There are a lot of wooden artwork hangings available. They are a good way to use the wood pieces that are left over from other projects. The wood for this project originally were parts of pallets. I had done some planing and ripping and was eventually left with a lot of short slats about 1/4" thick.

TOOLS

Tablesaw

Ruler, yardstick

Hammer

MATERIALS

Plywood or hardboard backer (mine is 19" x 7")

1/4" slats (26 pieces 6" x 1-1/4")

2-blocks approx. 1" x 2" x 4"

Sandpaper

Wood glue

Sawtooth picture hanger

Wood stain, finish etc.

Step 1: Cutting and Assembly

1) Cut one end of each of the slats at a 45 degree angle.

2) Sand off the rough parts of the slats

3) Draw a line down the center of the backer board from top to bottom.

4) Apply glue to the backer and place the slats in position along each side of the line at 45 degree angles. Photo #2. Place another sheet of plywood on top of the slats and weight it down until the glue is dry.

5) On the saw, cut along the edge of the backer to remove the overhanging ends of the slats. Photo #3 shows one side cut.

6) Repeat the cut along the other side of the backer.

7) Glue one of the 1" x 2" x 4" blocks parallel to the short end of the backer about 4" from the top and the other block towards the bottom of the backer. The top block is for the picture hanger and the bottom block will keep the hanging parallel with the wall when hung.

8) OPTIONAL I wasn't happy with the way the slats lined up at the centerline so I added a vertical element.

8a) Cut a narrow strip of wood to serve as the center divider. Mine is 5/16" (W) x 1/2" (H) x 19" (L).

8b) To do this the saw blade is set to extend 1/4" above the table. Set the fence so the blade will cut down the center of the hanging where the slats meet. The low blade will remove part of the slats but will not cut into the backer. Make the first cut. Rotate the hanging 180 degrees and cut again. Move the fence out about 1/16" and cut in both directions. Repeat this until you have a slot just wide enough to accommodate the center divider piece. The last photo.

9) Securely attach the picture hanger to the top block on the back of the backer.

10) Sign and date your project.

11) Apply a finish the wood.

12) OPTIONAL I'm still thinking about adding a narrow frame to the outside of the hanging. If you decide to add one I recommend one about 1/4" thick and extending about 1/4" above the slats. Consider a color to contrast with the slats.