DIY Fiber Art

I'm really excited to share today's post! The last time I shared photos of our bedroom it looked pretty rough, but these past few months, we've made a lot of progress. We decided to commit to a low-key, light, neutral vibe for the bedroom. Everything revolves around good sleep and positive vibes in this space. But I still want to decorate it in an interesting way using lots of texture!

While I was considering different options for an art piece above our bed, I originally wanted to do a big glittery heart marquee. But then, I was flipping through one of my Jonathan Adler books, and I saw this amazing tassel art!

Isn't it amazing?!

Next thing I knew, I was at the craft store buying tons of pretty yarn to make SO. MANY. TASSELS.

The best thing about DIY art is that it can be customized to fit your space EXACTLY. I used some painter's tape to visually mark off how large I wanted it to be, then I just measured that space before I went shopping for supplies. It can be as small or as large as you want.

Supplies:
-wooden dowel rod a few inches larger than your desired width
-medium weight and super chunky yarn (How much you need is VERY much dependent on the size and how much you want to cover in tassels. I had to go back to the store for more! I think I used two of the chunky yarn and about six of the medium weight yarn)
-latch hook mat
-scissors
-sturdy neutral string to hang it (My yarn wasn't strong enough to hold the weight.)

Step One: Make A LOT of tassels. After I had a few, I used them to try to estimate how many I would need, but I still had to make more later. I used about 70 tassels, each about 4 inches long. If you've never made tassels before (don't worry it's super easy), you can learn how here.

It's up to you if you want them to be extremely uniform or more random/natural. I actually used two different types of yarn for mine (but pretty similar), and they came out a little bit more random due to that.

The tassels are time consuming, but I found them to be a good project to do while I was watching TV (Laura helped me do some too while she was watching TV one night!). It's pretty mindless and kind of fun!

Step Two: Cut the latch hook mat down to your measurements. Attach the tassels to the latch hook mat. I just tied them on with more yarn.

Originally I intended to fill the entire piece with tassels. But halfway through I realized I really wanted to use this chunky yarn I had bought and that I could possibly just poke it through the latch hook mat to create something reminiscent of a weaving. Basically a no-weaving-skills weaving. Fun!

Step Three: Use you fingers or a latch hook tool to poke pieces of the chunky yarn through the holes. Since my yarn was very thick, I skipped about every other hole. I just kind of poked it through in sections until it looked full, and if a spot looked sparse, I went back and added more.

This is what it looks like as you're filling the mesh. It doesn't have to be perfect... just eyeball it!

Step Four: The final thing I did was hang my weaving and fill in any spots that looked a little sparse (both with more chunky yarn and more tassels). Then I trimmed my tassels just a little bit (getting those REALLY long stray pieces), but left them pretty random and natural.

Step Five: Pose as absolutely awkwardly as you POSSIBLY can. (I think I nailed this step!) WOOHOO! I MADE A DIY!

Hang it up and give yourself a GIANT pat on the back! Haha! There's something so satisfying about making something you really love for your home.

Have an amazing day, you guys!!! Love, Elsie Suki too!

ps. My supplies were around $100 with no sales, but since every craft store has these magical 40% off coupons and frequent yarn sales, I think you could easily cut that down to $60 or less... it also depends on the size!

Credits// Author: Elsie Larson. Photography: Elsie Larson and Jeremy Larson. Project Assistant: Laura Gummerman. Photos edited with A Beautiful Mess actions.