Shark sighting!!! Jaws is lurking around the kids’ playroom. He may not be a Great White, but he’s a ferocious black tip that dwells in the waters right off my coast! This fun shark pallet art is about as close as I ever want to get to meeting a shark. I’m in love with pallet art right now. If you liked my Surfboard Pallet Art and the pallet Wood Beach Banner, then you’ll like today’s tutorial on Shark Pallet Art.
I started off the project printing out an image of a black tip shark onto a transparency. (I placed it on a white sheet of paper for you to see the image).
Next, using my overhead projector and transparency, I traced the shark image onto the back of some wrapping paper and then cut the image out with scissors.
I lined up the boards that were cut from a pallet and glued them together with wood glue and held them snug with clamps. (For instructions on how to disassemble a pallet, please refer to the Pallet Art: Surfboard post).
TIP: Now if I had to do this all over again, I would find a thin board to use as a backing. Then I could lay and glue all the pallet boards onto it. Pallet wood can be warped and uneven, and trying to just glue the individual boards to each other and keep them flat with spaces between was very challenging.
After all the pallet wood was glued together, I placed my shark cut out on the boards and traced around the image.
I’ve used a jig saw to cut shapes out of pallet wood, but this time I was able to try out my hubs new Father’s Day gift! I was quite happy to purchase a new band saw for him. Seriously, this was a tool we have both wanted for ages. It cuts wood like butter but it’s not to be messed with! Precaution, protective eyewear, and complete attentiveness are needed at all times when dealing with saws, but especially a band saw, because there are no safety guards. It’s dangerous…. but I LOVE IT!
I tried to make as little unnecessary cuts coming in from the edges as possible. If you use a jig saw, you can eliminate any outside cuts by pre drilling a starter hole for your jigsaw. That isn’t possible with a band saw.
When I was finished cutting, I was left with a 4.5 foot long black tip shark! You’ll see more of him soon. I’m still deciding where he will reside. In the meantime I collected all the outside pieces that were cut off.
Like a giant puzzle, we laid the pieces on our outdoor table, covered in cardboard, and assembled the outer image of shark. The pieces were all glued together and some were clamped. It came together pretty quickly. We were excited and happy about our new shark pallet art and everything we had accomplished that day. So we decided to go out for dinner and a movie. Well while we were out having fun and the shark was on the table back at home drying and setting up….
the most massive thunderstorm with torrential rain, lightening, and 60 mile per hour winds came through.
Our shark had um…. swam away… in multiple pieces… which all then swelled….. and warped… UHG!
All of our hard work was destroyed. I said forget it, throw it out, but hubs decided to patch ol’black tip together again, with a ton more glue and about every clamp we owned. He was on a mission to save this shark!
He was able to save the shark. It’s a little warped but it’s together.
I then gave the shark pallet art a heavy coat of stain with a brush, in Weathered Oak by Minwax. It’s the same stain I used for my Wine Crate Storage Box. The stain gives the pallet art a nice driftwood color to the wood.
I love how it turned out! He’s big and bad! My youngest loves him!
The Shark Pallet Art blends in great with the Shell Art Gallery Wall. Everyone asks this, so let me tell you…. the wall color is Atmospheric by Benjamin Moore. 
I’m looking forward to creating more Pallet Art with my band saw soon! Maybe I’ll even sell some pieces soon too!
Kim
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Kim, that so awesome. When it comes to sawing , my husband is in charge. Hats off to you!
Thank you Laura!
OH, Kim, it is fabulous!!
Thanks Kim!
Kim you rock my socks. I would be lucky to get some SEWING done let alone SAWING. Great job lady!
Lol! I’m not a great at sewing, I’d rather take a saw any day! Thank you!
Kim this is awesome! You did an incredible job! I absolutely love it.
Thank you Taryn!
Great job! I love it.
Thanks Gina!
I smell a new Etsy shop coming…..It looks awesome on the wall!
It’s in serious consideration! Thank you!
That is a seriously cool piece of art! Bummer about the storm coming through, but kudos to your hubby for being persistent and saving the shark 🙂
Awww, Thanks Kelly!
This is so cool! I’d buy something from you, because I’m afraid to mess with a band saw 🙂
haha! Oh good! You can be my 1st customer! Thank you!
Love it! I really like the color on your wall. I couldn’t find the name of it in your other posts of this room. Do you mind sharing the color and manufacturer? Thanks!
I wrote it in this post 😉 It’s Atmospheric by Benjamin Moore. Thank you!
Seriously, LOVE this!!
Thank you!
That is so cool! I need a miniature version for my bathroom. I don’t think I have the skills to pull that off though! I can’t believe I’m just now finding your blog!! You have so many great ideas so I’ll be coming back later to pin my life away! If you feel like sharing any of your talent at my link party, I’d love for you to stop by! 🙂
Thank you so much Britni!! Welcome! Thank you for the pins too! Those are like awesome comments wrapped in love!!!
I love it! I need a fresh water fish for the lake 🙂
I can make you one to order!! Pike? Salmon? How about a nice trout? 😉
Thanks girlfriend!
Kim this is amazing – I have given you a shout out on my FB page – http://www.facebook.com/pages/NorthShore-Days/235617543185297 xx Nat
Thank you!! I appreciate it immensely!
What a great idea!!! Love it!
Thank you Lauren!
That is awesome! You do great work!
Great project…it looks fantastic on your wall….kudos to you for using that mega power tool…i think I would have to pass that part of the project to hubby….you are so hands on creative!!
