Here is a really cute and simple craft project for the kids that is practical and so perfect for Easter. This would be such a lovely keepsake to bring out year after year.
To make string art is really easy but it does require some tools. In our house, Mommy can totally show a hammer and nails who the boss is but I do think this is a fun project for Daddy and Daughter too. My little girls love to craft and I thought this would be a perfect project for them to spend time with Daddy doing something he likes (building stuff) and something they like (making art.)
Supplies Needed:
- Printable Chick Art
- Scrap Wood (mine was 8×8) or Precut Unfinished Wood Plaque
- Craft Paint (I used DecoArtAmericana Slate Grey)
- Nails (I used 7/8″ x 17 Wire Nails from Lowes)
- Tack hammer or regular hammer
- Embroidery Floss (pale yellow, dark yellow, black, orange)
- So to get started you will need a board in the shape you want. You can either cut down a board yourself from the home improvement store (or better yet ask them to do it for you) or you can purchase unfinished boards in a variety of sizes at the craft store.
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Using craft paint and a paint brush, paint your wood board and let dry completely.
Cut the chick out and place your paper pattern on the board, centering as best as you can. Tape in place with painters tape. (You don’t have to cut it out first but this makes it easier to remove once you are finished.
Begin nailing by following the pattern of the chick. Start on one side and pound nails about 1/4″-3/8″ into the wood. Deeper if you desire. Space nails about 1/2″ apart. Peel off template when all nails are in. To get perfectly even nail holes, you can premeasure on your printable chick and make little hatch marks where the nail hole should go.
- To make it easier to get the nail to go in without splitting the board, you can do a few different things. Use a thumbtack to press a hole in before you nail. That makes it easier to pound the nail in gently. Another option would be to gently predrill the holes with a drill. It is super important to get nice straight nails so one of these methods will help a lot.
- Begin stringing your chick with light yellow body, followed by dark yellow wing, orange beak and black eye. Start by double knotting the floss onto a nail and begin to zig zag back and forth skipping every other nail and weaving your way back to the starting point. When satisfied with your string pattern, return to your starting point. Begin to outline the body of the chick. Wrap your thread around a nail head and continue to the nail next to it, wrap around that nail head and continue to the next nail. Once you return to the start of your string, reverse and wrap around the other way creating an outline. When finished, double knot where you started. Trim excess.
- Continue with the remaining colors until complete.
Here is another angle:
And if you think this might be a bit much for you, you can purchase premade kits from Joann’s with everything you need. We did one of these awhile back with birds (I posted this last year on Instagram) and actually my 8 year old did this 100% herself- I didn’t even realize she had opened the box 😉
I would LOVE to hear if you give this project a shot!
Here are some other fun ideas you might enjoy:
Zen || Fashion & Interiors DIY Blogger says
This is really cute! I’m doing a round-up blog post on the best Easter DIYs- do you mind if I use 1 photo from this post and link to it? 🙂
Charlene says
Sure no problem. Thank you for asking.