DIY: String Art

 Not only did my string art project turn our pretty awesome, if I do say so myself, BUT it also only cost me $22 AND I was able to pick up all the supplies at one store! Now that's a successful DIY!

I bought all of the following materials at Lowe's:

-12"x36" wood board (Any size would work)

-Stain

-Brush for stain (I just got the cheap foam brush and it worked great!)

-Nails- (I used 1 3/8")

-String twisted cotton twine (I bought 2 but didn't even use 1/10 of a spool!)

The following items I already had:

-Double sided tape (any tape will work)

-Hammer (I found a tack hammer seemed to work better than a regular one, and less noisy!)

-Letters to trace (I printed this off from a word doc and made the letters as big as would fit on one page)

-Scissors

1st Step- Stain wood. 

I found it only took about 45min-1hr for the stain to dry. Don't forget to do the sides too!

Yes, that is a garbage bag torn at the seems. I improvise. 

Step 2- Lay Out Lettering

After cutting out the letters and heart, I laid them out on the board how I wanted them. (Colin decided the heart should be tilted, so we turned it once we tapped them down.) After you have them where you want em, tape them down so they don't move. 

 Step 3- Hammer Time! 

(See what I did there) 

Now comes the part where patience is needed! The more you have, the less space you can put in between the nails. And the less patience, well.... you get the idea. I started nailing about a 1/8" away from the paper, that way I could easily pull it off the board once all the nails were in tact. Don't worry about the spacing being perfect or your nails going in straight. TRUST ME, you won't be able to tell the difference once it's all finished.

Step 4- Bring Out The String

This is where the fun comes in. I started by double knotting the beginning of the string on one nail. Then, I outlined each letter with the string before weaving them in between and all around the nails. Don't try and make any specific pattern, let loose, and go wild. (I know you have it in you) :p One suggestion, when you are outlining, make sure the string isn't right at the head of the nail, otherwise you'll have to go back through and push the string down to the middle of the nail to make room for more string. (Don't ask me how I know)

 VOILA!

 My sign is just sitting on a shelf for now until we move, and then it will get hung up. But, it's not quite done yet! I'm planning on adding even more to it, that will take it to the next level of awwwwwesome! What you ask? I guess you'll have to stay tuned to find out. ;)

XOXO- Chelsea