This is so great… Hats off to you with that saw! I’d love to buy one for my husband! Xo
Kim, I love it! I am adding it to my 50+ pallet round up. You make me want to brave the saw.
xoxo,
Johnnie
OH wow, thank you!
Luv it Kim!! I really like the color you stained it and the little ‘shark bite out of the one side!! I’ve seen lots of dolphins off VA beach but thankfully never a shark! Great execution! Pinning! Heather 🙂
THANK YOU!!
Not only do I love the finished piece but I love that you guys didn’t give up on it when things didn’t go according to plan. Not only is it a great conversation piece because it is so unique but also because of the story that goes with it :~) Love this one Kim!
I certainly wanted to give up, I’m glad we didn’t. Thanks 😉
This turned out awesome! Great job, Kim!
-Erin @ DIY On the Cheap
thanks Erin!
Absolutely Ahhhmazzzing! Love it so much!
carolyn – homework
Thanks Carolyn!
Great job! I love the color of your walls! Mind sharing what that is? Sorry if you already said and I missed it!
Serena
Thrift Diving
Thanks Serena! Yes, I mention it in the post at the end. No worries though, it’s the #1 question I get asked. 😉 It’s Atmospheric by Benjamin Moore.It’s an interesting color because it changes in different light conditions throughout the day. It used to be a popular Pottery Barn color and everyone who has it loves it! Thanks for stopping by!
Love this! Seriously – probably one of the best “pallet art” examples I’ve seen yet! And having the gorgeous wall color behind it really makes the whole thing pop!
This is such a great project! I am totally pinning it….and fingers crossed….making my own! Thank you so much for the inspiration!
blessings,
karianne
This is amazing!! Awesome work… just pinned it to draw inspiration from 🙂
Love it! This is such a fun use of pallets.
Sarah
What a great idea. Love it. (I’m curious about your band saw…details?)
I just bought it for Alan for Father’s day. (hee-hee, I know which presents will benefit me too!) It’s a Craftsman (Sears). I love it but it’s kinda scary. Total attention is mandatory.
Thanks so much for the idea, I just made a shark with your instructions and it looks great. I actually have a laser machine so I was able to cut out the shark with the laser. I am going to try to do a koi tomorrow.
Hey Kim! Thanks for linking up this great project! I love it. I’m featuring it in my post today.
xoxo
Traci
Wow Kim, I am so loving your shark! How cool to get 2 pieces of art out of 1 project.
Your wall paint is really pretty too. Did you use a special painting technique. My picture looks like it’s not a flat color. What color did you use?
I’m a new follower and look forward to seeing more.
Hugs…Tracy @ Cotton Pickin Cute
Thanks Tracy!!!! The wall paint is one of the #1 questions I get asked! We have very textured walls, they are swirl patterned plaster. The paint is Atmospheric by Benjamin Moore. It was a popular Pottery Barn color a few years ago. It changes with the lighting, which I love!
This is an awesome craft! We just came back from our annual vacation to Sanibel, where our son caught his first fish and a love for all things ocean! Would love to order one from you if/when you deci to start selling them!
That is lagit! I am also loving the palet art recently. I gave up on gluing things together. I use my nail gun to atach everything together. it is much quicker since you dont need to wait for the glue to dry.
props on the post!
I love this idea! I’m not a huge pallet project fan, typically… BUT… This one is great! I’d love to do it at our beach house!
I just happened across this blog. Great job. If you want to sell that remainder shark body that you cut out please let me know.
Impressive, Kim! I always love a good pallet project. I enjoy the understated coat of stain as well. Nicely done.
-Bruce
I love the shark!! I was wondering what is your wall color?
Thank you!!
Thank you Joy! The paint color is Atmospheric by Benjamin Moore.
Would you consider making another and selling?
That’s a nice looking shark there! Just one note – it’s never a good idea to have your blade guard set that high on a band saw especially when you don’t have many relief cuts. High blade guards cause larger tension on the blade that can lead to a snap and you don’t want a loose blade coming out of that large gap at you.
Keep your guard under 1/4 inch, you’ll find you can even do tighter turns that way and it’s much safer.
Thanks for the tip Garth! I need to look at adjusting it.
I love this (I happen to be a shark nut of sorts) and want to create something similar with pallets (I’ve already got two in the garage). I’ve never worked with pallets and the two I have are beat up and filthy. Did you sand down your pallets for this piece of art. I’m hesitant as I don’t want to lose the weathered look, but on the other hand, they are super dirty and I feel like a good sanding good do some good. Thoughts?
Hi Scott! Thank you so much! We actually power washed our pallet first because it was very dirty also. I sanded it a bit with an electric sander, just so that it didn’t have any dangerous edges or large splinters. ~KIM
Thanks Kim. Did pressure washing it help to clean it up? I don’t have access to a pressure washer unfortunately. Do you have an alternate suggestion to help me clean it up a little (even if it’s not quite as good as a pressure washer)?
No worries, just try scrubbing it down with some soapy water and a scrub brush. Rinse it well and allow it to try thoroughly of course.
Thanks Kim
This is the coolest thing! Would you be willing to sell the patern to me? I don’t have access to a projector=(
Curious about the brand of your band saw. I have a old Craftsman. I think I’m ready to upgrade. Thanks.
Hi Donna! It’s a 14in Craftsman.
Hello! I love this and it will be perfect for my daughter’s bedroom make over surprise. She LOVES sharks!!! Can you please email me the link to the image you used for the outline?
Rachel
Hi Rachel. Thanks so much. I don’t have the link anymore. But if you Google “shark” images then you will find a gazillion to choose from to get an outline.
Wood (pun intended) you be willing to make me one??