Craft an Uncle Sam pin

Add an Americana touch to your outfit for the Fourth of July, or any of the summer's patriotic holidays, with an Uncle Sam pin. This pin is made using small wood craft shapes. The shapes are available at craft stores and some discount and dollar stores. They come in a package with multiples of each shape. Alter your project, as needed, if your shapes are not exactly the same size as the ones I used.

Things You Will Need:

Contact paper
Masking tape
1 1/4-inch wood circle (head)
3/8-inch wood circle (nose)
2-inch-long wood teardrop (beard)
Two, 3/4-inch-long wood teardrops (mustache)
1-inch wood star
1-inch wide by 2-inch long wood rectangle (hat)
3/4-inch wide by 1 1/2-inch long wood rectangle (brim)
Acrylic paints-peach, white, red, blue, yellow, brown, black
Paintbrush
Fingernail file
Paper towel
Craft glue
Blush and cotton swab
Toothpick
1-inch pin-back

Step 1
Peel the paper backing from a piece of Contact paper. Lay the Contact paper on your work surface with the sticky side facing up. Secure the paper to your work surface with masking tape.

Step 2
Place each of the wood pieces on the Contact paper. Allow approximately 1 inch of space between each one. The sticky paper will hold the pieces in place while being painted.

Step 3
Paint the side edges and the tops of each piece as follows.

Head and nose-peach
Beard and mustache teardrops-white
Hat-red
Brim-blue
Star-yellow

Allow the paint to dry and apply a second coat if needed.

Step 4
Sand the edges of each painted piece using a fingernail file.

Step 5
Mix a stain using a small amount of brown acrylic paint and water to the consistency of ink. Apply the stain to each painted piece, wiping it off immediately with a paper towel. The stain will give the pieces an aged appearance. If more aging is desired, repeat the process.

Step 6
Place the beard with the front side facing up. The point of the tear drop is the bottom of the beard. Apply craft glue to the back of each mustache teardrop and place on the beard at the top. (See picture for placement.)

Step 7
Place the head with the front side facing up. This is the face. Apply a dot of craft glue to the bottom front of the face. Place the top edge of the beard over the glue on the face. (See picture for placement.)

Step 8
Apply a dot of glue to the center of the face, just above the beard. Place the nose in the glue.

Step 9
Place the hat rectangle on your work surface with the long edges running vertically. Apply a line of craft glue along the bottom short edge of the hat. Place the small brim rectangle on top of the glue with the long edges running horizontally. Align the bottom edges of both the hat and the brim. Position the brim with an even amount extending from each side edge of the hat.

Step 10
Place a line of craft glue along the top of the face. Place the bottom edge of the hat over the glue. (See picture for placement.) Apply craft glue to the back of the star and place wherever desired on the hat. Allow the glue to dry.

Step 11
Apply blush to the cheeks of the face using a cotton swab. Dip the tip of a toothpick in black acrylic paint and dot two eyes above the nose. Allow the paint to dry.

Step 12

Turn the Uncle Sam over with the back side facing up. Apply craft glue to the back of a 1-inch pin-back. Place the pin-back, horizontally on the back of the brim. Allow the glue to dry.

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