I've been engraving on Dollar Tree sign blanks for a while now. But I usually cut them up and use them for other purposes instead of the vertical hanging signs they're intended for. But for a family picnic sign, the vertical format seemed perfect.

Problem: These signs are bigger than my M1 engraver. So what's one to do?

Solution: Improvise.

I angled the sign blank corner to corner under my engraver. Now I have the riser base and honeycomb, so I lowered the honeycomb bed and stacked up some material until there was barely enough room to slide the sign blank under the engraver.

Technically, this is lower than the supported engraving distance, but I was still able to make it work.

Since you're engraving below the detectable engraving area, you'll need to carefully align what you're planning to engrave on the sign. I'm big on framing, so I improvised some framing on this angled surface. Draw diagonal lines on your design that appear to align with the edges of the sign blank surface. Instead of framing them, set them to the fastest speed and lowest scoring setting. When you process, you should see the laser pass over what it thinks are the edges of your sign. They won't be. So adjust the lines and try again until your lines, when processed, cause the laser to skim the edges of the sign.

Now add your sign content. I started with the footer—upside down for some reason! Type what you want, then rotate it and visually align it between the framing lines you drew and “framed” earlier. Set the framing lines to Ignore before engraving your content.

Next I added the family name: Brinks. I adjusted the sign blank, pushing it further back under the engraver. Now go through the same proces. Add lines that you intend to use for framing along what appears to be the edges of the sign. Set to the lowest scoring setting at the fastest speed. Process and adjust as needed. Now set them to ignore and add and engrave the name.

Sign blanks can be boring, so I wanted to embellish the cutout at the top. On a new canvas, I threw a few of the stock maple leaf images on a canvas around the cutout of the pumpkin. I put a sliver of wood under the sign and engraved those leaves so they looked like they surrounded the base of the pumpkin.

Finally, add a little flare to the project with some color.

I cut some green and orange color paper to lay behind the pumpkin cutout and taped it in place on the back of the sign.

Then on the front, use a brush pen or similar to add some lines to complete the look of the pumpkin.

The result is a fun sign for a family picnic that you can hang on the pavilion or yard where you're hosting your event.