Reversible Scarecrows & Nutcrackers

Paint wooden scarecrows, then flip them over and paint nutcrackers on the back and you have an awesome reversible holiday craft to decorate for fall and Christmas!

This post is sponsored by Hobby Lobby.

I am so excited to share today’s craft tutorial with you. As is often the beginning of any crafting story, I was wandering the aisles of Hobby Lobby when I saw these cute wooden scarecrow signs in the fall crafting section. I immediately knew I could turn them into a reversible craft, so I brought them home and guess what? They turned out SO CUTE!

If you’re new to The Craft Patch, welcome! We’re big fans of reversible crafts. I’ve made quite a few over the years. Be sure to check them out here.

Let’s get into the nitty gritty, shall we?

Just a note about the scarecrow signs. They are located in the fall crafts section and there is a boy and a girl. I suspect these will sell out pretty soon, so head to Hobby Lobby ASAP!

Instructions

Step 1: Choose color palettes for the scarecrows and the nutcrackers. I like to dab a bit of paint on to a scrap piece of paper and write the paint color names next to them. The colors sometimes look different in the bottle and I want to make sure I love the color combinations before I start painting.

If you struggle picking paint colors, I suggest doing a Google image search looking for “scarecrow clipart” and “nutcracker clipart” to see different ways other artists have designed them. I actually made myself some mood boards, colored in the scarecrow design and sketched out the nutcrackers using Procreate on my iPad. This really helped me land on a color palette and decide which color I wanted where.

These are the colors I landed on for mine.

Step 2: Remove the rope hangers and staples from the back side of the sign. And don’t forget to peel off those price stickers too.

Step 3: Painting the scarecrow side is pretty easy… just follow the carved designs the sign came with. It works best to paint from back to front… meaning that if the scarecrow were 3D, which parts would be behind the other parts? The face is behind the hair. The hair is under the hat. Does that make sense? Start with whatever layer is the furthest back.

Painting the nutcrackers on the back side of the wood is a little more challenging because you just have a big, blank surface! I referenced the sketches I had made on my iPad and lightly drew the rough shapes onto the wood with a pencil.

Step 4: Once all the main parts are painted, I highly recommend using paint pens to add the details. It’s so much easier to get smooth lines with a pen.

And here’s my secret for adding rosy cheeks to anything you paint. Rub a layer of pink chalk or oil pastel onto the tip of a paint dauber, then press it onto the wood for the perfect finishing touch.

Are you ready to see the finished product? Presenting Mr. and Mrs. Scarecrow:

and these two handsome gents:

I am going to put them on my porch this year. I just love how they turned out!

Reversible Scarecrows & Nutcrackers Video

Making this craft has me so excited for the upcoming seasons. Fall and Christmas time are my absolute favorite! I have so many fun craft ideas I want to try. I can’t wait to share them all with you!