String & Nail Art

Happy Monday!

Do you guys remember those cool Spiralgraphs from the 80s and 90s that seem to be coming back? I think along with the symmetry of intricate shapes in coloring books, geometric shapes seem to be trendy again. I figured out to turn a Spiralgraph into a nail and string work of art!
The easiest shapes I found to replicate were squares and circles.

Supplies: 
1 wood plaque
1 small package of flat head nails about 1in long (at least 48 nails)
hammer
embroidery thread, crochet thread, or baker's twine (about 6 yards)
scissors
pencil and eraser
a square shape to trace

Optional Decorative Accents:
Acrylic paint
paintbrush
cup of water and paper towel for cleanup
mod podge (matte or gloss)
patterned card stock paper
exacto blade

First if you want to decorate your plaque of wood with paint or paper, do that first before hammering in your nails. Just keep in mind not to put too many details in the areas where the string will cover. If applying patterned paper, put down a layer of mod podge with your brush on to the flat area. Place your uncut sheet over the area, smooth out any bumps and make sure all sides are covered. Let dry for 30 mins. Then cut out shape with exacto blade, cutting along the edge of the wood. (so much faster and easier than scissors!)

Trace a square shape on to your wood plaque lightly with pencil. My square was 4 in x 4in. Then draw dots on the corners, and then 10 dots on each side, so that each side has 12 dots including the corners. This part is important because you need to have an equal number of dots on each side. You can also do 15 dots or 20, the number doesn't matter, just as long as all sides are equal.

Then taking your string of choice, tie and knot it to one of your top corners. Pull your string down and wrap it around on nail over from the corner. Then going back up, wrap your string one nail down from your first knot. Repeat this step all the way until you reach the next corner. One nail down, one nail over, one nail down.
If you choose to mix colors, you can tie off your string at the next corner, and begin again using the same method.

Ta Da!
Happy Crafting!

Bethany @ Enchanted Lake