DIY Idea: African Wall Art

WORDS Misi Overturf IMAGES Adriaan Oosthuizen

Offcuts of wood from DIY projects are often discarded, but you can combine them with creative flair to make a beautiful artwork to mount on your wall.

WHAT YOU NEED

• Printout of your desired template
• 9-mm Supawood (for backing)
• Wood glue
• Offcut pieces of wood
• Black marker pen
• Jigsaw
• Copper foil
• Panel pins
• Hammer
• Long ruler
• Pencil
• Tin cutter
• Picture hook and eyelet

WHAT TO DO

1. Choose a design for your artwork, set it to the size you want and print this template on your home printer. Countries make attractive shapes and often bring back nostalgic memories of previous visits. As an example, we have chosen a template of Africa, which is striking, but you can also choose letters or any other shapes.

2. Assemble the pieces of offcut wood on the Supawood panel like a puzzle, and large enough for your template to fit on top. Join the pieces of wood together and glue them with wood glue onto the panel. Leave to dry.

3. Place the cut-out template on top of the puzzle and trace the shape onto the blocks of wood with a marker pen.

4. Using a jigsaw, cut out the shape of the pattern. If some of the blocks fall off in the process, glue them back in place with more wood glue.

5. The copper foil serves as a trim for the edge of the figure. Measure the length and mark the width by drawing a line with a pencil on the foil. Trim with a tin cutter.

6. Attach the copper trim in place by hammering panel pins along the edge of the outline.

7. Fasten a small eyelet to the back panel to fit over a picture hook, so you can mount the reclaimed wooden artwork on the wall.

This is an extract from 50 Upcycling Projects: From Trash to Treasure by Misi Overturf, published by Human & Rousseau. The book, which retails at R325, is available in both English and Afrikaans.