This impressive mural (along with a few others) were made by artist Kathryn Anderson with nothing more than pushpins and yarn. We'll show you how you can create your own, step by step and with tips from the artist.
Kathryn Anderson of KAndeArt has made some great wall murals out of nothing more than string and push pins. Here are her steps to creating a beautiful and unique murals from string.
What You Need
Materials
Pushpins
Brown yarn or string
A piece of wood to use as a thimble
Instructions
1. Make the Outline: Begin by putting pushpins into the wall in the general shape of the tree you'd like to create. Using a piece of wood as a "thimble" will spare your fingers from blisters and from becoming numb. Kathryn begins with a photo of a tree printed out to give her the basic guide as to the shape she's going for.
A few tips from Kathryn on designing your tree:
- Don't be too symmetrical or regular with the branches, trees are not ladders.
- Generally odd numbers of things look better than even.
- Don't try to make it too perfect. Trees grow kind of wonky.
- Don't be too linear. Jump around with the string.
2. Begin to Wrap the String: Using a brown yarn, begin to wrap the string around the push pins. Start with the trunk and then do each brand individually. Kathryn advises not to be too linear—jump around with the string and double back to give more texture or the appearance of bark. Feel free to use the same pin many times.
3. Add Character: To make knotholes, make a ring or two of pushpins and wrap the string in a circle while weaving in and out. Vary the size of branches and the spacing between them. Let branches overlap.
4. Starting and Stopping: To take a break, simply tack the string firmly into place with a pushpin and wind it around a few times to maintain tension.
Other pieces of Kathryn's creation can be viewed at KAndeArt.
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(Images: KAndeArt, used with permission)
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Very pretty. I especially like the framed birds tucked into the work.
Wow! I've been looking for a 3-d way to add coral to my "underwater" kids room. Now I can just use orange yarn and a more open pattern-- any suggestions on something more safe than pushpins for the kids not to pull out and stick themselves? This will work great with the beige velvelt rocks!!
I would love to do this in my new place which will have a toddler roaming about in a year. So I would propose that you do this on a cork board...or piece of wood, using the techniques explained...but then when all done, you either spray it with some kind of heavy starch, use Aleene's Fabric Stiffener and Draping Liquid. Like directions for making a doily bowl, those same tips seem like they would work http://www.craftstylish.com/item/9884/how-to-make-a-doily-bowl. I'll be trying this out soon! Thanks for the beautiful idea....kind of like the 70's copper wall art, but fresh!
flockhome.com
You could use small brads (like "real" string art uses), but then that makes it less renter-friendly... as a landlord, I'd rather have to repaint than patch a forest of 400 brad holes! :)
I just have to tell you that I stumbled upon this a while back. That night, I was in a very very dark place. This article and this idea gave me something to do when nothing else was working. I just want to thank you with all my heart.
I needed this.
I just wanted to stop by and let you know that I linked to this post today from the new Home & Garden channel at Craft Gossip. :) My hope is to share many of the fabulous projects I see everyday with the vast CG audience. Your feature will appear in the main Craft Gossip RSS feed, on the main home page and can be found directly here
http://homeandgarden.craftgossip.com/string-tree-wall-mural/
I love this idea. I just made one of these yesterday! It is such a bold art piece. It really makes a statement in my office. I cut out bird silhouettes from colorful printed cardstock and tucked them into the branches. I am in love with it. Yes, the push pins look a little tacky up close, but the overall effect is well worth it. Thanks for the awesome idea! I never would have thought of this.
to make this kid safe glass it in.maybe make it look like a window to the outside
@patrick (the other one): as a renter, I patch all my drywall holes before I move out. And paint them if I have any paint. :D
I made one of these in April. I wanted a whimsical tree to add texture to the wall. The photo is a crappy cellphone picture, but you'll get the idea.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/45422584@N02/4533833097/in/set-72157623896977386/ Thank you for the post! this was the coolest project I've worked on for a while.
wow looks awesome i know what i gonna be doing in the next few days lol
Cool Idea. And, although I'm not a huge fan of the tree which grows onto the ceiling, it is inspiring. I would imagine vines could be created in a similar fashion to 'wind' around the top of the walls or along the ceiling.
You could use bright red pushpins (oversized) for a cherry tree! What about pale pink for cherry blossoms? : )
How cute would it be to use small clips and hang your christmas cards on it, or as a place for everyday notes. Use a pretty green paper for the notes :~)
That's going to be so much fun to dust & get cobwebs out of...
I made a blue stump with green leaves on a bulletin board following these instructions. You need a lot of pushpins but it looks pretty cute.
@laura@hippres... How about using a hot glue gun(or glue dots!) to stick a bead that has the same general shape of a pushpin head? No needle at the end, but there's still the threat of someone plucking it off the wall and it going straight into the mouth(depending on how old they are..).
In my head I see my cat climbing up the wall on that - literally! Love it. :)
I used this tutorial to make a creepy Halloween tree, you can check it out at
http://homemadeglamour.blogspot.com/
Two weeks ago I did this project in my dorm room. It definitely added character to my plain white walls. I added a pillow on the floor so that i can do my homework 'under the tree'
Thank you so much for posting this, it really made my room feel more personal.
L-O-V-E this wall.
Hummm...this looks like something my creative daughter would like to do.
I don't think this would work very well on a lath-and-plaster wall, although it is a brilliant idea!
air in a can to clean the dust might work.
air in a can might work to clean the dust.