Gather Driftwood on Your Summer Vacation to the Shore!

I have wanted to make some driftwood sailboats for some time now, and on a recent trip up to Ohio I went to one of my favorite spots on the Lake Erie shore to collect some driftwood for my project.  If you are heading to the shore this year, keep your eyes open for driftwood and shells for craft projects after you return home!  

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I began by washing all of my driftwood with fresh water and then setting it out in the sun to dry.  If you want a whitewashed look, you can always soak your driftwood in a bleach and water solution.

I sorted through my driftwood and found some pieces to use for my boat base and my mast.  Then I went to work with a drill, I drilled a hole into my base, not all the way through.  

I used Gorilla brand wood glue to glue my mast into the base and let it dry completely.  The size of your drill bit will depend on the size of your mast.  Wipe off any extra glue, although it will dry a natural color and not stand out on your boat .Here are my two sailboats ready to have their sails made and be trimmed out for the summer holidays!  Time to make sails. 

Fold a single layer of fabric so that the edge of the sail closest to the mast would be the fold and set your wood boat on top of it to get an idea of where you want to cut your sail. This will give your sail a double thickness of the fabric.

Use iron on hem tape on all of the edges of the inside of the triangle including the folded edge to re-enforce it, as this will be where we make holes to attach this to the mast.  

Use a nail to make a holes in your sail.  

Make 3 or 4 holes, depending upon the size of your sail.  One hole in each of the corners and if needed, a fourth hole half way down the mast side of your sail.  

Use tiny screw eyes to secure your sails to the boat base.  Screw one of these eyes solidly into the back of your boat.  This will help to hold your sail.  Thread a piece of string through each of the holes and you are ready to raise your sails!  Simply tie your ropes around the ‘mast’ and tie one to the screw eye to secure the back of your boat!  Repeat the process and add your front sail to your boat!  You can stop here if you would like, but how about adding a little holiday celebration to your boat?  I bought 1/8 yard of two different red, white and blue fabrics to make a fun banner for my boats.  Fold the fabric in half and using double sided fusible webbing in between the layers you will create a fabric that is stiff and has the “front” side or print on both sides.  

Cut out triangles from the fabric leaving a little bit of a “top” to your triangles.  Fold over the top and iron the fold well.  Turn over your pennant and trim off the edges that stick out beyond the pennant shape.  Fold the top over a piece of string and use a small piece of iron on hem tape to secure your pennant to the string.  Repeat until you have the length of banner you want.  Here they are!  A pair of driftwood sailboats all decked out for the summer!  When you head to the shore this summer, pick up some driftwood and make a fleet of sailboats!

I’ll be sharing this at the following link parties:  Project Inspired | Create Link Inspire  | Inspire Me Monday