Girls on Wheels Susan Hebert, Cassie Richardson, and Nancy Burns showcasing their personalized vintage farmhouse designs
Vicki Baker
Our inner DIY was itching for a place to create a fun new project. A place that didn’t require us to be a master woodworker or the next Picasso. A place to build farmhouse-classic and inspirational pieces of décor for our homes. A place to sip, paint, and connect with friends. Girls on Wheels (Susan Hebert, Cassie Richardson, and Nancy Burns) found that ideal place at Board and Brush Creative Studios, a place to let our creativity run wild.
Ready to roll up our sleeves and get our hands a little dirty, we booked our workshop online then browsed the gallery of hundreds of projects to consider: wall signs, trays, porch planks, trivets, boxes, crates, and more, with designs celebrating holidays, milestones, love, and family. Pre-ordering our selections ensured we had all the needed supplies and personalized stencils (words, names, monograms, dates, etc.) ready and waiting for us.
When we arrived, mimosas and munchies were served. The workspace was laid out with all the wood, hammers, blocks, drills, nails/screws, sandpaper, and stencils needed to complete our creations. Women, wine, and tools! The party was on!
Instructors guided us through each step of the process and extended an extra set of hands when needed. Suggestions were given on various techniques and tools to use to get just the right look and to bring out the beauty of the raw materials—the wood, the knots, the color variations, and the simple imperfections making each project unique.
Endless possibilities existed to further customize our projects beyond just personalizing the text. Sandpaper was used to roughen things up a bit. Various tools were used to pound, dent, chip, and crack the boards, giving our projects a distressed look. To match our home décor, we selected from a variety of stain and paint colors. Paint brushes and rags were used to get just the right shade and rustic look. Foam rollers and dobbers applied the custom-cut stenciling.
Finally, depending on the project, power drills and screws were provided to assemble the newly stained, painted, and stenciled boards into one piece. Ta da! Our beautiful farmhouse-inspired projects were now completed and ready to take home to display in that perfect spot!
The three-hour wood project workshop quickly flew by. Bringing our creativity and enthusiasm to learn new skills, we embraced our inner DIY masters. From start to finish, the project was totally in our hands, and the choices were all ours. Girls on Wheels turned raw wood into classic and timeless wooden signs, no two ever looking identical. And just like friendships, the best things in life are always made, never bought.