DIY Wood Slice Centerpiece
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When Andrew & I started planning our wedding, I knew wood rounds were a must. We both wanted a rustic theme to our wedding décor. As luck would have it, a pine tree fell at the farm, so I had an endless supply of free wood slices!
Step 1: Cut the Wood Slices
So, I do not trust myself to operate a chainsaw (yet). I’ll get there but, in the meantime, I used Andrew’s skills to get my slices cut! I selected different size branches and trunks to make sure I had a good variety of wood slice sizes. Since I knew I was going to stack the wood slices on each table, I had Andrew cut me a TON of slices in all different sizes!
Step 2: Let the Wood Dry Out
Okay whoever said watching paint dry was miserable clearly never waited for wood rounds to dry out. After cutting the wood rounds in November, we put them in my parents’ basement for about 2 months to dry out. We had the time, so it really wasn’t a huge deal! If you are short on time, I recommend putting the wood slices into the oven to speed up the process (here is a great step by step guide on doing so!).
Step 3: Sand the Wood Slices
Using a palm sander and 80-grit sandpaper to sand the wood slices. I only sanded the top side, as the bottom didn’t really matter to me. Initially I thought I would sand the slices until they were flat, but I quickly realized this would be impossible! I sanded until the wood was smooth to touch.
Step 4: Burn the Wood Slices (optional)
Amanda had purchased a wood burner for a few diy wedding items she made, so I decided to utilize it for this project! I decided to only personalize one wood round per table. I did this for a few reasons. First, I felt like I didn’t want the personalization to be overkill. Second, I wanted to be able to resell the majority of my wood rounds and I knew the odds of finding a couple with the same initials as us was slim! I put “A&R” and our wedding date “6-11” on 22 wood slices. This way, one slice per table was personalized.
A few tips on using the wood burner!
- Make sure it is really, really hot. If it hasn’t fully heated up, then the letter’s won’t fully imprint into the wood. This happened for a few of mine, I got over-eager and began stamping before it was ready! I didn’t mind a slight variation from burn to burn but a few of them I really hated.
- The wood rounds will not be perfectly flat. Hold your wood burner as still as you can and rock it back and forth to ensure the entire letter imprints onto the wood.
- If you mess up, you can sand it off! Just take your palm sander to the burned area and give yourself a fresh start.
If you don’t have a wood burner and don’t want to buy on for this project, I recommend using a bit paint to personalize!
Step 5: Wipe & Spray with Polyurethane
We had a few ideas on how to finish off the wood rounds, but ultimately chose to use spray Polyurethane. The spray poly is more expensive than buying a gallon of it, but it is also a whole lot easier. First, I wiped the wood slices with denatured alcohol. Then, I set the wood rounds next to each other and was able to spray about 10 at once. The poly gave the wood rounds a smooth and finished look!
Step 6: Decorate the DIY Wood Slice Centerpiece
In order to make decorating on the day of as easy as possible, we set up all of our table arrangements in advance! I began by placing the large wood rounds at the bottom and stacking the little ones on top.
Overall, this was one of the easier wedding DIY projects I decided to take on! The hardest part was waiting for the wood to finish drying out. Each DIY wood slice centerpiece is unique, and we love that they all came from the farm. We are planning to keep a few to use as home décor!
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DIY Wood Slice Centerpiece Links
DIY Wood Slice Centerpiece
Equipment
- Chainsaw
- Palm Sander
- Wood Burner
materials
- A Tree
- Denatured Alcohol
- Rags
- Polyurethane
- 80 Grit Sand Paper
Instructions
- Cut the Wood Slices
- Let the Wood Dry Out
- Sand the Wood Slices
- Burn the Wood Slices (optional)
- Wipe & Spray with Polyurethane
- Decorate!