Knots can be challenging to your nailing process. If you are able to work around them, however, they can add character to your piece.
Knots can be challenging to your nailing process. If you are able to work around them, however, they can add character to your piece.
Sometimes the unexpected happens. Here are common string art problems and solutions I’ve found along the way.
The wood you want to work on cracks in the middle of prep. Occasionally the grain in a piece of wood will cause the board to crack or split in half during the cutting and sanding stage. There are two options at this point: glue or replace. If it’s a clean split, you can use wood glue and clamps to bring the board together again. Once it dries, sand the glue residue off and continue. The preferred solution is to replace the piece. This is the safest option, as it eliminates the risk of a re-split when you add your nails.
The wood surface you want to string on contains knots. While the best solution to this one is prevention, sometimes it can’t be helped. While most knots can be nailed into with a good amount of extra force, this can also lead to a bent nail. If that happens, remove the bent nail and start in the same hole with a fresh one. Usually one or two nails in the same hole will get the job done, or close enough to the height of its neighbors. There is one more option if a nail simply refuses to go any deeper and is noticeably higher than the rest: Cut the nail a little shorter (from the tip end) using wire or bolt cutters and superglue the nail into the hole. When the project is done, the string will provide most of the support, and your pattern will be uninterrupted. Again, avoid knots to begin with if you can.
A nail gets bent as you are prepping your board. If it’s just a slight bend, you can hammer gently from one side to straighten it out. As long as it’s still sturdy, you’re good to go. A very bent nail just needs to be removed, and you can do so using the back claw of the hammer or your needle-nose pliers. Try again with a new nail and don’t worry—blemishes in the wood not only add character, but usually get hidden by the strings.
You hammer a nail too far into your board. Sometimes the hammer gets a little unwieldy and sends a nail way deeper than the rest. Use the claw of your hammer to gently pull the nail up so it’s close to the height of its neighbors.
The nails are difficult to hammer close together. Some patterns get a bit intricate, and working the nail into a tight area can be tricky. Use your needle-nose pliers to hold the nail in place instead of your fingers and hammer as usual.
You run out of wrapping room on a nail. Those little nails can get crowded with string! If it becomes difficult to get multiple layers of string on a nail, try pushing the strings on the nail down toward the board. This usually frees up enough room for another few layers of string.
You try mixing string colors, but the result doesn’t look quite right. To mix colors effectively, avoid overfilling your pattern while stringing each color. As you layer in new colors, the fill density will increase as well.