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| On many of my model
structures I have hand painted signs, as can be seen in the photograph
above of BARLOW MOTORS
and on the front of L.F.WILLS
SADDLERY. Click on the links to see these models in more detail.
If you have a program like CORAL DRAW, you can make very intricate and interesting signs. The example from "BARLOW MOTORS" seen at right was drawn using WORDART™. After you have
printed the sign, cut around the edge of the sign. Turn over and on the back
of the sign, using a soft lead Position the sign artwork on the structure wall and tape lightly into place with masking tape. I tape only one edge so I can fold the artwork back and thus ensure that I have got it positioned right. Using a biro or sharp hard pencil, trace around the edge of each letter to transfer it onto the wall. Continue to fold back the artwork to ensure you have transferred all the letters. Now There are other options to using a brush and paint. If the sign is black, a fine pen will work fine. Colored pencils are also great to achieve a well weathered sign. Also, a combination of these mediums can be used to achieve great signs with some very interesting effects. If you want to
weather these signs, a light rub with a cardboard finger nail file will
d Hand painted signs look great on structures and really enhance a model. And it's not as hard as you think to do! Give it a try and I'm sure you will be pleased with the results you get.
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While
these hand painted signs require a steady hand and a good quality brush,
theycan be far easier than you would think. When the wall
of the structure has been built or you have the plan
of the structure where the sign is going to be placed, measure the size
of the area available for the sign. Then, in a computer program like Microsoft
WORD™, I draw a text box
to that size, as
in the diagram right. This gives me the maximum size the sign can be. I then type in the wording required
and select the font
and text size that will fill the box. With the use of a s
ub-program that WORD
has like WORDART, you can curve or
shape signs to your requirements. 
pencil like a 6B
or a dark pastel pencil, and at a very
low angle, rub a thick layer of lead or pastel over the entire area. This forms a
light carbon paper. 
its just a matter
of filling in the letters with paint. I tend to paint
all the left hand edges of the letters, then when this is dry, turn the
building face 90º and paint the top edges. When dry again turn 90º and
paint the right hand edges. Repeat for the bottom edges. 
istress the paint nicely. Also, some vertical light streaks of the same
color will simulate the paint washing off the wall by the effects of
weather. If the wall is very heavily grained wood, dragging a sharp
point down each grain where the sign is will also age it nicely.