“Shhhhiskibob…. Shhhhhawshank Redemption…. Chicaaaaa..go!”
For those of you who aren’t well versed in movie quotes, that’s from the very sophisticated, and my all-time-favorite: Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls. And it was also a very awkward clue as to how I spent my weekend: in CHICAGO! I got to see some of my favorite people in the world and eat at my favorite restaurant in the world. That’s what I like to call a “win-win.”
Although I was out of town all weekend and worked zero hours on the house, I have a cute art project to share with you that I worked on at the end of last week.
Photo Credit: The insanely talented Stacie
I had seen these really cool pieces of string art that someone was selling on Etsy, and as awesome as they were I just wasn’t willing to spend $65. So I did what all rational people do in this situation: I decided to figure out how to do it myself. Even though I completely winged it (wang it?) I’m pretty happy with the end result.
Here’s the How-To:
First step is to ask a hot, bearded man to pretty-please cut out a 12″ x 12″ board for you. And if he’s extra nice he’ll even sand it for you and make a nice beveled edge. Sometimes he charges a kiss or a squeeze on the tushie. You gotta do what you gotta do.
I chose a primer that was gray — which I don’t recommend if you’re painting with a light color like I did. I had to do approximately 7,452,968 coats of paint to get a nice cover.
Once the board is primed and painted you can lay out all of the supplies you’ll need in an OCD fashion like so:
Using painters tape — because it won’t pull up the paint — tape down your template of whichever state you love the most. I printed a map from the internets, trimmed around the edges, and cut out a heart shape around Columbus. Nothing scientific.
And then the fun part: whacking away at the nails with a hammer. I’m going to warn you, this is a long process. And if you have weak little child-wrists like I do, you’ll probably have to take a break or three. But it’s worth it in the end, I promise.
Once you’ve gone all the way around the border of your template and the heart, you can pull that baby up.
And now admire your handy work:
To start your string, tie a tight knot around whichever nail you’re going to start and finish with. You can trim off the excess when you’re all finished.
Wrap your string back and forth from the state’s edge, to the heart, and repeat about 16 thousand times.
I wish I would’ve made the heart a little bigger so I didn’t have to wrap around the same nail so many times, but it still turned out okay.
Once you make it all around the state, knot the string around the same nail you started with. Trim off the extra, take a shot of tequila, and then do a celebratory lap around the house because you’re all done!
I’m seeing this getting hung with a mix of other pictures and artwork in some sort of gallery arrangement, but until we have the walls painted it’s probably just going to sit right here on the fireplace. UGH. I’m still having the hardest time picking paint colors. Any suggestions?
I hope everyone had a lovely weekend, and I hope everyone has just as lovely of a Monday. Drink lots of coffee if you just scowled at that.
Update: She’s made it onto our gallery wall!
Psst! Will you take my two second survey?
I LOVE this project! I am absolutely going to try it sometime soon.
good idea it helps to make different wall pieces. i,m going to try now.
I LOVE this project! I am stealing this idea and trying it out. 😉
You could also cover the base board with burlap, which comes in a variety of colors at the fabric store.
great idea!
Love this project too and am dying to get started and do one for my grandsons new apt, Don’t think it’s really stealing when you get it off Pinterest, it’s second hand creativity!!! Good luck to us both! Sandi R.
oh, maaaan! I wish I had seen this suggestion sooner. I have about half my nails in. I’m doing the burlap on the next one for SURE!
Where did you go to print out your state?
I just googled images of “Ohio map” and clicked “large” for size. A whole bunch popped up. Good luck!
I love your blog. I literally giggled through the whole thing 🙂 I can’t wait to make this! Thank you SO very much.
Aw, thank you so much. That means a lot! Good luck with your project and don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. (You can leave questions in the comments.)
So great! Definitely making an Oregon one for my husband! Also, “wang it” is now my new favorite term. 😉
Hahaha, me too. Thanks Maiya! Good luck with your Oregon version.
I absolutely love this idea! Now if I can just find the time to do this, that would be super! I’ll be doing California and can only imagine how long it will take to do the string … sounds like a nice large drink will need to included in my supplies.
This project is awesome. I was thinking of maybe changing the template to a flower or something, but the idea is genius. Also, think it would work with embroidery floss?
I don’t see why not! You can always do a practice round on a scrap piece of wood.
how many times did you wrap the string around a nail in the heart before moving on to the next heart?
Each one was a bit different. I just wrapped until it looked like it was ready to move on to the next nail. You’ll know what I mean when you get there!
This was my question too. I counted the number of nails used in the outline of the state and divided that by the number of nails in the heart. Hard to count on the computer but roughly 160/20 = 8 times around each nail in the heart. I’m sure you need to take a little artistic license depending on the shape of your state but at least it is something to go on. I’m making Wisconsin – white thread on red board on honor of the Badgers! Love this project!
Do you have a picture of your wisconsin one?
I’m so glad I came across your blog! I’ve seen this project before, but much like you, I didn’t want to spend almost 100 bucks for one after shipping.
Do you think this project would work if I created a small heart around the town where my husband and I are both from, and a bigger eart around Columbus because that’s where our home is?
