DIY North Pole Sign

Darling DIY North Pole Sign that’s perfect for a Christmas party or your front porch!

Every year our church has a Christmas party, and the theme this year is The Polar Express. It’s going to be so fun! I decided to make this darling DIY North Pole Sign, and I absolutely love how it turned out. I actually made four of the same time–and I’m so glad I did. You can see them in action our our party at the end of the post!

They’re easy to make, and didn’t cost a lot to put together. Win-win in my book!

Here’s how to put it together…

Supplies:

Affiliate links of the products I used for this project are included below for your convenience. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

-plywood or MDF, cut to size for the base (mine is 12×15)

-piece of 2×4 wood…about 12 inches high

-bolt

-cardboard shipping tubes (mine are 3 inches across)

–white spray paint

–black spray paint

–3.8 inch-4 inch styrofoam ball

–gold spray paint

–adhesive spray

–red satin ribbon

–sign ( I used a chalkboard sign made of chipboard)

–Snow-tex

–chalk marker

-long black nail

Directions:

A friend of mine already shipping tubes that she gave me to use…they are about 4 feet tall, and 3 inches in diameter. I’ve also heard you can get them from a carpeting store—that you can go in and ask for any extras that they have. I was going to try that next, but ended up not having to.

We cut the base out of plywood…to 12×15…and then bolted a 2×4 (about 12 inches high) to the top of the base. To help the tube slip easily over the 2×4, but still be secure, we rounded the edges with a sander.

If you’re going to hang a sign from the tube, consider attaching a small piece of wood inside the tube. If the sign weighs much at all, over time it could cause the tube to collapse. The wood stabilizes it, and helps to hold the weight of the sign.

Paint the tube white, and the base black. You can also spray your styrofoam ball at the same time.

Once the paint is dry, you’re ready to add the ribbon. The nice thing about using a shipping tube is that there are already diagonal lines in the tube, making it super easy to add the ribbon evenly…just follow those lines!

I found the ribbon at Hobby Lobby in the wedding section–it was 3o feet for only $5.99, which was WAY cheaper than any I found in the regular ribbon section or with the Christmas ribbon. Those were the same price, some spools only 4 feet. I wanted a red satin, because it looks the best on the pole. To attach the ribbon, I started at the top, sprayed adhesive spray to the ribbon, then followed the lines on the tube. If you don’t have those lines, I would probably mark the tub ahead of time, to make sure that your ribbon is straight, and spaced evenly.

When your ribbon is on, you can adhere the ball to the top of the tube. Don’t use the adhesive spray–it will eat the foam. I recommend a craft glue, like E6000—and you don’t need a lot.

For the sign, I found chalkboard signs made of chipboard at Hobby Lobby. They are the perfect size, plus they’re lighter than using wood. I used a chalk marker to write “NORTH POLE” on each sign, then used a foam brush to add Snow Tex around the edges of the sign.

Originally I wanted to add snow to the bottom of each “o”, “p, and “t”, but I just couldn’t get it to look the way I wanted it to. I may still try it again…we’ll see. But you definitely can!!