Want to create an inexpensive but striking (pun intended) statement piece to take back to your apartment this Fall? This beautiful, textured, gradient DIY wall art is so easy to make and when finished, it's hard to believe it's simply made out of matchsticks. Let's get crafty! Supplies: * 2 boxes of matches * Hot Glue * Scissors * Cardboard (use on old box to save money!) Step One: Burn Matches Take this part outside to avoid setting off smoke alarms or creating a burnt smell that will linger in your home. Instead of burning 250+ matches one at a time, make a bundle of 10-15 matches, light one match and use it to carefully burn the rest of the bundle. This will make the process much faster as well as give you more control of your burn lines. Step Two: Create an Outline Your cardboard cutout lines should resemble that of a compass. Start by drawing a cross with lines going North, South, East, and West then Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, and Southwest. These lines will be your center points on your 8 arrows. Draw dotted lines between each arrow, these will be your valley points and will help with cutting. Don't stress if your lines or cuts don't end up perfect, the matchsticks will hide all of it. It is really just a guideline and extra support that makes the creating process a little bit easier. I made each arrow around 2" thick and 7" long, some will be longer and some shorter so I kept the extra length just to be safe. Step Three: Glue Down Matches Start by laying matches on your guidelines with burnt edges facing outwards. Line two matches on NE, NW, SE & SW. These will be your center lines of your large base arrows. North, East, South, & West will just need one guideline match. Line up matches facing opposite of the center-point match line. Keep them close together and line the entirety of the two matches, stopping at the start of the burn line on the last match. Repeat until connected all the way around. The NE, NW, SE, & SW arrows should be covered at this point, leaving a little room on the ends for the second tier. The second tier is just simply a mini version of the first. Repeat previous steps creating a mini arrow with burnt edges facing out. This will finish off every arrow except East & West. East & West arrows have three tiers to give extra dimension to the overall piece. The arrow is created the same way except the burnt edges are now facing inward and connecting with the burnt edge of the second tier. It also shouldn't be as wide. I shortened my third tier by four matches and then cut off the excess cardboard. Trim all the way around to clean up the edges and then you are finished! If you want to hang on your wall just simply add a hook to the back or display on a side table with a cactus or two and watch everyone be amazed with your matchstick creation. Show us how you styled it with #threadsbabe XX
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