Crafty Friday!

Lately I have been focusing the majority of my time and effort into finding a job, which is why I haven't been blogging. But this week I took a little break to complete a craft project I've been wanting to do for months. It turned out so good, I just have to share!

Now I know most of you have seen the state string art DIY on pinterest. If not, visit http://theharpsterhome.wordpress.com/2011/12/12/heart-in-ohio/. This is where is got the inspiration to make one, except for the state of Florida. I hadn't seen this done yet so I figured I would give it a try.

I changed a few things to make it more personal, so my instructions are a little different.

This is what you'll need:
Piece of wood (I got mine at Micheal's or you can cut your own)
Nails
Hammer
String (I used cording instead because it's thicker and more sturdy)
Burlap
Mod Podge
Print out of your state (http://www.nationalatlas.gov/printable/reference.html#slist)
Pencil
Tape

*Note: I made quite a few mistakes along the way so I included those in notes to hopefully prevent you from doing the same.

Directions:
1. Cover the front of your board in Mod Podge. Place burlap on top and smooth out.
 Note: Make sure to cut your piece of burlap big enough to completely wrap around all the edges. Originally, I was going to cover my board with scrapbook paper, but I couldn't get all the wrinkles out so I used extra burlap I had around the house.

2. Cut out your state template and tape it to the board

3. Draw a heart in pencil around your city.
Note: Make sure your heart isn't too close to the edge of the state. I had to move mine more center and make it bigger.

4. Hammer nails around state border and heart. Be patient, this takes time.
Note: I redid this part a few times. Make sure there's a little space between your nails otherwise they look crooked. Also, make sure you have enough nails, I ended up using smaller nails for the heart because I ran out. 

5. Remove state template.

6. Choose a starting nail and tie your string around it.
Note: I re-wrapped mine a few times until I found what looked best. Since FL is weird shape I found it easier to start at the tip of the panhandle.

7. Wrap string around the adjacent nail and continue until you get close to the heart.
Note: After I wrapped string around the whole state I went back over the panhandle area so that it didn't look so sparse. I ended on the same nail I started with.

8. Now start wrapping your string from the outside nails to the heart nails.

9. After you've completed the whole state, tie your string around the ending nail, and cut off excess.

Note: This last step is optional. It represents the 4 years I was stationed in Jacksonville while my fiance was in Tampa.
10. I put an extra nail over the city of Jacksonville. I used a contrasting red string and wrapped it from that nail to the center of the heart. I did this several times until I had a thick line.

If you have any additional questions, let me know!