DIY Wood Patriotic Firecrackers

HERE’S WHAT YOU DO

STEP 1: DOWNLOAD THE FREE SVG FILE

The first thing you’ll need to do is get the free SVG file you’ll use for this project.  I keep all the SVG files I use for the projects I make in my SVG Library.  These SVG files work with Cricut and Silhouette machines, as well as many others.  This library is open to everyone and is free!  You can access the library here. Look for the file called USA and Stars BA1562. It will be listed under the Patriotic category.

STEP 2: CUT AND WEED VINYL DESIGN

Open the design in your software program and resize it to 10″ wide and leave the height proportional. Once you’ve resized the design, you can cut it with your machine.  You’ll want to cut the USA out of a dark blue vinyl and the stars out of white vinyl.  You’ll need a sheet of white vinyl that’s about 15″ long for the stars.

When everything is finished cutting, remove the vinyl from your cutting mat and trim off any unused vinyl.

Weed away the excess vinyl from around the design.

Use the weeding tool to help remove the excess vinyl from inside the letter A and stars.

Cut a piece of transfer tape and place it sticky side up on your surface. Then place the vinyl on top of the transfer tape and smooth it down.

Rub over the designs firmly with your scraper tool.

Then, trim off the excess transfer tape and vinyl backing and cut apart the different sections.

Now that the vinyl is ready to go, let’s work on the wood pieces.

 

STEP 3: PAINT WOOD PIECES

This project is really easy to make because it’s all straight cuts. You’ll need 4 pieces cut from a 1″ x 4″.  Just a note, the 1″ x 4 actually measures .75″ x 3.5″, so if you’re cutting them from a larger piece of wood, make sure to adjust your measurements.  You’ll want to cut pieces in the following lengths for the firecrackers: 14″, 12″, 10″.  You’ll also need an 11″ piece for the stand.

Use some sandpaper and sand over all the pieces of wood.

Paint the largest firecracker navy, the medium-sized firecracker red, and the small firecracker white.

Paint the piece for the stand navy blue. You’ll probably need to do a couple of coats to completely cover the wood.

Next, grab the largest section of vinyl lettering with all the stars and pull off the vinyl backing.

Place the vinyl on the largest piece of wood.

Rub over the vinyl with your scraper

Then, pull off the transfer tape.

Repeat these steps with the other two sections of vinyl. The other section of stars will go on the red piece of wood and the USA will go on the white piece.

Next, cut a couple of pieces of wire to about 6-7″ long. Twist the wire around a marker or pen, leaving about an inch of the wire straight.

Drill small holes in the center of the tops of all three firecrackers. The holes need to be big enough for the wire to fit in.

Put some glue in the hole or on the wire (whichever is easiest) and then put the wire in the hole.

If you’re using vine-wrapped wire like I am, you can fray the edges at the top. Repeat on the other two firecrackers.

 

STEP 4: ASSEMBLE THE FIRECRACKERS

Place the large and medium-sized firecrackers on your work surface. Leave a gap of about two inches between them.

Add some glue on the back, down the edges of the smallest firecracker.

Flip it over and place it over the two larger firecrackers. Make sure the bottoms of all three pieces of wood are lined up. Let that glue dry completely.

Wrap some twine around the centers of the firecrackers. Once you’ve wrapped it a few times, tie it in a knot and cut off the ends.

Add some glue to the bottoms of the firecrackers and place them on the stand. Make sure they are centered.

And that’s it this project is finished! Didn’t it turn out cute?