DIY String Art Hearts
I absolutely adore a handmade gift, don’t you? Nothing quite conveys love like something that someone put a bit of time and care into. It is like a bit of their love is preserved forever in tangible form. Valentine’s day is coming up and I really wanted to do a craft with my toddler that was easy enough for him to accomplish and had beautiful results and my mind went to the string art trend. This version is a super easy one and extra kid friendly because the cork is so soft that the nails push right in and you don’t even need a hammer! Love! Plus, they look great on the wall afterwards and are perfect for all year round to express love, not just valentines day.
We made three of them and tried something a little different with each one. However the variations that you can do with these are endless and I’m thinking that a bunch of different shapes would be so fun to try as well. Let your creativity loose and give them a try!
Supplies
- small cork boards (We used the cork heat trivets that you can pick up at Ikea for just over a dollar apiece right now. Score! Click HERE if you want to check them out.)
- string (We used standard white string and red embroidery floss)
- small golden nails (You can find these little nails at most any hardware store. I got ours at home depot.)
- scissors
- paper and pencil
Process
- Draw and cut out a paper heart in the size that you would like using your cork board as a guide. (Note: you will want to make sure your indent at the top of your heart is pronounced enough so that it is easily apparent when you add string.)
- Place your heart on your cork board in the position that you want it.
- Start pressing the nails in around your heart. This cork board was soft enough that we could just push it in until the nails were snug enough that they weren’t going to move. If you are concerned just tap them in with a hammer when you are done to make sure they are tight. The spacing of the nails is really up to you. The more nails you have the more “fractured” your end result is going to look.
- Tie one end of your string on a nail and then start wrapping it around the nails across your heart. There really is no rhyme or reason to this though we found we did like the look of a border when we were done as well as the criss crosses in the middle to make the heart more pronounced. When you feel you have enough string cut the end and tie it off on a nail.
- (optional) We plan on picking up some basic wall hangers from the hardware store and applying them to the back so that these can be displayed on the wall. I’m so excited!
If you give this Beyond the Book activity a try I’d love to hear how it goes! Share it on Instagram using hashtag #beyondthebook (I’m on Instagram as @book.nerd.mommy) or even just comment here with your thoughts. It would make my day! Or to simply save for later pin the image below.
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