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This design is lots of work but mega payoff. Peter Good at Glad Tidings Assembly of God in West Lawn, Pennsylvania brings us this drizzly masterpiece.
Peter took sixteen 2″x12″x16′ boards from Lowes and cut them down to 4 feet long. He then ran them through the table saw, cutting them into 8 pieces for a about 480 pieces. He then painted the pieces with a gallon of “Barn and Fence” paint ($13).
Then he drilled a 1/2″ hole in each end. He hung them with tons of clothing line (from Dollar Stores) at 2, 4, and 6 foot sections. The pieces were connecter to one another randomly and hung 4 to 5 inches apart. He covered the back wall that measures 25 feet high and 45 feet across.
To light the precipitation he used 3 LED bars, 4 LED can lights on the floor, and moving head color changers to fill in up top. The 2 “chandeliers” were constructed using the same thought. He took lattice and hung it from the ceiling.
I write and speak about the creative process – especially for churches. Call me a resource for the church creative wanting to make their ministry better.
Nice Job! How long did it take you to hang all the wood pieces?
well it took me around 5 hours to cut the wood.
2 guys 8 hours to paint it all.
3 hours to cut all the string. (while watching tv)
it took 3 people 30 hours each to string all the pieces and hang. hanging was the easiest. just kept throwing them in the lift.
if anyone is interested in using this product for there church please contact me. i'm in the greater Phily area and willing to help out however i can so this set is not just chilling in my garage.
hey Peter! you might want to list it on http://www.setseller.com too. that's what the site's all about. :)
Setseller.com is a great idea but there’s nothing there.
hey peter… i know this is late but any chance u have any of this still hanging around — we’re in northern VA and some of it could work on our 38 ft. wd x 14 ft high stage :) let me know…
Was it difficult to keep these pieces of wood from hitting each other or swaying?
No, the pieces hung rather well. they were placed 6 or so inches from the back wall, the fan circulation in the room is a minimal back there so they didn't move that much…
Are you willing to sell the pieces you used? I live in WI, but if those are already made, we may be willing to buy them. Thanks for your help.
Eva please contact me at Pjgood@vfcc.edu so we can discuss an option for you. thanks!
how much did all the lumber cost?
$19.80 a piece. its the cheapest way of making this project. a 1/2"x1"x8' board is 3.00 ish. so i think it works out to .60 per piece. a huge difference.
This looks beautiful. Great job. How are the different values on the wood accomplished? Did you paint the wood different colors?
We painted the pieces white then used color changing lights to create different effects. so you could use color gels in par cans or LED type machines for more color changing options…
This is really beautiful. With your permission I would like to use a variation of it for an upcoming production.
I really like the chandeliers, anything special about creating them? I am going to try substituting PVC pipe since it is already white if I can get clearance from the fire marshal. If I still have to fire treat (paint) everything then I'll go back to your wood structure since it looks like it adds a great element in texture with the square edge.
James go for it man! if your local or near to PA give me a shout this design is sitting in storage waiting to be used. :) i had a couple thoughts for variation. if your room is shorter use 2 or 3 foot boards instead of 4 like mine and shorten the rope as well. i simply took the height of the wall (24 ft) then divided all the pieces up. if you use the same board and different length string you can achieve the un even/random look.
for the Chandeliers i took a 4 x 8 sheet of lath cut in half (4×4) for one on each side, painted black, then hung the different pieces at different lengths. putting the longest (3 boards 3 strings) in the middle then the middle length (2 boards, 2 strings) as a second “row” around the center pieces finally the shortest (1 board, one string) around the previous 2 as the last “row”.
oh i used wood because it was the cheapest, i know not the quickest. my time was free though. i’m a volunteer. :)
Peter,
I am the media and Production coordinator at a church Chambersburg, Pa (about 2.5 – 3 hrs from the Philly area) . We have a series entitled "High water mark" coming up, March 20 – April 10 ( Although we may leave it hang through Easter) We would probably install the week of March 14-19. I was wondering if we could "borrow" the set if we picked up and returned (provided it could hauled in a pickup or something managable). Our stage is not as large. I believe 17' high X 25' across. I would remeasure to be sure. Let me know if this is an option and we can talk about details.
Great Job Peter!! Are you willing to sell it? I love the chandeliers, and our stage is smaller than yours, it is like a 3/4 of what I can see at the pics. Please let me knnow. God bless you!!
Thanks For the idea…
http://www.220power.com/media-photos-view.php?ID=…
Peter, or anyone who might have borrowed this set – is this set still available to be used again on another church stage? We are in upstate New York but several of our members travel up and down the eastern seaboard and visit Philly. Love the look!