DIY String Art Ideas for Kids

We have a wonderful page on our site with many ideas for string art for adults.  And it’s great!  If you check it out, you’ll see that it is full of traditional string art; the kind with a wooden backing, nails, and string.

This page, however, is devoted to string art ideas for kids, and the ideas here span a large range of possibilities for what constitutes string art.

Yes, some of the kids' string art ideas include the usual wooden backing, nails and string.  BUT there are so many other great projects that even the youngest of kids can enjoy.

Take for example, the DIY string art project below that is a simple lacing activity using heavy string or yarn.  The yarn is so much easier for the little ones to manipulate.

Cute shapes are cut from cardboard or foam by adults who then use a hole punch to make places for the kiddos to lace the yarn through.

No nails.  No thin thread or string.  Just a super-fun, dexterity building, hand-eye coordination art activity that the kids love.

Preschool kids will enjoy the DIY string art project below that is simply made with cardboard coasters that an adult has made notches around.  The little ones simply wrap the yarn around the coaster from notch to notch.

Once again, we've found a great project that is simple, promotes small muscle coordination and uses no nails pounded into wood.

A kids’ string art project found below that takes the school age kids closer to the traditional form of string art uses cardboard in place of the wooden background and thumbtacks in place of nails.

Yarn, crochet yarn or string wraps nicely around the thumb tacks that can be placed to form the shape of an object.  This project moves away from the free-flow lacing toward wrapping around the tacks to make an outline of a simple figure such as a flower or tree.

And the tweens and teens will love the more traditional string art using wood, nails and colored string.  The younger set might need some help with hammering the nails, but they will find the wrapping to be just the right level for them.

One project below involves painting the background, hammering the nails into the shapes of the letters to spell the tween or teen’s name, and then going wild creating a wonderful piece of art for their bedrooms.

What is the best wood to use for string art?

If wood is preferred as the background for the DIY string art project, softer woods such as pine or balsa wood are the easiest to hammer the nails into.

These wooden pieces can be cut and sanded or purchased at a craft or hobby store, ready to go. Some of the hobby store ready-made wooden shapes have beveled edges that will add interest to the finished project.

If the wood is to be painted or stained, be sure to do that a day prior to beginning the nail and hammer portion of the project.

Scroll down to find many kids’ string art projects, as well as patterns for inspiration.

No matter what the kids’ skill levels are, string art techniques preferred, or personal preferences for colors and shapes, there is sure to be a DIY string art project to be found below.