Miniature Guitar Tutorial

 Afternoon mini friends!  Today I am sharing a miniature guitar.  I made this tiny instrument from card stock, glue, paint, string and beads. 

I began by finding a picture of a simple guitar on the computer and printing it out on card stock.  When I decided exactly what size I wanted (2 1/2 inches tall) I printed several of them on one sheet of card stock.  I wound up using 13 layers for my guitar.  The bottom three cut outs were whole guitar shapes, the top three were whole shape with the hole cut out and the middle seven had the center cut out.  

This is the one I used if you would like to copy and paste it.

I used Elmer's wood glue to glue each layer together.  If you want your guitar thicker just print a few more layers for the middle. 

I also used the wood glue to go around the outside edges and let that dry.  It is a filler and can be easily sanded with a fingernail file.

Ready for paint!

I always use simple acrylic paints.  I also decided to use Mod Podge Dimensional Magic for the coating over my paint job because I wanted a really glossy shine.  If I didn't have it, I would have used Mod Podge Gloss Lustre as a topcoat.  

On the first guitar I made (below) I simply stuck pieces of thread on the neck while the dimensional magic was wet.  Then I discovered how dull my tiny scissors have gotten so I didn't get as close of a cut on the as I would have liked.  

Applying the strings was a bit fiddly also.  But if there's one thing that making tiny things has taught me it is patience. 

On the second guitar I pre-cut the fret pieces for the neck.  They aren't all the same size (obviously) but I'm not a perfectionist really.  And I find that you don't really notice when the piece is finished.  

Note to self... buy new tiny sharp scissors!  

To attach the strings, I glued them to a tiny rectangle of card stock.  Snipped the ends when dry and glued the rectangle to the guitar.  I also glued another tiny rectangle on top to cover the strings and let all that dry.  Next, I put a drop of regular school glue on my finger and touched it all the way down the string then held it tight on the frets of the neck for a minute or two and repeated this step for all four strings.  Once they were stuck good, I put a tiny drop of wood glue on the side of the top and held the string on the side.  Repeated this for all four... just to give an ending point for the string.  Then finished it all off by placing a dot of glue and a tiny bead over each string end at the top to act as the string tuners.  

Well, if I haven't confused you too much with all that string-gluing talk we are doing good!  It really is pretty basic and simple to do.  You've just got to be patient with yourself and your work.

I really hope you enjoyed this tiny tutorial.

Have a wonderful day!

XOXO

Laurie