Easy Recycled Craft – Key To My Heart

What do you do with an old drawer, some game pieces, an a heart shaped lock and key?  You make some fun wall art!  This easy craft makes recycling or up-cycling fun.  The message “key to my heart” is a romantic one, making this a great project to give as a gift to someone special.

On a recent antique shopping trip, I picked up the cute drawer for $4.50.  I had been looking all over for old Scrabble games to use the letter block pieces in craft projects.  I didn’t find any Scrabble but found something I liked even better.  My search led me to a game made in the 50′s called “Keyword Cross Word Game”.  Inside there were lettered blocks in black with a greenish yellow letter – SCORE!  I was able to purchase that game for just $5 and have enough letters for several projects.

My inspiration for this project came from seeing a wall hanging at an eclectic interiors store.  The vintage piece had a sale price of $100.  I loved the art but didn’t want to pay the price.  Instead I went searching for the materials to make my own.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t find an antique heart shaped lock with key.  I did, however, find an antique reproduction on ebay for just $9.99.  So instead of paying $100 for some cool art work, I was able to make my own for about $20.

Once I had all of the materials found, the actual project was very simple to do.  I hope this inspires you to do some vintage shopping and make your own art work!

Craft Instructions:

1.  Gather up your materials.  You will need a small drawer, game letters, heart shape lock and key, acrylic paint, picture hanger, and E6000 craft glue.

2.  Turn the drawer over and nail a picture hanger to the top end.  The drawer pulls should be at the top.

3.  Remove the drawer pulls and paint in your desired color.

4.  Put a light coat of paint on the inside and sides of drawer.  Keep some areas very light or bare for a distressed look.  You can also paint it with an even coat and then sand some areas off.

5.  Lay out your pieces in the inside bottom of the drawer.  I like to have the letters somewhat scattered instead of a perfectly straight line.

6.  Use a strong glue, such as E6000 craft glue, to adhere your pieces in place.  Let this dry for a day before hanging your new art.