Creating a House Number Plaque For Dad's Fishing Camp

All my life, our family has made trips to my dad's cabin on Lake Okeechobee. I only had an old photograph, but thought it would serve to give this project some context.

Dad and Uncle Wash built the cabin around 1960 and added an extra bedroom in the 80s. Lately, the area has begun to grow a bit (thankfully slowly) and the local town changed all the road names and house numbers.


When dad asked me to make him a sign with the new house number, I knew it was time to do something a bit extravagant. Dad has always been an avid fisherman but now, at 84, he is just not able to do it much anymore. To honor his life-long commitment to the sport, and for his 84th birthday gift, I decided to make a plaque featuring the new house number and a decent etching of a large mouth bass.

Here's a larger look at the announcement animation showing, in broad strokes, the process involved in making the bass engraving.

Choosing the Wood:

The first step in the project was deciding how large to make the plaque and what type of wood to work with. Because there is a limit to how small a line one can etch into wood, a fairly large piece was needed.


I found a nice piece of poplar that measured 7 1/4" by 24". Poplar is a good choice because it is one of the softest "hardwoods," very light cream with a green tinge (appropriate for a bass etching), and has a very light grain which will not interfere with the design.

Creating the Layout:

My graphics program of choice is Paint Shop Pro. It is inexpensive, takes Photoshop plug-ins, includes great vector graphics capabilities, and has a plethora of image editing tools to choose from. I use an older version of the program and couldn't be happier.



When creating a layout for "real-world" application, working at 100 dpi has many advantages. Most monitors run at 96 dpi, so, at actual size, the image is just slightly larger than it will be when printed. 100 dpi also makes it very easy to measure things exactly. In this case, since my board is 24" by 7 1/4", my blank layout needs to be 2400 x 725.   (NOTE: All layout images shown on this page will be scaled to 1/3 actual size.)



I decided to make the plaque an oval because that gave it more of a nautical feel. I first drew an oval that covered the entire layout.



I quickly saw that used up too much of my working area and decided on more of a rectangle with oval-rounded ends.



A quick way of making accurate measurements on your layout is to create another image the size you need, paint it, then copy the pre-made shape onto a layout layer. Here I've created a 3/4" strip then pasted it with and without a 90° rotation.



Using the 3/4" strip, I made borders that helped me size a second oval to form the overall border for the plaque.



Using the same technique, I created a third oval to help me figure out where to place the holes using a trial-and-error determined spacing.



With the borders drawn, I used vector graphics to create the house number.


Because they are vector, the numbers can be resized and moved endlessly with no degradation. This is most useful as the layout becomes more complicated.

Making the Bass Pattern:

In this age of web graphics it's easy to find images of almost every variety, but surprisingly difficult to locate just the right image (or miracle of miracles, an appropriate line drawing) for your application. In this case I found a nice bright photograph of a bass in just the layout I wanted.


Now the question is, how do you get from a photograph to a line drawing, in this case, not just a line drawing, but one that can be etched successfully into wood? It has to be a process of simplification. What's needed is to merge tiny details into constantly larger groups which can be represented with fewer and fewer strokes. In the process it's very important that, as the strokes get broader, they are chosen carefully and keep the general feel of the subject.

When working from a photograph it's generally a good idea to simplify it graphically as much as possible before converting it to lines. At least the process of graphic simplification can be accomplished with a general set of actions. The first step in the process is to eliminate color.


Instantly we've gone from millions of colors to 256 shades of gray.

The next step is to increase the contrast and adjust the brightness so that more and more of the details move toward black, and more and more of the open areas move toward white. It's best to accomplish this in multiple steps and even to work on different sections of a photograph separately because the "best" settings will depend on the general brightness and detail of a section.


This is the result of several contrast passes and working on the top and bottom portions of the photograph separately.

My last step in the graphic process is to make another contrast pass to further consolidate, then convert the image to 8 shade grayscale. This is an additional simplification and makes placing the lines and strokes all the easier.



If you decrease the opacity of the image layer and place a blank white layer beneath it, you make it much easier to determine where various lines should be placed.



By establishing a vector layer to hold your line drawing and creating it as a series of vector objects, you can move and adjust everything until it fits perfectly. Start by creating the bold lines that outline your subject and establish all the major details.



Now, working at a finer scale (still on the vector layer), draw the shading lines that give shape, contour, and pattern to your subject. Because a bass is in water, I kept my detail lines fluid and circular. Since I'm creating a three-color drawing, all of these lines are intended to form boundaries between lighter and darker areas of stain.



