DIY String Art

Like many others, I take to Pinterest for many DIY projects. One that I have been waiting a long time to try is string art. It actually turned out a lot better than I thought it would, and really wasn't very difficult.

Materials:

• Wood (about an 1" thick)
• Scissors
• Paint
• Paint Brush
• String
• Hammer
• Nails
• Stencil (I got mine off printmonkey.com)
• Tape

First thing to do is paint your piece of wood. This step is optional. I painted mine white but of course the color is completely up to you. Make sure to paint both sides and all edges. Let it dry for a few hours.

Next take your print and cut it out creating a stencil. Using the tape, tape the stencil down onto the wood. Now you can start to putting the nails in. I suggest to start at the corners to make sure the stencil doesn't move.

Now you can begin to fill in with more nails.The idea is to hammer the tip of the nail into the wood only enough for the head to stand out. I eye-balled mine, you can add as many or as little as you want. This part can be kind of tedious, be careful to not to hammer you finger, I may or may not have done that a couple of times. Oops!

Here comes the (in my opinion) fun part! Take your string and tie one end of it to the head of one of the nails. Next weave the string around the head of the nails. This will create an outline of the shape. Do this a couple of times until the outline is as thick as you want it.

 

You can keep your design like this or you can continue by taking the string and keep weaving it in random patterns. I think both are cute but it's completely up to you.

That's it! I chose the letter "F" because I made mine as a birthday present for my friend. I really want to do one of a state or even the outline of a country! This is a really simple project that's super cute and can spice up any room!

-L

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Challenges

I don't know if it's just me, but I really like challenges. I especially love the ones on Pinterest that are like "take a picture every day challenge" or "30 day clean eating challenge". I just like to be able to prove to myself that I am capable of achieving something bigger than I am. My only problem is that I always want to do these year/month-long challenges but I don't see them until it's too late. For example, I was just playing on Pinterest when I came across a really cool April Photo Challenge but then realized it's already April 5th.... do you see where I'm going with this? Never to fear, though, I have found a few challenges that don't require you to stick to the calendar:

• 30 Day Water Challenge
• Every day for 30 consecutive days drink a minimum of 64 oz of water. I am currently doing this. This is a great challenge to help clear up your skin, detox your body, and just give you more energy. Instead of drinking that soda that tastes great, will help break you out and make you feel sluggish, have a glass of water. I'll make sure to post a follow up post about my experience with this challenge.
• 100 Happy Days Challenge
• This is another challenge that I'm doing. Every day for 100 days post something (on social media) that makes you happy. There's more information at 100happydays.com . This challenge has really made me feel more grateful and appreciate the smaller things in my everyday life.
• 30 Day Open Letter Challenge
• Every day for 30 days write a letter to someone/something different. I totally stole this off of tumblr. This seems like a really fun challenge especially if you like to write. Who knows, maybe you can actually give these letters to  the people you have written them to! 

• 25 Songs 25 Days challenge
• I found this one on Pinterest. This is a really great challenge if you're more music oriented. 

Obviously not all of these challenges are social media oriented, but it's still important to log them. Wether it be a notebook, on your computer, or even a random piece of paper, write down the challenges you do. It will help you stay on top of it plus they can be fun to look back on after some time. There will also definitely be a follow up post on the 30 Day Water Challenge. Let me know if any of y'all try one of the challenges above or have a different challenge that you might want to share!

-L

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