Dads love handsome wooden boxes. And dads love things made especially for them. So why not make this beautiful wooden box for dad this year? We think that this DIY project (for less than $10) will make a most charming Father’s Day gift that dad will keep for many years to come. And we are all about commemorative gifts that will bring lasting joy. So let’s start!
Supplies:
- Wooden box with a lid (we used a 9” x 5″ wood box from a craft store), a vintage box will work great as well.
- Various colors of sewing thread or floss (we found that colors with high contrast to the wood look best)
- About 125 small 1-inch nails with round, flat nail heads (heads need to be big enough to hold thread in place)
- I <3 DAD paper template – download the pdf template from our website (right hand sidebar) or you can make your own template.
- Scissors
- Small hammer
- Sand paper
- And of course: The Best Dad in the world!
Budget: ~$10 Craft time: ~3-4 hours
Instructions Nailing:
- Inspect the box and sand the edges if necessary for a smooth beautiful finish (box could be finished with clear furniture wax or stained with a colored stain).
- Print and cut out the paper template and position it centered on the lid of the box.
- Carefully, using a hammer, tap the nails into the lid of the box at the dots marked on the template.
- Make sure the nails are all the same height.
- Make sure that you start adding nails from the inside of the letters and continue around the outside.
- When tapping the nails into the lid, be sure to keep them from sticking through the other side of the lid and tap any back up that accidentally went through.
- Once all the nails are in place, remove the paper template from the box lid and remove any paper remnants left behind.
Instructions Threading:
- Make a small loop with the thread and secure it to the first nail. Start winding the thread in and out of the nails in random patterns to fill in the shapes outlined by the nails.
- We found that a double loop around each nail helps to keep the thread situated.
- We started winding at the top of the nail, but then pushed the thread down to the bottom of the nail to get nice three dimensional layering of the thread.
- Keep the thread on the spool while filling in the shapes so you don’t run out of length.
- When you are finished with a color, wrap the thread around the nearest nail a few times and tie a small knot to secure it place.
Dad will love this personalized lovely box, we are sure!
