• 1/16x5x4-inch piece of Baltic birch plywood
• Scrollsaw with a #5R blade
• 100- and 150-grit sandpaper
• Tack cloth
• 1/4-inch-diameter wooden plug
• Wood sealer
• Stylus
• Glazing medium
• Rose-color artist's chalk or powder blush
• Mini-check stencil
• Krylon 1311 Matte-Finish Spray
• 1/2-inch synthetic flat brush
• 1/2-inch and 5/8-inch synthetic angular shaders
• #6 synthetic liner
• Stippler and spatter or old toothbrush

1. Download the free patterns for this project. (Downloading requires Adobe Acrobat software.)

Uncle Sam Pin patterns

Download Adobe Acrobat

2. Transfer the outlines of the patterns onto 1/16-inch Baltic birch plywood.

3. Cut out the shapes with a scrollsaw, using a #5R blade.

4. Sand all surfaces with 100- and then 150-grit sandpaper; remove the dust.

5. Apply sealer, sand again, and wipe clean. Apply wood sealer to all surfaces; let the sealer dry. Sand again; wipe clean with a tack cloth.

6. Begin painting. Base-coat with 1/2-inch flat brush. Shade with angular shaders, using the size that best fits the area. Apply details with a #6 liner brush. Avoid painting areas where pieces join. Glue and epoxy won't bond permanently to painted surfaces. Stipple all highlights unless indicated otherwise.

Uncle Sam: Base-coat Uncle Sam's face and wooden-plug nose with MF and shade with DF. When paint is dry, blush his cheeks with artist's chalk or powder blush. Wait to paint the eyes and eyebrows after you've completed the antiquing in step 9.

Base-coat the small star and Uncle Sam's beard and mustache Beige. Using a mini-check stencil, a stippler brush, and White, stencil Uncle Sam's beard. Using a stylus, apply White dots to Uncle Sam's beard and to each star point. Let the paint dry. Dilute White with water to a wash consistency, and apply paint to Uncle Sam's mustache. Let the paint dry.

Base-coat the top of the hat Red. Mix Red and BU to a dark red and shade the hat. Base-coat the hat brim with MB. When the paint dries, sand some of the paint from the edges for a timeworn look, and remove the sanding dust with a tack cloth.

Dilute White with water to ink consistency; using a spatter or old toothbrush, spatter (flyspeck) Uncle Sam.

Flag: Base-coat the flag White. Paint the stripes Red. Shade with the dark red mixture. Base-coat the blue field with MB; shade with DB. Dot the stars with White. Dilute BL with water to ink consistency; using a spatter or old toothbrush, spatter (flyspeck) the flag. Let the paint dry.

Blue star: Base-coat the star with MB, and shade the edges with DB. When the paint dries, sand paint from the edges of the star points. Remove the sanding dust. Paint the irregular lines Red. Spatter the star with White as for Uncle Sam's hat.

7. Lightly mist all painted surfaces with Krylon 1311 Matte-Finish Spray, and let the spray dry.

8. Apply your favorite antiquing medium to all surfaces, and let the medium dry.

9. Paint Uncle Sam with White. Using White, dot Uncle Sam's cheeks, highlight his nose, and paint his eyebrows.

10. Glue or epoxy the pieces together, using the photograph as a guide.

11. Spray the pin with several coats of Krylon 1311 Matte-Finish Spray, and let the spray dry. Attach the pin back with glue or epoxy.

Order a kit (#47E) that contains all of the cutout pieces for $4.60 ppd. in the U.S. Write to Rick Hutcheson, P.O. Box 227, Grimes, IA 50111; or call 515-986-4185; e-mail: ric47@scrollsaws.com, or visit Rick's Scrollsaw Site.

Rick's Scrollsaw Site

The designer cut the flag and hat shapes with a scrollsaw and used Forster Woodsies, precut wooden shapes for star, head, mustache, and beard shapes. They're available where you purchase your other materials or contact Forster, Inc., 207-645-2574 for buying information.