How to Make a Wall Screen
There are many different things you can use to make the wall screen. For a country look, glue, nail or screen four flat pieces of wood together, forming a large rectangle. For a more modern look wire together four metallic poles. Other ideas are dowels, old broom or mop handles, handles from old wooden spoons or even a large picture frame with glass and backing removed.
The most wonderful thing about the wall screen, besides it’s uniqueness is that you can make it any size you want. Make a gigantic one to fill a large wall or a small one for a bathroom wall.
After you have the perimeter of the wall screen formed, you will need crafting wire, found at most department stores. The wire comes in several sizes of thickness – choose something that’s not too hard to manipulate but something that’s not thin as thread. The wire may come on a spool or on a flat. You’ll need plenty of wire, so choose three or four spools or flats.
Begin making the screen by measuring the top edge of the frame, then the side edge. Divide these numbers by 3, 4, or 5, etc, depending upon how large the screen is, and depending upon what number divide each equally. What you want to accomplish is a look of equal-size sections, somewhat like a window. Therefore, the design is all yours, and you can have 4 “windows”, 8 “windows” or more.
Make chalk marks along all four sides of the frame to show where your wiring will go. Start by wrapping the wire from the first mark on top, to the first mark on bottom. Wrap this way three or four times, depending upon the thickness of the wire. Try to keep the strands close together as you wrap, even on top of each other. Clip the wire and move to the next set of marks. Continue in this manner until you have all of the vertical wires in place. Wrap the frame with the horizontal wires, in the same manner.
Now that your wiring is in place on the frame, you should have a few, or many, “windows” or sections. They should be somewhat equal in size but it’s not imperative. The design is your own, remember. Use additional wire to make an “X” in the center of each section. You’ll likely find that rather than having to do each section separately, you’ll be able to drag the wire across several sections at a time.
Where the wires cris-cross, on the corner of each section, decorate them to your own theme. Purchase small brass butterflies to put on some cris-crosses, or purchase small, flat, plastic moons and stars. Or, just leave the design plain and rustic. You’ll find many nice trinkets to hang on them at a craft store, and if the trinket is a magnet, it’ll easily attach to the wiring.
Hang your wall screen up on the wall or door and make sure it’s secure. It’s important to hang the frame where it cannot tilt. That’s because you’ll use the window screen to hang interesting or meaningful items and you don’t want it to tilt if you hang more things on one side than the other. Simply slide a birthday card between the wires of one section, hang a small picture frame on the wires of another section. You can put as many or as few items on the screen as you like. Other ideas are keys, silk flowers and vines, four-leaf clovers, achievement ribbons or hairbows.
The screens make an interesting conversation piece and can be made in various shapes like circles or triangles. They can be made to suit any wall, large or small, long or short. Your friends and family will be impressed so be ready to show them how to make one, too.
