Tools and Materials

• 1"-by-6" poplar board
• Coarse sandpaper
• Primer or gesso
• Paintbrush
• Acrylic paints
• Tiger, elephant, lion, and zebra templates
• Ruler
• Craft knife
• Adhesive stencil film
• Foam pouncers
• Patterning tape
• Stippling brush
• 4 single wall-mount hooks
• Screws
• Screwdriver
• Hanging hardware

Animal Hooks How-To

1. Cut a 20-inch length from poplar board. (Note: In lumber terms, a "one-by-six" board is actually 5 1/2 inches wide. The Home Depot will cut the board to size for you free of charge.)
2. Sand board with coarse sandpaper until smooth. Prime and paint board desired color; let dry.
3. Print templates for tiger, elephant, lion, and zebra. With a ruler and craft knife, cut out templates on dashed lines. Tape templates together in order, using solid horizontal lines to align properly.
4. Cut 20 inches from a roll of adhesive stencil film, then cut film in half lengthwise to make two 5 1/2"-wide strips. Tape row of templates to one strip; save the other strip for another project.
5. Cut out shaded animal shapes through all layers with a craft knife. Remove paper templates. Remove adhesive backing from stencil film and adhere to sanded, painted board. 
6. Use a foam pouncer to paint animals desired base colors; let dry.
7. To add stripes to the zebra and tiger, place patterning tape over each stencil at angles and paint desired stripe color. To add texture to the elephant and lion, apply a lighter or darker color paint over base coat using a stippling brush. 
8. Let all paint dry and remove stencil and tape.
9. Paint a wall-mounted single hook to match each animal. Screw each hook into place over animal shape to make a "tail."
10. Add hanging hardware to the back of the board.

Resources

Martha Stewart Crafts paint colors used for the board and animals on the show:

• Boards: Scallion or Cloud
• Tiger: Mace; stripes in both Beetle Black and Summer Linen
• Elephant: Grey Wolf; texture in Arrowhead
• Lion: Cantaloupe; texture in Jonquil; mane and tail in Chestnut Brown
• Zebra: Beetle Black; stripes in Summer Linen

Martha Stewart Crafts paint, gesso, paintbrushes, foam pouncers, stippling brush, patterning tape, and adhesive stencil film from Plaid; single wall-mount hooks from The Container Store; poplar board, sandpaper, tools, and hardware from The Home Depot.

For detailed step-by-step photos, check out Kirsten Earl's post about the process.