The last set of lines served a dual function. The top of the bass will be darker by nature of the darker stain used in that area. Still, some additional shading lines are needed to give it a rounded shape. Since it's a fish, I let these take the form of scales which will become less frequent as you move lower on the drawing. I also added some shading hashes to indicate the curve at the bottom of the belly.



That completes the line drawing. Admittedly, it's not as nice looking as the photograph, but it will make etching to wood much easier. Here's the drawing without the image in the background.



As a final drawing step, it's a good idea to do a color mock-up of what the final version should approximate. I did this by flood-filling the outlined areas with colors I thought would look something like the stains I intended.



Here's an animation that shows all the above steps.

Completing the Layout:

Like the house numbers, the bass pattern was created as a vector drawing. This made it simple to place and size on the layout.



Here's a color mock-up. Hopefully the finished project will look something like it.

Getting the Layout Onto the Board:

Fortunately, the layout, if split in half, will print nicely on two sheets of 8 1/2 x 14 paper. Here I've printed the layout, cut it out, and fitted the two pieces onto the board so the rounded ends can be marked.



The ends have been marked and I'm ready to cut and pre-finish the board. I'll save the cut-off corners to test both etching and staining techniques.



The circular ends of the board have been cut, it's been orbital sanded, then hand sanded very smooth to accept the design transfer. I'll use masking tape to attach both carbon paper (yes you can still get it) and the layout pattern.



I used a very sharp awl to mark the holes for drilling. I ordered 30 3/4" bronze screws and four 2" matching so the plaque can be attached to the wall of the house. I'll drill the holes sized just to hold the screws without over-stressing the wood along the line.



With carbon paper in place, I used a medium ballpoint pen, pressing hard, to trace the layout pattern and transfer the design to the wood surface.

Etching the Layout:

Here's a look at the rotary tool I use. The flexible cable makes the job much easier and affords a finer control than having to manipulate the heavy power head in your hand.



I used four cutting bits to do the etching. For the outside border, I used the largest, next for the numbers, next for the bold drawing lines, and the tiny bit for the detail lines.



Etching is always a messy process. You could call it the final step in simplification. Often lines are redrawn or moved to better fit the medium. Believe it or not, the simple strokes for the border and numbers are more critical than those used for any diagram. Because of the simplicity of the lines, any crookedness or irregularity in the numbers will be blatantly obvious. A crooked line in a diagram just becomes part of the design.



This close-up shows the bit sizes and clearly shows the messy nature of the activity. You can see that, while I used the drawing lines as guides, more often than not my etching lines took a somewhat different path.



My etching technique is a multi-staged process. But with the first etching completed, it's time to sand the board and get rid of all the drawing lines. This instantly looks much better than the previous messy step.



Now the screw holes have been drilled and countersunk and the plaque is waiting to have all it's edges beveled. The grinder in the foreground is one of my favorite woodworking tools. With a coarse 40 grit disc, I use it for shaping, edging, and fine sizing. It takes the place of half a dozen other specialized tools. In this case, I'll grind off all the sharp corners and produce a nicely shaped piece.



Inking the etching lines is probably the most time consuming part of the entire process. The rotary tool leaves the lines shaky and rough. Rolling them hard with a medium ballpoint gives them a finish not possible any other way. It also deposits lots of ink which will mostly have to be removed in the second etching, but the results are worth the effort. As part of the inking, some lines still need to be adjusted to reach their final locations.



Here's the inking process in an animation...


... and in detail after completion.

Initial Staining:

Setting up to stain a project like this you want to be sure to have brushes, thinner, mixing cups and lots and lots of paper towels. I've never used any stains other than Minwax and have only great things to say about the product.


I have many shades of stain, but for this project I thought a base of pecan and oak would work best. For the darker tones I used Black Walnut.

It's very important that you conduct staining trials with different mixes, overstains, and strengths. I used the cut-off corners of the board to do these tests.


After the samples, I decided that my first staining should be a mixture of pecan/oak, with three parts mineral spirits. This will be a very light coat but will serve to work some of the ballpoint ink into the wood and begin to show the wood grain. The other thing that became obvious is that the black walnut is just too flat and lifeless. I think using a good undercoat of the pecan/oak mix with the walnut will give the dark tones more vibrance and depth.

Here's an animation that shows the plaque before and after the initial staining. I used a tiny brush to be sure all the holes got a good dose of stain all the way through. The plaque will be exposed to the elements and I must be sure the holes won't become a source of degradation and rot. I'll give them special attention when I apply the exterior varnish to seal the wood. I also applied the stain to the entire back of the piece.


I let the plaque dry 24 hours after staining so everything would be well set before I started the destructive process of second etching. You can see that the stain, even though it was very light, has started to bring out the details and grain of the wood.

