The process of the Cross

Creating the cross took about 45 minutes to an hour, and below are two contact sheets of images from the process as well as some that I particularly picked out.





Obviously to begin with measuring and drawing a template is a must in order for the pieces to be accurate together- of which the images show.



The next task was to cut the sheet of plastic into two as there is a front and back to my cross, once cut into two piece, they were sellotaped together so when cutting the cross into shape the pieces would not fall apart- it ensures that both pieces are exactly the same size.




Here the two pieces were cut into shape with the main saw and tiny jigsaw for the smaller edges.



Here the two pieces were sanded down so ensure the edges and corners etc are straight and smooth.



Next step was to create the sides for the cross to create it 3D. The second image shows sellotaping the cut to shape sides to ensure shape of the cross.

And the same process continues of cutting the next side to shape and sellotaping it to the previous side in order to start creating the shape to the cross.



Once all the sides (apart from the lids) were cut, and sellotaped on, the next step was to glue it. This was only done on one side to begin with as you can see in the images, and once that was dry the next task was to glue the other side on.


The first image shows the cross before the second side was sellotaped on, second image shows the second side on and the third image shows it all glued on except the lids and also with the protective layers removed.
The front and back sides of the cross are a tint blue clear plastic and the sides are just clear, this was to add more interest to the cross itself rather than just the images etc that are going to be placed inside.

The next steps are the lids being attached and drilled for the top of the cross, as well as the sides of the plastic being polished for final touches.

Here shows the 3 new lids on the cross; the top one has two blocks on the lid to keep it secure, and the two side lids rest on blocks in the cross, to reduce any sliding around. This helps getting my objects in and out of the cross.


Once the lids were completed; the next step was to drill holes in them for the string and cords that I would be hanging through them. The top one only needed four and in a diamond shape where as the sides had 8 on each and were random. This was because I had different layout and ways of facing.


Here shows the holes being drilled once marked out on the plastic with masking tape. The top lids holes were a lot thicker compared to the sides as the cord and string are different sizes.

The first thing I completed once the cross was finally completed, was a quick clean over to get rid of any dirt, but I did come across a problem when I couldn't reach the bottom of the cross.

I knotted the 4 cords at the top then threaded through the cord through the hole in the top lid. This meant that the cord could hang freely.

Here I cut the white string into a variety of lengths, ready to thread through the tiny holes, here I did the same as before and knotted the white string before threading through so it again could hang.

I then had the task of deciding which cord was to have which photos. I made four groups of which suit the images that I chose for each one which suited the colour of the cord as well. I took a while deciding which photos to use and there are some images that seem to be the odd ones out but still manage to fit in that group I created. The four groups are: Church/cross/landscape (brown cord), Flowers and nature (green cord), Sun (yellow cord), and animals/water (blue cord).

Here shows my beginning process of attaching my images to the cord, I hole punched top and bottom of the image accurately as possible, then threaded the cord through the top hole and slid the photo to the top of the cord, then threaded through the end of the cord again through the second hole so the image was attached the cord at both ends. This was repeated for each image, until the first cord was finished. The 3rd image shows the yellow cord in the cross with the first set of images.

These are self-explanatory once read the previous step, as it is exactly the same, hole punched and threaded through the images then placed it into the cross to make sure it all fits in and looks good. Once placed the lid on I realised my images were too close together which led me to take it out again and pull down each image slight in order for it to fit in.


I did the same for the brown cord, I did find out though, that it was more difficult to place the images into the centre of the cross when there are a lot more images attached to the cord which would seem obvious. So when looking at the second photo, its shows that all the images got tangled, so this led me to try and sort it all out.

Once I had sorted it out, I still had another cord to do. I completed my last set of images on my last cord and placed it carefully in the centre of the cross and spent time with my arm down the centre moving all them around so they could all fit in the right place and be seen.



My last step was to write out the words which I chose from specific bible verses on glossy paper, cutting them out, and hole punching them so I could attach each word or phrase to the white string hanging from both lids of the cross.