paint/stain those to make the flag look the same from all sides.
You can even add your wooden flag to your summer mantel! Love that large tea stained flag? Click here to purchase it. You can also click here to see how to make those patriotic mason jars. So, where will you add your wooden flag this summer?
Love this wooden pallet flag and want more ideas? Try these projects!
- How to Make a Patriotic Wreath from Bandanas
- Patriotic Decorations: 50 Ideas in 15 Minutes or Less
- How to Make Easy Patriotic Home Decor
- DIY Patriotic Marquee Sign
- Patriotic Wooden Star & More DIY Patriotic Crafts
- Patriotic Windsock Kids Craft Idea
Ingredients
- 15 x 9 Wood Pallet Sign
- Chalk Paint in red, white, and blue
- Foam Star Stickers
- Paint Brushes
- Sand Paper
- Stain optional
- Ruler
- Pencil
Instructions
- Using a dry brush technique, dip the brush in white chalk paint and go over the entire surface with a coat of paint.To achieve the rustic effect, just get a little bit of paint on your brush and move it rapidly across the surface so that the wood will show through in places.
- Use a ruler and a pencil to mark off an area for your stars.
- Add the star stickers to that same order in the placement that you would like your stars on the finished product. We are going to paint over them to quickly get our stars.
- Paint blue chalk paint around the entire area and around the stars. Paint lightly over the stars so that you don’t accidentally paint under them and ruin the star shape against the white background.
- Once the paint is dry, all you have to do is remove the stickers and you have beautiful stars on your wooden flag!
- Using the same dry brush method, paint every other board of the pallet flag with red paint. By using the boards, you have nice and easy built-in straight lines to follow to get your stripes.
- Allow everything to dry completely.Once it’s dry, use sandpaper to achieve that rustic appearance even more, if desired. On the other hand, if you’re happy with the look, you can avoid this step and just display your wooden flag.
This pallet wood flag is awesome! I love your tutorial!
Love your flag. think just might make smaller one to put on shutter shelf for Memorial Day, July 4th, and Labor day. The bigger flag I made about 3 yrs. ago is still in great shape hanging on our front porch rails. It faces North is why it’s still in good shape, The sun here is so hot it cremates everything. Back of our house facesdue West, in Summer can’t touch door knob in afternoon,is so hot.
I used a stencil for the stars, got a flag to be sure to position them correctly. Took me about 4 days to make, wanted it to look realistic.
Love how you made your flag look rustic with the stain, think will make small one for holidays that way.
Havewonderful week Angie
Good luck Jane! Hope it works out!
I love the flag. I guess with all of the patriotic holidays we celebrate during the summer it is perfect.