Ooh that’s a good question. Hmm. I would try sketching it out on paper and using your pen to trace where the string would go. I think it all depends on where your hometown is.
If you figure it out I’d love to see a picture of it! Good luck!
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Found you/your state heart string art on Pinterest–love it! You’re one cool, crafty gal 🙂 I am thinking I may do one myself but I’m in Florida and the heart part will be way down south and then there’s that whole “lower Alabama” part of the peninsula to string from/to there…not sure of the logistics and if they’re workable 🙂 Will have to keep you posted if I give it a shot!
Aw thanks, Dee! Good look with your Florida map!
Yea, I was wanting to do Pensacola Florida but if may prove very challenging.
Thank you Thank you for the directions. I to LOVE this but didn’t want to spend the money on etsy either.
Hi there…I found your blog when searching for a tutorial on this kind of project. Thanks for sharing how you did this. I really want to do something similar for our home.
Love it!!! From the Dayton area and miss home…will have to try. Love your cute wit, I giggled through the whole post. God bless.
You could use the colors of red and gray! for OSU! of course! Maybe background red with edges gray or reverse. Cool! Go Buckeyes!
That’s what I was thinking. I’m living overseas and I miss Columbus so much!
I love this! I try to be crafty but I am not as thoughtful as you! question… do you think its possible to move the heart anywhere? I’m from the east side of ohio and it would be nice to have it where my hometown is…but as am thinking of it in my head…would it look weird have such short string on the right side of the heart? and i might not be able to wrap around as many times on the short side of the heart…what do you think?
100% possible. It doesn’t really matter where the heart is, because since you use the same string you can keep wrapping without the length from heart to nail mattering much. That might be really confusing but once you try it you’ll see what I’m saying.
Good luck!
Great job! As for your paint color… I just bought a -new house and painted my walls Moose Mousse and my ceilings Cream in My Coffee. It looks great with White trim and plug/outlet covers.
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I love this idea and plan on doing one of South Carolina! What size/type of nails did you use for this?
Thanks! I just used a $2 pack of brass picture nails.
Love the Ork Poster on your wall too!
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This is so awesome. I love stealing ideas. ha! And the best part, I laughed the entire way through your DIY.
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Found this on pintrest. My daughter is going to college in Texas and will love this! What kind of string did you use and what do I do if I run out of string and need to start more?
I used “Kite String” I found at Michaels. Do you have that store in your area? If you ask someone who works there I’m sure they’ll point you in the right direction.
The beauty with looping the string is you don’t have cut it from the spool until you’re done. So, there’s really no way you’ll run out unless you make a life-size state map. 🙂
if you are not using kite string there is a possibility that you may run out however the beauty of this project is that it barely matters where you stop because you just tie a knot around a nail at the end of your string and start with a new piece on that same nail and then trim the ends so you don’t see the knot
Thank you so much for your reply. I could visualize how you did it and makes perfect sense!!
Hey! I was just wondering, is there anything other than wood that I could use for the back??
Hmmm I’m not sure if anything else would hold the nails as well. I suppose you could try it with a corkboard and push pins, though.
If you don’t have access to any wood-cutting tools you can always get your closest home improvement store to make some cuts for you. Most of them charge next to nothing for it. Good luck!
JoAnn Fabrics has pre-cut wood ready to decorate, I think…
Home depot will cut scrap for for $ .51
Walmart has pre-cut wood available in the craft department. It comes in many different shapes and sizes, some with beveled edges even.
Our 50+ yr old apple tree couldn’t handle the bountiful amount of apples this year along with all the rain & wind. So I had my hubby (sexy but only mustached) cut some 1″ sections to do this great project!
I love your comments on each step. Now to find a sexy, bearded man…
thanks for putting in the time to figure this out so we could all benefit. my daughter has just returned from europe where she fell in love with italy and i have been trying to think of something snazzy i could do for her room…. guess what it will be! thanks.
I just made one of Washington.. I used wood for the background but covered it with burlap instead of painting. It was fun to make! http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/539985_10100160164585940_25903750_42510634_1633071408_n.jpg
Ooh so pretty! I love the burlap.
Where did you get the burlap and how did you adhere it to the board? So great!
I got the burlap at JoAnn fabrics and just hot glued it around the back.. Super easy!!
Thanks so much!
Saw this on the freepeople blog, and I am in love! What a simple idea but it looks so cool! I’m going to do this ASAP. Maybe with colored string?
My husband is going to roll his eyes so hard when I start my Ohio (he doesn’t understand homesickness) to add to the wall in my office with my OSU degree and Cleveland map. I’m thinking a grey background with red thread. Thanks for the step-by-step!
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THIS IS AWESOME!! Going to do it to all 5 states that my family was born in. VA, MI, WA, FL,and CO!!! EXCITED!!
Just completed the project with North Carolina! A little bit harder since its way funky shaped, but SOO cute! Thanks for the help!!
I’d love to see it! That is the one I want to do too, with the heart down by the coast, Swansboro/Morehead City/Jacksonville area.
