Last year I went to a string art craft class and properly fell in love with this kind of craft. We took blocks of wood, nailed a pattern into it and wove coloured thread around the nails. I loved it and promised myself I’d try it at home. More than a year later I still haven’t done it. Instead I’ve been dabbling in a smaller kind of string art. I’ve been making little greetings cards with them.
They’re quite simple to do and I’m usually really pleased with how they turn out. This week I needed a get well soon card for a family friend, so I got my kit out and set to work. An hour of pretty restful sewing later, I had a nice card to send to a nice person.
Make Your Own String Art Greeting Cards
You will need:
One blank card and envelope
A pin
Coloured embroidery thread
A template shape
One pencil
A needle
Sellotape
Coloured paper
A glue stick
How to make your own String Art Greeting Cards:
Take your blank card and think about what shape you want to make with your string art. I chose a star shape and used a star shape cookie cutter I had. Using my pencil I drew around the cookie cutter on the inside of the card so the pencil wouldn’t show on the outside.
Once I was happy with my shape, I took my pin and pierced the card around the edge of my pencil shape at regular intervals. I went with about half a centimetre intervals.
The next step is the thread your needle with your chosen embroidery thread. Although I originally chose yellow, I eventually chose purple thread. Embroidery thread is usually made up of six strands, I separated a length so I threaded two strands onto my needle.
With a small piece of sellotape, I stuck the end of my thread to the inside of the card and started sewing the star.
It’s better if you choose a regular pattern of holes to sew, rather than just doing it randomly. For this card I went almost diagonally across and moved two holes clockwise each time I moved across the star (if that makes sense). After a while my star started to take shape and I was happy with the pattern it was making.
Once you come to the end of each thread, sellotape the end to the inside of the card and start a new thread. Use as much or as little embroidery thread as you need and think is best. It just depends how it looks and if you think it needs more.
Once you are happy with how the string art looks, turn your card over and make sure any loose ends are taped down. The back might look a bit messy, which is why we cover it with some coloured or patterned paper.
Cut the coloured paper to size and stick it over the back of the string art star (or other shape) you’ve made with the glue stick. Leave it to dry and it’s ready to be written and sent to the lucky recipient.
String art greeting cards are really easy to do and great for doing when you just need to sit and do something without having to think too hard about it. Sting art was so big in the 1970’s and it’s really due a revival. It’s a brilliant craft and I urge you to give this mini version a try.
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