Second Etching:

Why a second etching? While the process of inking is invaluable in deepening, evening, and finalizing the lines, it leaves the drawing looking like it could have been stamped by some machine. If it were to be stained like this it would look, at best, like a careful child's work in a coloring book, or a Hanna-Barbera cartoon. This should be obvious by this large photograph of the bass drawing.


Etching the lines a second time deepens them and removes most of the ink. The small amounts of ink left are haphazard, irregular, and, when combined with stain, will give the piece a wonderfully organic feel.



After a light sanding, this detail shows the messy-looking result of the second etching. The process is performed using a slightly smaller bit than was used to do the first.

Staining the Plaque:

With all of the shaping work done, the piece is finished by applying several layers of stain in colors and strengths determined earlier by making test samples. I started with a base coat of pecan/oak mixed with three parts mineral spirits. This very light stain will be all that's needed in the open areas of the plaque.


As this before/after shows, the stain combines with the bits of ink left in the etching to make all the lines visible. This effect will increase as more stain is applied. You'll notice that there are some areas where the stain is darker. I will use a paper towel dipped in a bit of mineral spirits to rub off some stain as needed to even out the coloration before proceeding to the next stain pass.

To separate the body of the bass from the plaque background, and to supply the needed undercoat for the dull black walnut stain, I used a straight 50/50 mix of pecan and oak stains with no thinner.


You can see that the etching lines are getting more pronounced and the plaque is starting to take on some of its final appearance. Also note how effective the mineral spirits rub was at evening out the background areas. I continued the darker stains used for the border across the entire back of the piece.

WARNING!!! Wood stains are designed to penetrate, not to be used as artist's colors. As this detail enlargement shows, when you apply a dark stain over a light, it will tend to seep into the grain outside any arbitrary lines you might establish. use small brushes, almost dry near borders, and keep a paper towel nearby to dab up stray grain tracings.


On small details, like the one above, I often used a razor knife, after the stain was dry, to scrape off unwanted blurs. The same detail from the finished plaque shows that, while far from perfect, even small lines can be preserved in this manner.



So, with a little quantity of black walnut stain in a glass, a small brush in one hand, and a paper towel in the other, I applied the dark dark stain. I'd put a little on, work it into the pecan/oak beneath, blot it a bit, then move on.


I let the stain dry then, as before with the background stain, I used mineral spirits on a paper towel to even out the color and used a brush to add color where needed. Where edges needed a bit of touch-up, I scraped a bit with a razor knife. Then I set the piece aside for a day to get good and dry before starting the varnishing.

Applying Protective Finish:

Because the plaque is intended to be a permanent exterior fixture, only the very best quality protectant will do. Minwax Helmsman polyurethane spar varnish is a pain to work with and expensive, but offers sealing and protection from weather, heat, and ultraviolet radiation. I used the liquid only for the screw holes, and the spray for everything else.


As I said earlier, the holes could prove to be the weak point in the piece so I gave them extra attention. From the back I carefully sealed each of the holes with masking tape so they wouldn't leak.

Then I turned the plaque over and used the stirring stick to drip varnish into each of the holes until it reached the top surface. I let the varnish soak in, refilling as needed, for 30 minutes.



After I was sure the holes had accepted as much varnish as they were going to, I used a small brush to dip out the remaining liquid, then put the plaque up on props and removed the tape to allow the holes to drip dry. I used compressed air blown into each hole to remove excess.



Before spraying the plaque with varnish, I carefully detailed it one last time, then used compressed air to blow out all of the etching lines. Finally I used a tack cloth to remove any trace of dust.

I applied three coats of spray, waiting nearly two hours between. The instructions say that re-coats must be applied within two hours or you must wait 72 hours and sand. Even waiting almost to the limit, the varnish was still tacky and difficult to keep clean while spraying. After three coats, it reached the point where I decided it would have to dry completely then be recoated to be finished because the varnish was taking on a very rough texture... WHAT A PAIN IN THE ... ARRRGGG!

After waiting three days, I carefully sanded inside the holes with tiny strips of emery cloth then repeated the hole filling-soaking operation. I sanded the entire plaque with 150 grit sandpaper until it was smooth, then put on another three coats of varnish.

After another three days, it was finally time to put in the screws to finish the piece.


I ordered bronze screws from a nautical supply because they were noted as being corrosion resistant -- hence, no green streaks across the plaque.

Here's the finished plaque outside on the trellis. I hope it will bring a smile to dad's face and, when installed, give many years of service.



They say the best laid plans - blahda blahda blah, but in this case, I'd say the finished project is enough like it was conceived to be called a success.


I hope you enjoyed the page and, perhaps, got an idea or two from my ramblings.