Photo Credit: Ariel Skelley/Corbis
Since 1776, Independence Day has been a time for Americans to celebrate our great country and all of the freedoms that are afforded to us. Fireworks, parades and backyard barbecues take place all across the USA on July 4th in honor of our independence.
SHOW YOUR SPIRIT
Here are some projects with a patriotic flair to show your red-white-and-blue spirit.
Make a new mailbox sign to display your festive side with a Celebration Mailbox Sign downloadable plan from Woodcraft Magazine. There are four holiday designs for the scroll saw included, so you will have a project for every season. Hang it on the mailbox as shown, or it put it by your front door for a welcoming touch.
Here’s a Patriotic Heart project that’s simple enough to do with your kids or grandkids. Cut the heart shape from the pattern and glue the picture onto the wood. Touch up the edges and protect it with a clear topcoat if you want, and then it’s ready to hang.
Another kid-friendly project is the Star with Pretend Fireworks. You’ll get a pattern to follow for cutting the wood and color pictures that look like they are hand-painted, which you simply glue onto the wood.
If you enjoy intarsia, Ralph S. Buckland’s American Bald Eagles in Intarsia book is a great resource with step-by-step instructions and tons of photos and drawings. There are five eagle projects, including the seal of the United States shown here on the cover.
If carving is more your gig, this book offers detailed how-tos for three different eagle carvings. How to Carve Bellamy Eagles by Paul B. Rolfe is inspired by John Bellamy’s highly stylized wooden eagles, which were often seen on ships and in homes in the late 1800s.
Create our nation’s symbol from a tree trunk or log with this book, Chainsaw Carving an Eagle by Dennis Roghair and Jamie Doeren. These two award-winning chainsaw carvers instruct you from start to finish for four different styles of eagles, including an eagle head plaque and a bench.
Make beautiful pens with red, white and blue acrylic blanks if you like to turn on the lathe. The two blanks shown here—Uncle Glam and Stars and Wavy Stripes—offer a couple of suggestions for patriotic pen turning.
Pair up those blanks with the Liberty Bell Twist Ballpoint Pen Kits and you’ll have a winning combination that any red-blooded American would love to own. This pen features one of the most iconic symbols in US history, the liberty bell, on the pen clip and “Proclaim Liberty” inscribed around the center band.
Show your love of the Old Glory colors with this real wood Red, White and Blue Patriotic Veneer Pack from Sauers. Use for marquetry or inlay repair, adding accents on furniture, and other small jobs.
Tackle the curves of this neat Flag Cutting Board with a pair of shop-made templates. Woodcraft Magazine shared this project in Issue 89 and it is now available as a free pdf download on the website.
Learn routing techniques and use some gorgeous Easy Inlay flakes to create a Sparkling Star Inlay, a tie-in project with the Flag Cutting Board from Woodcraft Magazine. Download full instructions, including how to make five-pointed star with a compass.
Build a Flag Case for a special military member or family with this paper plan from Wood Magazine. The easy-to-follow plan takes the intimidation out of construction. We can think of no better way to say “thank you” for serving our country.
MADE IN THE USA
Finally, we leave you with this article from Gerry Phelan as a reminder to “Buy American” whenever possible. Made in the USA.
Be safe out there and fly those flags proudly!
We hope you’ll be inspired!