Hello Carey, I am from the Swansboro/Morehead City area!
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Thanks so much for the great tips! Made an Africa and it turned out great!
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So excited to try this. We are from Ohio and just moved to Utah. I think Im going to do this project with my 14 yr son this summer. He is missed home so much. He can put the finished project in his room to always remind him where he came from. Love it! Thanks!!
What do you think about using a canvans? Cause I really don’t want to hammer in all thoes nails!!
Wow! I really love this and want to try it…even if it is time-consuming.
The results are absolutely amazing!!
Thank you for sharing the step-by-step technique!
Awesome tutorial! Thank you! Where online did you find the map of your state? Definitely following your blog now. Thanks again! 🙂
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Crazy me saw this and decided it would be awesome to do this with the whole united states! =] haha! It’s a lot of nails! I also am going to use it as a way to display some of my travel pictures so it is a 4 by 6 board (I take a ton of pictures)!! Wish me luck and thank you for the how-to!!
Oooh I would Love to see this when you are finished!! Please share photos
Awesome, I found this through Pinterest!!! How the hell do I save a copy of this on my own WordPress so I can have it forever and do this project myself sometime?!?!
found this AWESOME project on Pinterest. I love it, because I can do a collage string project of the states I’ve lived in with the hearts over the cities I lived in. You are so clever to figure it out so I don’t have to! 😉
My favorite part of your post is this: Sometimes he charges a kiss or a squeeze on the tushie. You gotta do what you gotta do.
because my handsome, mustachioed man does the same thing ROFL!!!
Thank you!!
i am going crazy because the nails keep falling out!!! how did you avoid this? or did you not have this problem? maybe i am not very good at hammering.
I did have a few stubborn nails that were loose so I just added a drop of super glue in the hole. You could also try hammering them in a little further. I hope that helps! Good luck!
Going to try this with a cross with the heart in the middle for VBS. I have teenagers so this should keep them busy. lol Thanks for the idea can’t wait to get started.
I love the cross idea! Thanks for sharing!
omg i can see why etsy charges $100, i am on nail 4 and it has taken me twenty minutes!! lol but i am not giving up!!! doing NY but i am from long island and the heart cannot fit in the island, so i just put a big heart in the center of the state to show my pride for the whole state. PS its getting easier and i will just put super glue in the nails that are a lil wobbly:)
finished it!! the nails would not stay so i made an outline of the state with holes first then put super glue in the hole then hammered the nail. So much better!!!! i love the outcome!!! super cute project that only costed $7 🙂 I wish I could post a pic 😦
I love this idea. Since I need Ohio too, you could just send me yours….it would save me all the work….just kidding…I will be doing this…
I started one for Germany (where I live now) today, and will begin one for New Jersey (where I grew up) tomorrow! The part with the nails is killing me, but I am determined to get it done. Very excited! I will post pictures when I am finished. Thanks for the great (and funny) tutorial.
This is so cute! I’m totally going to do this for Missouri! Can I borrow the bearded man? Lol
What I love about your tutorial is the fact your not strict about the process. After reading your tutorial the humor added made me want to try it even more, maybe as Christmas presents for all my out of state family! Now just to find a hot bearded man to do my carpenter work 🙂 Thanks! Love the work!
I love it! I’m about to embark on a long-distance relationship. I think I’ll make one for each of us with the states we’ll be living in, and hearts over the cities. 🙂
Aw, good luck!
I love this project, I love the way you write. My son (age 10) and I will be doing this project together this week, but our heart will be closer to Lake Erie, right over Cleveland! Thanks for the inspiration, which I found on Pinterest, BTW!
Thank you so much! My husband is from Cleveland, so he would definitely understand. Thanks for reading!
what kind of paint did you use? (color, finish) I tried spray painting my board with a satin finish, but I don’t like the texture. I am going to sand it and try again. I want to paint it this time but I’m not sure how a gloss would look. Maybe too shiny and cheap? What are your thoughts?
I just used regular ole latex house paint… eggshell finish.
SMH – Thank you so much for the great instructions. I found a piece like this in a catalog which inspired me to make something a bit more personal as the heart represents a lot to me, my family and my hometown.
We live in Northeast Ohio and earlier this year we experienced an enormous tragedy at our High School. Since then “One Heartbeat” has come to represent the core of our community so this is the perfect craft to find comfort in.
My 14 yr old daughter and I are each making one of these “Heart in Ohio” pieces.
One will be given to my son who just graduated and the second to our school superintendent as a reminder to both of how intertwined our community is and how collectively caring for one another can ease even the most unimaginable sorrow.
Thank you again, as a big red heart over our little hometown couldn’t be more fitting.
Thanks for sharing your story. I’m sure your son and superintendent will be touched by your gift.
I’m about to start this for Texas, but I’m going to leave the piece of the map in the shape of the heart with Austin in it, but take out the rest. That way it displays the name. Though if I don’t like it that will be easy enough to remove. Yay for Pinterest getting people crafting!
Hi Mary, have you finished your Texas string art yet? I am wanting to do a Texas one as well and wanted to see how yours turned out. I am doing a heart over DFW and I think the panhandle of Texas might cause me some problems. I would love to see your finished project!
