Building Wooden Crosses
- 1). Gather your wood. You can use rounded wood, like tree branches, thin slats or even wooden stakes to build your cross. The wood should be straight and your base piece should also be longer than the cross's arm piece. A good estimate is for the arm piece to be 1/2 to 2/3 the length of the base piece.
- 2). Prepare the wood as needed. Some wood may have rough edges, nails sticking out, tree knots or other unsightly elements you want removed. Use a heavy piece of sandpaper to smooth all surfaces. Use pliers and snips to remove any nails or wood knots.
- 3). Lay your pieces flat. Place the vertical piece of the cross on the ground, with the horizontal piece perpenddicular at the height you wan. If you want extra security, use a carving knife to carve out small indents where the two pieces meet. The indents will help them fit together like puzzle pieces.
- 4). Attach at the wood's intersection. Depending on where you are going to place your cross and the overall look you want, you have a variety of options for securing the pieces together. Wood glue works for indoor crosses. Follow the directions on the bottle. Most brands will require you to dampen the wood, use glue on only one side and clamp the pieces together for several hours. Nails work for both indoor and outdoor crosses. Use quality wood nails, and secure by pounding through the center of the intersection. If the nails are too long and stick out through the back of the wood, pound the points down for added security. To make your cross even more secure, or to add a little flavor, wrap wire or twine around the intersection in a crisscross pattern. Secure by knotting or twisting at the back of the cross.
- 5). Paint or decorate as desired. You can leave your cross au natural, which looks very stylish in the case of the tree-branch variety, or you can paint it and/or attach studs, ornaments and a variety of other adornments. Just make sure the attachments are weatherproof and secured with nails or wire (not glue) if the cross will be used outside.
