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Right before we went on vacation, James and I tackled a little art project that got bumped to the top of our TO DO list, primarily because it proved more interesting than building kitchen cabinets (which is really what should be at the top of the list). It’s a good thing that I’m not an emergency responder. Triage is clearly not my forté.

If you follow me on Instagram, you bore witness to the whole project unfolding.

A few months back, my father sent an email with a link to some barns bedecked in Pennsylvania Dutch “Hex” Signs, suggesting that one might make a colorful and appropriate addition to our little barn. Yes, I know we live in Vermont, but James has very strong ties to Pennsylvania, and well, heck, the Hex Signs are pretty cool, no?

When Design Sponge announced a contest for DIY projects using Scotch Blue Tape, James and I figured that this project would be a perfect submission. We were thrilled to learn this morning that we were selected as one of twenty finalists! Yay Hex Sign! And this is where we could really use your help. Please head on over and check out all these creative and brilliant projects, but then toss a vote our way! Or you can just go straight to voting here. Lord knows we could use the extra dollars from winning the contest to help support Ursa’s crazy expensive chemo treatments (round 3 coming up next week!).

Here are some snaps of the sign in progress.

It didn’t take more than a sheet of plywood, a straight edge and pencil, some paint, tape and a jigsaw to create our own.

We based the design on a star, a symbol of good luck when used on a hex. The center star has four axes, representing our family of four. And the outer points are to help give the effect of a wheel for Cartwheel Farm. We decided to keep the color palette simple with deep sunflower yellow as the pop of color, and two tones of grey. We have aspirations of repainting the house (which is currently green) in these three colors, so this was a step in that direction!

The best part of the process was the hanging of said sign. Let’s just say that James is one very patient man, with excellent balance.

A little to the left. Okay, now down. No, back up. A smidge to the right. Okay, hold it…

What do you think? Not bad, eh? I’m actually feeling very positive about the results, despite a few frustrations, doubts and tears during the process. In all honesty, I doubt there is a single DIY project I’ve completed that hasn’t involved these three elements. It was gratifying to see it up on Design Sponge today. So please, vote for us! Pretty pretty please!

Photos: Courtesy of Ashley Weeks Cart