I did a Texas one with a longhorn in the middle out of pure curiosity and want for practice the other day. It’s far from perfect but it’ll give you an idea.
It really has to do with the size of the center image to the size of your state outline. With where DFW is located, you’re right the panhandle could get awkward. My suggestion would be to loop your string at an angle using just the nails in the panhandle, dont try and make it over to the heart. Even though it doesn’t go back to the heart, it should create the same illusion because your angle is the same and your line are straight. I hope that makes sense!
So awesome! How do you think this project would work on a canvas instead of wood?
Hmm I’m not sure it would. You wouldn’t have enough friction for the nails to stay in place.
I thought of using canvas and realized you would have to put something on the back for the nails to stay in position, Michaels has great wooden pieces for reasonable prices or hobby lobby does and remember you can pull up their website for the in store coupon( it provides a code for the cashier)
That’s a good idea. I have both stores very close to me. Thanks!!
Love the project, I’m doing one for my daughter. As for choosing colors, I’m not a fan of typical light greens and I have dark cherry cabinets (almost black), dark brown furniture and cream tiles. I decided to go bold! A plum color for the kitchen, a silvery gray for the living room and a rich blue for the accent wall and a gray stain for the fireplace. Sherwin Williams has great color schemes, put your personality in the color choices and a color that will make u smile! Good luck!
I did Kentucky last night, I think it turned out right dandy. I did yellow yarn because it will match our living room when we’re done remodeling…the stubborn shape was a wee bit harder than expected. Can see it here! http://astheneekoturns.blogspot.com/2012/06/day-173-6232012.html
I’m making this (except Indiana) for my boyfriend. But I was wondering what kind of nails did you use? I feel like mine are too long and it looks a little funny…
I used really tiny ones I found at Lowes. They were packaged in a small plastic container, and they came in silver-colored and brass-colored.
you could always use a different colored string!
Reblogged this on digitalrhizome and commented:
Doing this asap
Would you mind sharing what size paper you printed the map template on?
Just regular 8.5×11 printer paper.
Hi there, I absolutely love this idea and plan on doing a few states that mean a lot to my husband and I. My question though is how thick the board is that you used and what type of wood? Thanks!
We just used a scrap piece of pine, but you could use just about anything you have laying around.
Think I’m gonna make this as a wedding anniversary for my husband. Sure he will say what’s this about. Thought that counts right!!! Thanks for sharing this crafty idea
MAHALO for the share… I will try to make one for Hawai’i. It would probably a little bit harder since it consists of 8 Islands…ALOHA!!!!
How did u keep your wood from splitting?
Mine split just a tiny bit and I think it’s because the nails were too close together. I would suggest using skinny nails, and not putting them right on top of each other.
Love this. im from colorado and yes it is just a sqaure:) what do you think about different colors (red blue) and then white to replicate the flag? any ideas. thanks
So, I just attempted this after a number of other failed pinterest projects and guess what… ANOTHER failure. Not your fault… I tried for LA which is a weird shape to begin with, and the board def wasnt big enough… I’m thinking trying with a cork type board and pins next with thread instead of a thicker yarn. what do you think?
Saw this on Pinterest and was thrilled to find someone had done one and had a tutorial. I too have seen the etsy ones, but I want to do 3 for my parents who have 3 kids in 3 different states. I’m a diy-er and wanted to do it myself (said in a little kid whiney voice) and didn’t want to pay the prices. Kansas will be easy, Oklahoma only challenging in the pan handle, but Florida could prove interesting!!! Thanks for the info…can’t wait to try it out!!!
I think I am going to do this with NYS! With two hearts – – home (where I grew up) and home (where Ive made my life!)….. I LOVE IT!
I love that you did a tutorial on this. I saw the same thing on Etsy, and I can’t convince myself to pay $20 for desperately need shoes, much less $65 for art. I did this for Idaho (hard state to do-where I grew up) and Florida (also hard to do-where my husband grew up) and put them on either side of our wedding photo. Mine are on a 2’x2′ board, painted dark blue with a white trim that I distressed, and then I used white embroidery thread. You certainly explained it very well! So nice for the other DIYers to not have to wing it themselves!!!
I can’t wait to get started on this one. I would like to know where you got the map, it took me about a hour to find one I could print.
Thanks for sharing this, I have so many to make now, great Christmas idea!!! I’m going to do several of NC with Tarheels Duke, State, Panthers, and Pittsburgh Steelers.
I’m not sure — I just googled “large” images until I found one that worked!
This is awesome and I am a huge fan of your blog after about 10 minutes of looking around!
I found your blog yesterday through Pinterest and love it! I just bought the stuff to try this project and am going to get started on it soon 🙂 hopefully it looks as good as yours!
YOU’RE HILARIOUS. And thank you for the fantastic tut. Definitely coming back to your blog for more shits and giggles 🙂
This is a great tutorial! I just had two questions: How did you get the spacing of the nails to be so even (regarding width)? And, how did you hammer the nails in (regarding depth) so evenly? Thanks!!
