DIY Wood Nichos

 

Last month I spent a week in beautiful San Miguel de Allende in Mexico. I shopped like nobody’s business! I purchased a lot of small wood and tin nichos – shadow boxes. I was so inspired I came up with a DIY Wood Nichos method to make more at home! The key ingredient? Yard sticks! I bought mine at Lowe’s they are cheap and plentiful and you can make a LOT of boxes with just a few. Come to find out, I also had several yardsticks at home, so yup, I made a lot of boxes!

One thing about crafts in Mexico, there is a LOT of recycling! Making use of anything and everything to make beautiful art.

Supplies:

2-4 wood yard sticks

Wood glue

Saw

Craft paint

Watercolor paper

Brushes

To make them, start off by marking off each section on the yardstick that you want to cut. I used a small electric saw to cut up the pieces. For the backs of the boxes, you can use more sticks or boxes that you already have. Great way to recycle!

Glue the pieces to the fronts of boxes, or you can use the cut up pieces to make the boxes if you want. Whatever works! Be creative and resourceful!

To get the designs for the tops of the nichos, like the ones in Mexico, I cut out shapes from watercolor paper. You can use thicker cardboard if you want.

Next – paint everything! First base coat the boxes and the watercolor paper separately. Let dry. Then use craft glue to attach the designs. I used a liner brush to add accents.

Here’s the fun part – finding items to showcase inside! Look for small objects, pictures, jewelry pieces, or even ornaments!

Attach a saw tooth picture hanger if you want to display them on the wall.