Wood American Flag Art

Submitted to Community Chat

A friend came to me and asked me to make 10 of these Wood Art-Thin Blue Line Flags for a fundraiser.   I  immediately got to work.

There is no black paint.  I used a torch to burn the wood. Shou sugi ban is a Japanese techique of burning/charring wood to preserve it. I had leftover blue paint from other projects.  I then carved out the stars and then sealed the flag with Varathane Stain & Poly.   Screwed d hooks on the back for hanging. 

These flags have a meaning to me.  

My husband retired in 2005 from the NYPD as a Homicide Detective. Everyday for 20 years, my husband walked out the door of our home to protect with his life, the lives of many men, women, and children living in the 5 boroughs of New York City. Every day for 20 years, I have lived with the harsh reality that one day he might not come back home.

To some, it’s just a blue line, but I am a proud law enforcement wife, so the blue line is our family crest.

While making the 10 flags for the fundraiser, I played around with other ideas.  The red line flag for firefighters.  The K9 flag is for K9 Officers and of course..the hardest one that I had to do was for September 11th.   Not that it was physically hard to do, but since we lived through the horrible ordeal...it just was emotionally hard.