I just eye-balled everything; it would’ve taken forever if I measured out each nail. But I suppose it could be done!
LOVE!!! Did Ohio, now onto TX!!!!
You are after my own heart…….I love Ace Ventura.
“Peanut?”
“Why yes, I have one right here. It’s quite bulky but I consider it a carry on. “
Love this! Doing it tonight! Whawhoooooo
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Where did you get the brass nails? Did they have other colors available? I want to do white 🙂
Great job on the project! I’m going to try this. Thanks for the tutorial.
I made this tonight! I had to superglue almost every nail (which sucked) but the project is super cute! I made one for my hometown and state tonight (Georgia) and will be making one for our current location in Oklahoma later this week! Cute and easy project. 🙂
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Love your tutorial! How did you paint without getting streaks?? I just painted a second coat on and it still has streaks and you can really tell in the light
I love this project. As for paint color, I would suggest a light taupe. My previous house had white walls throughout and it got awfully boring. My new house came with light taupe walls that change color with the lighting, through the day and nighttime. Yet it is still a nice neutral color that goes with most decor.
I absolutely LOVE this!! Definitely a project I will take on for my house 🙂
This is beautiful. I am going to try it in scarlet and gray to hang in my son’s Buckeye themed room.
not only was this tutorial helpful… it was also hilarious… that hot bearded man wears that windbreaker so well by the way.
I’m going to try this with Texas!
Love this project and loved your commentary! I have a friends baby shower coming up, so I am going to do the state Texas and a Heart around Dallas because the baby will be born in Dallas.
I love love love this project and all of the updates! My husband and I have lived in 4 states and Ireland since we got married 2 years ago. We just moved (again) and tomorrow I’m sitting down with a (large) beverage and doing one for each of our homes – but starting with Ohio first, of course! I’ll post if I’m successful!
This. Is. AMAZING. I’ve been thinking of ways to redecorate my room and I’m going to do this with all three states dear to my heart-Texas, Louisiana, and Wyoming (so what if it’s a rectangle!)
So cute! Love your blog. Witty and adorable! Thanks!!!
i wonder if the texans logo would work instead of a heart?? on the texas state of course! how could i go about the horns?! HELP! i’m SO excited to start this project. ahhhhhh!
Here was the UT one I did for practice. It is FAR from perfect, but it will give you an idea. Don’t forget you can change up your paint colors and string colors to help relay the message if the design isn’t perfect. 🙂
I bought the board pre-cut for maybe $5 at Walmart and used acrylic paint plus satin finish modge podge. (Was using what i had laying around as it was just for practice to see how it might turn out). I’d suggest picking up a higher quality pre-cut board at Hobby Lobby or somewhere, but I’m actually pleased with the finish on the paint, though I might use a matte one next time instead.
I looked at your horns picture. Practice, my behind. It’s AWESOME!! Husband is a huge horns fan. I’m in the middle of a heart in TX, but am planning to do this next. GREAT job!
I know that I am like the one millionth person to LOVE this and SSOOOOO appreciate your tutorial, which I truly do. It looks fabulous on your wall too, but I gotta also tell you that I’m lovin the Chicago print you got up there. What is it? Did you DIY this cutey ass well? Can’t wait to look through some of your other projects!
Love this! So want to make this for my boyfriend before he deploys again! Question though: what size nails did you use and how far into the wood should they be hammered??
Thanks!!
Just made mine!!! (Auburn, AL) It turned out great, not perfect, but way better than paying a ton on Etsy. Only issue was that the further away the heart is from the middle, the harder, but this tutorial saved me!!
Thanks a ton!
Thanks for sharing! My daughter is a Rainbow Girl and is the Massachusetts Grand Rep to Ohio so I made this for her with a rainbow colored fingering weight yarn on a polyed board I picked up from AC Moore. The project cost me about $5 🙂 This is a great gift for Grand Reps! Here is a picture of my finished Ohio on Pinterest, which I linked back to your blog for the how to. Thanks again! http://pinterest.com/pin/42925002669427408/
um you’re hysterical, thank you for the humor and dope idea!
I’m going to make a West Virginia one for my mom as a mother of the bride gift! I think she’ll love it! I’m going to paint the board blue and use yellow string for the Mountaineer’s colors!
I’m totally making this. Thanks for the easy instructions.
great idea and i loved reading it 😉
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I’ve seen similar piece made with several fluorescent threads in different colours – in UV light it can explode your eyes! 🙂
As a geography major I liked the map aspect of the tutorial and I think if I ever get around to doing this for Michigan I will draw a heart around the city and leave it nailed down while peeling the rest of the map off so the heart frames tiny maps of the cities my husband and I are from.
i love it!!!! how long did it take you total??? i teach an arts and crafts class at a summer camp and only have 3 days to work with so i’m assuming if i chose to do it, nailing the pattern would need to be done beforehand?
I definitely think you could do it in 3 days… Maybe do the cutting / painting of the board before hand. And you could always dot the border so they know exactly where to put the nails — that might save time. I think it depends on the age of the kids — but I think it could work! Let me know how it goes!
