Tuesday 21 January 2014

... and No Nails String Art

One of our good friends has just become a Grandmother! (Remember Lants who made the Pink Furry
Headboard?!). Her daughter Abbie has had a beautiful baby girl called India and I wanted to make something extra special and personal for her.
I'd seen lots of projects on Pinterest using nails and a wooden board to make string art. I love the effect but didn't have a suitable piece of board (and wasn't sure I could be dedicated enough to bang together all the nails that would be required!!). I do however have LOTS of blank canvases and an idea struck!

Materials:
  • Blank Canvas (I used one 50cm X 20cm)
  • Wool (I used a variegated type to get a colourful effect without having to change strands!)
  • Tapestry Needle
  • Awl or Piercing Tool
  • Baking / Tracing Paper
  • Marker Pen
  • Letter Stencils or a word or image to trace
  • Masking Tape
I started off by typing the word "India" into a Word Document, choosing a font that would look good, as well as having even straight lines (I think this works best with the straight lines of the string). 
Having marked out the space that I wanted to fill on the baking paper, I enlarged the word so that the letters would appear on the screen the size I wanted (9cm) and traced them directly from the screen (the light from the screen really helps!!)
I attached the baking paper template to the canvas with masking tape, and began to pierce holes evenly around the outline of the letters. After removing the baking paper, this is what you're left with:
I then threaded through the holes, ensuring I came out of each one at least once. The aim is to create a good spread across the letter, but trying to keep it random.
After finishing, I decided the outline needed to be more prominent, so I back stitched around each letter.
And that's all there is to it! I'm hoping that Abbie and India love it - cos I really, really do!!!! 
I think this would work well with simple shapes and pictures as well as words. especially with Valentine's Day coming up... What would you use it for?


6th February 2014 - Update: this post was featured here at A Conquered Mess
I was featured at Friday Pin Fest!

29 comments:

  1. That is so clever and so simple, it looks wonderful! Thanks for sharing x

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  2. Absolutely brilliant - I love it!

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  3. What a clever idea! So simple but very effective. Love it!

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  4. This looks fab and so achievable!! Love it!

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    1. Thanks Janice - it is quite easy - just a little time consuming!! xx

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  5. this is a great idea, not seen it before :D
    http://croftcrafts.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/creative-friday-link-party-4.html

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  6. Very effective. What a lovely present!

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    1. Thanks Mecki, Abbie (the mother) loved it! xx

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  7. It looks lovely, I love the colours of the wool :)

    Jan

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  8. It is stunning, what a great idea and very unusual too.

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  9. I have always wanted to try string art. Your beautiful work of art makes me want to try it even more!

    I would love to have you hop over and share with us at Tell Me About It Tuesday (http://www.sweetsillysara.com/2014/01/tell-me-about-it-tuesday-3.html)

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    1. Thanks Sara, you should definitely give it a go! xx

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  10. This is so fabulous! I was looking for an idea for an upcoming craft night with my girls and I think I found it.

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    1. Thanks Dawn - would love to see pictures. Are you going to do a post on it? If so let me know and I'll have a look!! xx

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  11. Adorable, my thirteen year old is always looking to make a gift for her girlfriends for their bday's and your no strings art is perfect! Does it matter what type of yarn you use? Thanks for sharing!!

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    1. Hi Gurvy Green, I don't think it matters as long as it can be pulled through the holes. I found thta if I had too much yarn in one length, it started to get "fuzzy" so I just shortened the lengths I used slightly. If your daughter makes any, let us know! xx

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  12. Oh! What a great idea for my kids to do this summer when we are "bored to death"! Pinning this to my Summer Fun Board!

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    1. Thanks Ashley - would love to see some pics if you get round to doing it! xx

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