This upcycle didn’t cost me a dime to make! See how to make a reclaimed wood American flag for your Fourth of July DIY inspiration!

Rummaging through my husband’s scrap wood pile not too long ago, I came across this old wood pallet piece. I loved the look of it and how aged and worn it looked, like it had a lot of stories to tell.

For a while this piece of old wood just sat on my desk because I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do with it. I didn’t give it too much more thought until this past weekend when an idea just came to me – a rustic American flag.

Even though this is just a small piece of wood, I thought it would be so cute turned into a American flag just in time for the Fourth of July. I don’t usually decorate for that holiday, but I’ve been loving all the reds, whites, and blues lately.

And I think now is a time that those colors need to really stand out and Americans need to grow up and start coming together and working as a team, not pitting against each other.

Reclaimed Wood American Flag

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Making this reclaimed wood American flag didn’t cost me anything since I already had everything on hand. I love a good free upcycle, don’t you?

What you need:

*Note: There is crackle medium in this photo because I planned to use it for the star. However, at the last minute, I changed my mind and decided I wanted the star to stand out more, and not look “cracked”.

• a small piece of reclaimed pallet wood (mine is 7 1/2″ long)
• craft paint in blue and white
• paintbrush
• fabric scraps
• jute twine
• scissors
• hot glue

What you do:

The first thing I did was mix a little bit of blue craft paint with a little bit of water because I wanted the wood to show through. Then I painted the wood piece lightly with the paint mixture, not really covering the entire piece.

I took a picture of this step, but for some reason, it disappeared so you’ll just have to imagine what it looks like.

After the paint dried completely, I free-handed a star in the center of the wood. Then I painted the star white with a smaller-sized paintbrush.

While the star was drying, I decided to cut and rip my fabric strips. For this reclaimed wood American flag project, I used white muslin fabric and red/white checkered fabric.

First I cut the fabric into 6″x7″ pieces. Then, I cut strips about a 1/2″ apart and ripped them the rest of the way to get that old tattered look. I ended up using 7 red strips and 7 white strips.

After cutting the strips and making sure the paint was completely dry, I started gluing the fabric strips and jute twine to the bottom of the back of the wood.

I alternated my strips using red, then white, then jute twine in that order.

TIP: These little rubber fingertip things are amazing when you’re working with hot glue!! No more burns! (And they’re cheap, too.)

Next, I twisted a leftover fabric strip with a piece of jute twine and hot glued it to the top of the wood for hanging.

Then I hung my handmade reclaimed wood American flag up for a cute decoration in my living room.

This reclaimed wood American flag project only took about an hour to make. I’m very happy with the way it turned out!

What do you think? Do you decorate for the Fourth of July holiday?

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Looking for more upcycled DIY’s? I recommend these:
Farmhouse Candle Holders
Upcycled Mailbox Planter
Farmhouse Mason Jar Vase
Shabby Chic Lamp
Farmhouse Footstool

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