Decorative Wall Crown Tutorial

I need a crown! No, that is not an ploy to make sure my family know I should to be treated like a queen (ha!) and no, there was no costume party... not that type of crown. I was looking for the type of crown that hangs on the wall and usually has some kind of fabric hanging down from it. I found pictures on line....

like this on Pinterest...





and this, also on Pinterest...



....but I didn't want to spend a lot of money. How can I make it for less? Here is what I came up with.

Materials

Foam core board
Metal decorated edge trim or flat lace 1.5" tall
Lace 4" tall
1"x1.5" piece of wood-36" long. (I think I bought it at A.C.Moore's by the doweling)
Tacky glue
Plastic wrap
Gold spray paint (or any color you want)
Small 'L' brackets-2

First I guessed at about how big I wanted my crown using a tape measure bent into a semi-circle. Also I was trying to use what I had on hand! I cut a piece of  foam core board 20" long by 4" wide using a metal ruler and an Exacto knife. Tip: make several passes at it, do not try to cut all the way through the first time and put something underneath to protect your floor, table, ect.

My 20" x 4" piece of foam core wouldn't bend enough and I did not want to break it. This is where my obsession with home improvement shows pays off a bit. On one side I measured out and marked approximately 1" intervals; about 19 marks. At the first mark, with my Exacto knife, I cut across the board, cutting about 1/2 way through the foam. (Be careful not to cut all the way through.) Just a hair next to that first cut I made another cut parallel to it but at a slight angle into the first cut. I used the tip of the knife to dig out some of the foam to form a channel. I repeated that procedure another 18 times or so until the 20" long foam core board has about 19 very thin channels cut into it. This will be the inside of the crown. Now your board will bend nicely but still have good structure.

I wanted my crown to have points. I purchased a 4" deep piece of lace with pointy things to go at the top of my crown. Laying my board flat I measured a piece of lace to match. My lace has tall points that would have made me cut into one of the points making it uneven. I chose to shorten my board a smidge to fit the lace pattern. Pull out a cookie sheet or cutting board and cover it with plastic wrap. Pour some Tacky glue into a bowl and put your lace into it. Using your fingers really try to work the glue into the lace. This takes some effort, don't skimp.  When it is sufficiently saturated lay the lace out flat on the plastic wrap. I wanted my lace to fan out at the top so I rolled up a piece of tin foil and scooted it up under the plastic wrap to push up the top edge of the lace. Leave it to dry. Depending on the weather this can take a couple days.

There is a "lace" at the bottom of the crown. On my crown I used a piece of metal trim that I had laying around from a project from several years ago.

If you do not have this or cannot find it, don't worry, just use another piece of lace. This lace should be about 1.5" wide. Cut it about 1" longer than your board. Follow the same steps you just did for the top lace. Lay it flat on the plastic wrapped cutting board to dry.

Once your lace is completely dry pull it off the plastic. The plastic may stick a bit, don't worry. Use tweezers to pull bits off. Run a generous amount of glue where your top piece of lace will lay on the foam core board. In my case it was about the top 2" of the board. I laid the lace on top of that. Do the same for the bottom lace making sure to have about 3/4-1" hanging below the board. You should have about 1/2" extra on either side. Just wrap it around the foam core to the back side. Run your finger along the lace to smooth out any glue poking through the holes. Using another piece of plastic wrap cover your glued lace and put a couple books on top to weigh it down. Let it dry completely. You glue will dry clear. Remove books and plastic.

I cut two pieces of wood from the doweling I purchased at the craft store. Each piece was cut to 13". With a brad nailer or staple gun (this may be too thick for a staple gun- I didn't try it) attach the wood to the ends inside your crown. This will give your crown a nice rounded front.

Yup, I kinda missed. There was no easy way to pull it out without damaging something and so I left it.

The entire thing got a good coating of gold spray paint.

If you are putting this above a bed secure it to the wall with 'L' brackets. It could probably be secured with 3M pieces. Mine was a temporary installment so I didn't need to do anything drastic.  

These photos were taken with my phone. I forgot my camera that night!

And there you have it. Let me know if you try this project! 

Thanks for stopping by.


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