You could adhere the map to the wood and then use clear thread or fishing line to use around the nails. The color of the map would show through.
This is super cool and your blog about it is frickin hilarious. I laughed and craft (ed).
Love this! One question…how did you get the nails all the same height?
I just eye-balled it. Nothing scientific!
Great job! What kind if string did you use? Totally doing this using Mississippi!!
I used what is called “kite string” from Michaels. The friendly people that work there can point you in the right direction.
This is amazing! I live in Columbus and LOVE this! We just moved into a new house and I am going to try and make this! Thanks for the how-to that I was amazed and laughed at! 🙂
I really like this idea but I don’t live in the States . I think if I did this idea with my country(New Zealand) I wouldn’t work very well because of the shape of the country. any suggestions?
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Really cute – and loved your post (and Ohio, too)! Thanks for sharing!
Love this, can’t wait to do it. Any suggestions on where to purchase a wooden square for us single gals?
When I did this I went to home depot. In the lumber section they have scrap pieces that they’ll cut up for you, I believe it was only .50 cents, maybe $1. It was cheap though.
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Clever!! I can’t wait to do this!
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so i saw this on pinterest and naturally fell in love with the idea! my husband and i made on for our friends destination wedding in north carolina! they got married in asheville, which is very difficultly located, so we decided to move the heart to the center. we are also decided to paint pieces of their invitation around it! we used their font and everything! we love the way it turned out! i tried to add a picture but i couldn’t, bummer.oh well, thank you for the inspiration, we loved making it!
Love it, but I wanna do Alabama and I’m from Scottsboro and live in Huntsville which are both extremely close to the north east edge, so I don’t know how it would turn out. P.S- do you think it would look okay with two different colors?
Found you on Pinterest. I love this sooooo much. I like that you did the heart little too, it’s so cute. I love the effect of the string too, how it looks slightly twisted around (hard to explain!)
I’d love to give this a go but I’m arthritic in my hands. I can certainly see why they’re $65 though, all that time and love. Beautiful.
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Ewokay so how hard do you think michigan is going to be? lol I want to do it but I am scared to do michigan lol (its where im from lol
Thank you so much for this!! I’m going to do tx and use it at my wedding and have my guests tie wishes to our tx 🙂
How did you make sure all the nails were even in height in the end? I was thinking put a board over it when finished to even them out, but was wondering if you had another idea. Thanks for the tutorial!
I didn’t 🙂
I liked this craft work. I will definitely try this.
Way cute!
This is so great, thank you for sharing your DIY! How did you end up hanging it on the wall though?
Ok, I finished it, grabbed a can of pop(im underaged, so alcohol was out of the question), did a small dance(i broke my ankle, so i cant run) and punched my brother. Instead of the states, i did ontario since im a canadian. I also did italy because im half italian. I also had to substute the hot bearded man and i just bribed my friend with a dozen of my homemade chocolate cupcakes and he happily helped out. THANKS BRANDON! Oh, and my dad for letting me (brandon) borrow his saw.
Making one of Wisconsin (where I live) and one of California (where my sister lives) for my mom’s Christmas gift! Wish we lived in more normally shaped states
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I am also wondering how you hung this? Could you put a picture or link to what you used? Thanks for the tutorial!
You can definitely see your enthusiasm in the work you write.
The world hopes for even more passionate writers like you who are not afraid
to mention how they believe. At all times go after your heart.
making a michigan one as I type I looove your tutorial! thank you sooo much!
I just fell in love with this!! I was so happy to see something I have not seen “everywhere” else!!! I am so going to do this for my Rochester, NY!!!! You have a great site and Ill be coming back loads so keep up the beautiful work!!!! Sandy.
Wow, now imagine doing this a bit bigger and putting coloured LEDs behind. Must look amazing!
thanks for this! I stumbled on your blog through pinterest and I’m so glad! love your writing style and helpful tips
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I just finished this with South Carolina. It looks great but my heart is a little lopsided but I had so much fun doing it!
What about the nail point on the other side… I mean wouldn’t it poke your wall ? ????¿ 🙂 thanks
Don’t hammer it all the way through the wood. Just 1/2 to 3/4 of the way.
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Love this !!! Wonderful tutorial too. Thanks so much for sharing.
I can’t wait to do this! This will make an excilent wedding present for my cousin who just moved to Texas from Michigan.
You inspired me!!! I did my own version for California! I recently started blogging and I immediately wanted to use this for my first craft tutorial. Thanks for sharing!
Check out my version:)
http://reddoordream.blogspot.com/2013/01/california-girls-craft-diy-tutorial.html
I’ve been looking for string art projects for my 8-year-old daughter to do with me as I was just a little older than she is now when a teacher taught me in grade school. I love your state tutorial – it will be a bit much for her first project, but I’m definitely adding a bookmark for doing later!
A couple thoughts I had:
First (if available): plotting the nail holes first with pen/pencil and then using a drill press with a bit smaller than the nail diameter will help prevent splitting the wood, help ensure equal depth (nail heights) and make the nails way easier to hammer. Drill presses are really easy to use and I bet if you asked around enough you’d find someone that owns one.
