Have you ever tried engraving on metal before? I've been itching to give it a try and was surprised by how easy it is was. Making this unique sunflower mason jar fall wall decor was my first attempt at engraving aluminum and it definitely won't be my last.

Aside from having fun engraving, I also salvaged some louvered shutter door slats and recycled a wooden frame. So this fall wall art idea cost next to nothing to make.

Repurposed Shutter Slats Fall Wall Decor

The motivation came from finding a package of Cricut Aluminum Sheets on clearance for under $10.

The inspiration came from a wooden frame found at Goodwill and the shape reminded me of a jar with a round lid.

I thought long and hard about how to make the wood frame look like a mason jar. But when I found the aluminum sheets, I decided why not put the mason jar on it instead.

The backing on the frame is salvaged louvered shutter door slats leftover from the tabletop wood slat Christmas tree that I made last year. I have a large box of them and was happy to find another purpose for a few more.

What You'll Need To Make It

These are the supplies you'll need to make something similar. This post contains affiliate links so you can see what products I used or recommend for this project. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Supply List

Wooden Frame (thrift store)
Shutter Door Slats (salvaged)
Walnut Gel Stain
Black Wax
Goldenrod Color Paint
Satin Black Spray Paint
Cricut Aluminum Sheets
Cricut Engraving Tip
Wood Glue
E6000 Glue
Hot Glue Gun
Fall Wired Ribbon
Faux Amaranthus Floral Picks (dollar store)
Florist Wire

Here's How I Made It

I've broken down the instructions into categories; how to upcycle the wooden frame and louvered slats, and how to engrave on aluminum sheets with a Cricut Maker machine. We'll begin with the thrift store frame.

Upcycled Thrift Store Wood Frame

Instead of painting the frame, I wanted to retain the natural wood but darken the stain. First I lightly sanded the frame with the grain of the wood using 150 grit sandpaper. Next, I applied two coats of Dark Walnut gel stain with a lint-free rag.

It wasn't quite dark enough so I followed that up with a coat of black wax, also applied with a lint-free rag.

For the back of the frame, the salvaged louvered door slats were trimmed with a miter saw. Then painted a Goldenrod color with paint leftover from my vintage jewelry chest makeover.

Once the paint was dry they were glued onto the back of the wooden frame with both a dab of hot glue and wood glue. The hot glue instantly held them in place as I butt them tightly together and the wood glue securely attached them to the frame.

While the glue was curing I moved onto engraving the sunflower mason jar onto the Cricut aluminum sheet.

How To Prepare Aluminum Sheet For Engraving

In order for the engraving to stand out, it's a good idea to paint the aluminum sheet in a contrasting color first. I spray-painted mine with two thin coats of satin black spray paint.

Note, the aluminum sheets come with a protective film on the top and bottom. So before spray painting, remove the top plastic film first. It's important that the paint dries for several hours before engraving.

Create Graphic In Cricut Design Space

To create an image to engrave on the painted aluminum sheet open a new project in Cricut Design Space. Click the images tab, and type mason jars in the search bar.

I found this one that I liked and resized it to fit the width of the opening of the wooden frame. Then go to the operation tab at the top left of the canvas and change the setting to engrave.

Next, I clicked the images tab again and searched fall and found one that I liked, and centered it on the mason jar label on the canvas. Again, changing the operation tab to engrave mode.

Then I ran my mouse over the two graphics and clicked the group setting in the layers panel on the righthand side of the canvas so the two separate graphics moved around the canvas as one graphic.

Next, I clicked the weld setting on the bottom right-hand side of the canvas so both images remain grouped together on the engraving mat.

Prepare Cricut Mat For Engraving

• A strong grip mat is suggested for the Cricut aluminum sheets. I used a standard grip mat and it worked just fine.
• Remove the gold protective film on the back of the aluminum sheet.
• Secure the aluminum sheet on the mat with masking tape or painter's tape making sure not to cover any of the areas being engraved.
• Place an engraving tip into the Cricut Maker housing.
• Click the make it button on the design space canvas.
• In the materials list, click all materials and select aluminum sheets.

Ignore the two engraved items on the right side of my aluminum sheet in the photo above. Ideally, you would use the entire 8 x 8-inch aluminum sheet and center your graphic.

But because the opening on my wood frame is only 7-inches wide, I situated it to engrave on the left side of the sheet and took advantage of the empty space on the right to engrave another project I have on the go.

Attach Engraved Aluminum To Wall Decor

After taking the engraved aluminum sheet off the cutting mat, it needed to be cut to fit the opening of the wooden frame. Unfortunately, you can't cut the aluminum sheets with a Cricut Maker.

You can score the engraved aluminum with a sharp retractable knife and straight edge until it can snap in your hands. I'm wondering if a band saw or scroll saw with a metal blade might be a better option for cutting it.

You can use E6000 glue to attach the aluminum sheet onto the painted wooden slats.

Cutting rounded corners on the right side of the cut aluminum so they match the factory cut corners was not an easy task. Again, I think using a band saw or scroll saw will get a factory finish look on the corners. But ideally, use the entire 8 x 8-inch sheet of aluminum if you can.

To hide our sins we cut the stems off of decorative upholstery tacks and glued them onto each corner with E6000 glue. The stems were too long to actually tack them through the aluminum and wood slat back.

Embellish Fall Wall Decor

To embellish the top of the sunflower fall wall decor I added Amaranthus floral picks from the dollar store and made a simple bow with wired fall ribbon.

I wired them together with florist wire and attached them to the top of the wooden frame with a hot glue gun. When making bows I cheat and use this handy bow maker tool.

I'm so glad I tried my hand at engraving with my Cricut Maker. It was quite easy to do and I'm so pleased with the results.

Here's another fall wall decor idea but this one was made with recycled wooden tiles and a thrift store picture frame.

Thanks for stopping by the Interior Frugalista today! I hope you were inspired by this engraved sunflower mason jar wall decor for fall.

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