Patriotic Door Decor

I decided to make a narrow box to display some artificial flowers. I wanted to hang this on my front door for Independence Day (Fourth of July). The Varathane Barn Red stain was sitting there on the shelf begging for my attention!

I took an 18" piece of 1x6 and began by shaping the top. I used the pattern from the end of one of my toolbox caddies that I had made. I cut another piece of 1x6 (shorter) for the front and used 1x3's for the sides. After sanding, I dry fit the pieces just to make sure they all fit together. I decided to stain the pieces before fastening the box. The Varathane stain is great to work with, I wiped it on then waited five minutes before wiping the excess off. I like that it dries quickly, about an hour!

Next I used my nail gun to assemble.  I also drilled a 1/2" hole in the top for hanging.  I'm going to put on a protective top coat, although I haven't decided what to use yet. Any suggestions?

I'd like to be able to use this for different occasions which is why I didn't paint any stars/stripes on the box. The barn red will be great for Christmas and Valentines day!