Second: since hanging on the wall anyway, consider hammering the nails directly into the wall. Probably best to do one on wood first (for practice!), but this could look really cool (especially with nails that blend into your paint colour and a high-contrast string colour as it would look like the string was floating) and you can now do any size easily. To go larger, you could either split the map picture into pieces or just borrow a projector (most people know someone/some organization that owns one that they could borrow) and shine it on the wall. I hope these ideas help someone!
Cheers!
Love this!!! Michigan was quite a challenge though. 🙂
How did you do the UP? Separately, or combined with the lower peninsula? Post a pic!
What kind of nails did you use? I’m not sure what size or length to use. I went to the hardware store but I just wasn’t sure what to look for:(
ms.megan: I would talk to an associate. Tell them the material you are nailing into (pine 1-by-whatever?) and how long you want the nails to stick out – I would hazard a guess that 1.5-2″ brads would be the place to start. You might grab a board from their lumber department first so you can hold one of the nails next to it to get an idea (figuring you’ll nail them in about 1/2-3/4 the way in). I don’t know what stores you have nearby, but my local Ace, Home Depot and Lowes all have helpful people that will offer a best guess (that generally works great) even if they have never seen what you’re trying to do before. They may even sell loose nails/brads (Ace most probably) and may have a scrap lumber area (Home Depot calls it a “cull cart’) so you can experiment before committing $$$. Good luck!
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I have just one question, about how many times did you end up having to wrap each string around the “heart nails”?
This was hysterical to read, and we literally have the same sense of humor. It was like being in my own head. Which frightened me, because I’m here, and you’re…well you get it.
This is awesome. And yes, when I finish my home state of NJ, I will face Ohio and salute you with a shot (or two) of Tequila. Or a bottle from a local winery. That will work too, I assume?
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Hmm, I’d want the heart near Cincinnati 😉 Might look kind of unrecognizable if I included Kentucky in it.
Hilarious! This is an awesome awesome awesome idea! I’m going to do a few!
I love this idea! I had seen it a while ago, but forgot to save the web page, and then I saw yours! I am in love with it! One thing, do you think it would work with a map of the UK? I’m not too sure about it, but I would love to do one, as that’s where I live.
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It’s really fabulous and i am gonna try it today for my mom as a mothers day gift. I have a question,what if we make ma instead of the whole thing?(reply sooner)
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I am totally going to try this not only does it look fun to do, but it also looks like a challenge.
I’m going to make this for a friend’s birthday, because I know how much she still misses North Carolina! Thank you for the great idea!
Thank you for posting this tutorial! It was so much fun to do! Just some tips for future attempts: A state with a broad outline would work a lot better for this project. The heart also needs to be rather large in order to get a clear view of the heart shape.
Thank you for show casing this idea on Pinterest! I tried it and it is absolutely adorable! I made mine smaller but it turned out really well. Thank you again!
I was thinking of doing Africa with a heart around southern Kenya… would it look weird because Kenya is a coastal country? I’m afraid the heart will be too close to the edges of the outline.
Oh Africa!! I could do that too.. But Ghana is a coastal country too!
I want to do California, but we live right on the coast…in a bay!! Not sure how that would work…
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What kind of nails did you use.? Where did you find them.?
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Thank you so much for this how to. Just made one with our young people at a youth club and it looks amazing! It really is fun and easy to make. Everyone enjoyed themselves and want to do another one!
Thank you for posting this! I’m going to try it once the kids are back in school. Although I believe I will move the heart to the Cincinnati area. Thanks again!
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Just finished one for Washington State! I did it a bit differently in that I found a piece of wood at JoAnn Fabrics that looked like a slice of tree trunk – so I didn’t paint the wood. Looks rustic and cool! Thanks so much for sharing the idea!
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Loved your post! I just tried this today with some 12×12 cork boards I picked up from Wal-Mart, black push pins, and red crochet thread. It turn out pretty well actually! I’m definitely pleased with the results, though on my second one (I made one for me and one for him), I had some trouble with a couple of the push pins slipping out and I, frustrated, had to carefully pin them back in with all of the threads properly still looped. It was also much more difficult (I assume) since my hearts were very close to the edges (Cincinnati and Philadelphia). All in all, I do like the result! Thanks so much for your post and ingenious idea! 🙂
My anniversary with my boyfriend is coming up, and since he just moved to New Mexico, while I’m still in California, I’m doing sister versions of these, one for me (red background, state being New Mexico) and one for him (blue background, California for the state). I’m so happy I found this, thank you so much for the idea!
I don’t knw u but I love u lol..u made me laugh n I enjoyed how u explained everything but my question is..how many time do I wrap the string around once I start? One time then 2 the next nail or more than 1 time….
My dad is from Toledo Ohio so this would make a great gift for him on his birthday next month.
Good one.. lovely..
These are the most hilarious instructions i’ve read to making anything! especially the OCD bit, the shot and the celebratory lap.IM an essentric DIY addict i have to make this for somone so goodluck to me! 🙂
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I really want to do this for my home state of MD but it seems a bit impossible with the awkward shape of my state…
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Hi,
Love the idea. Thinking of doing it with Florida with the heart around Orlando – how would that go?
Also how would you go about hanging it?
Thanks 🙂
I love this! How far apart is each nail around the outside of the map? I would love to see others projects posted somewhere.
I think I’ll probably try it as soon as I figure out how to do the Upper peninsula of MI
I’m going to do a red California with black string for my hubby to commemorate our wedding day & colors with the heart around the city we were married!
Loved this! I’m gonna do Texas and Michigan.What type of string did you use?
Thank you!
Totes want to do this… but totes probably won’t. Damn pinterest and its idea-inducing ways… But yay for making a tutorial on it. I’ll bookmark it and hope to complete in the next year or so. If nothing else though, I found a great new blog! *High Five* ; )
I am confused on the string wrapping. How many times do u wrap the string around one nail, until your move on to the next nail? Does that make sense?
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What a wonderful blog you have! I really have enjoyed reading it. Thank you for all the great DIYs. I love this project and made one of my own. I did credit and link back to your tutorial, and encouraged my readers to come visit your blog. Here’s the link: http://www.crafts-for-all-seasons.com/state-string-art.html
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After reading some of the comments above, I went to WalMart and got my board there. I would, however, put the picture hanger on the back before starting this project. I also noticed that the example has some pretty gold-colored nails. I didn’t get those, but I wish I had. Mine was not as pretty. It turned out okay, and I’ll probably try to make another one or two for friends as gifts. Thank you for such a neat project!
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I love the project! I am not crafty so I need a little more detail. Are the nails about 1/4″ apart? Exactly what type of string did you use, does it come in colors, and where can you find it? Since there are a lot less nails forming the heart, how do you determine when to change nails? I can’t wait to try this!
I just want today thank you SO much for posting a how-to for this! I am not an artsy/crafty person so I love to have instructions! But after combing the internet yesterday I just couldn’t find instructions for this project! Came across yours today and I’m like THANKKKK GOODNESS! Haha thanks again 🙂
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Thank you . I can’t wait to try this. I to am like you . I won’t pay high bucks for something if I can do it myself.
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I love this! I have a few questions though! what size nails did you use?
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i am going to do this but im going to take a risk and do my husbands home country of Guatemala and the city he was born in for the heart.
Thank you so much! 🙂
I did the state of Wisconsin and I ended up just staining the wood instead of painting it. I had my heart to the upper left of the state and I painted the top of the nails in the heart red. It turned out awesome, I love it so much! You’re an amazing blogger very entertaining!
The nails were a pain though lol
I wonder if you could do your childs 1st initial with a heart in it?
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Hi there! I realize this is kind of off-topic but I
had to ask. Does operating a well-established website like yours require a large amount of work?
I’m brand new to writing a blog but I do write in my diary on a daily basis.
I’d like to start a blog so I can share my own experience and thoughts online.
Please let me know if you have any kind of suggestions or tips
for new aspiring blog owners. Thankyou!
Hi. I love this project a lot and I’m planning on making it for my boyfriend for valentines day. The only thing is I want to put two hearts on the state. He’s going off to school far away and I wanted the two hearts to symbolize distance doesn’t matter when you love somebody enough. The state is Indiana and I was wondering if it would be possible to make it?
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I love this idea. I’m going to do it with my husband’s and my home states. Then for every state we have lived. Great idea for military families like ourselves.
I love the project and your entertaining way of describing the steps required. I happen to live in Columbus, lol, and think this is a cool way to celebrate any state, although I think Ohio has a particularly good shape for this. I also like the comment above by Marie about making string maps of states she has lived in.
I am extremely inspired together with your writing abilities and also with the structure in your blog.
Is this a paid theme or did you modify it your self?
Either way keep up the nice high quality writing, it’s uncommon to see a nice weblog like this one these days..
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so neat!!
I think it is BEAUTIFUL! You did a great job.
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Hello! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering which
blog platform are you using for this website?
I’m getting fed up of WordPress because I’ve had
issues with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform.
I would be great if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
I love it, I am so going to do this, around a map of Wales UK with a dragon in the center 🙂
Have you ever considered about adding a little bit more than just your articles?
I mean, what you say is important and everything. However just imagine if you added some great photos or video
clips to give your posts more, “pop”! Your content is
excellent but with images and clips, this site could certainly
be one of the very best in its niche. Awesome blog!
Thanks for posting this DIY! I’m thinking about making these for centerpieces for my wedding and am wondering:
1. About how much it cost you to make this 1 project (wood & nails, mainly)?
2. What size thickness of the wood do you recommend? What is the minimum thickness you would recommend?
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I saw this a few months ago, right before another big move for us and I instantly knew I was going to do this for each state/country in which we’ve lived. That’s 4 so far! I’ve finally gathered all the stuff for it (except to find a way to print maps – we are still printer less). But i realized I never read the tutorial right and I got canvases….here’s hoping it works! Maybe I could cut cardboard to fit inside the canvas frame behind it? Anyway…before long I hope to have an Arizona, Texas, Ireland and Austria to share with you. 🙂
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