Paper Feather Mobile

What I love most about a mobile is that you can truly hang anything from it as long as it's colorful, cute and dances in a slight breeze!  Use an embroidery hoop or some wire for your loop at the top and gather up your most colorful bits!  C'mon, I know you have a box of craft stuff just waiting for this project!  For mine I made paper feathers and colorized them with Unicorn SPiT spray which you can easily make with a bit of water and a small spray bottle. I used it on everything from art journals to happy mail.  I've said it 100 times...Use what you have and always Make Your Mark!

Just magical in the sunlight!

Everything I used for this project:

Unicorn SPiT: https://amzn.to/2pwP4kq E6000 Glue: https://amzn.to/2VfF248 MY AMAZON STORE: https://www.amazon.com/shop/markmontano

Watch how to make them here OR

Watch the video on my YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/lcrpZX0bG60

My paper feathers before I fringed them

Perfect to brighten up a sad little corner!

Add a dab of E6000 on your knots to keep everything in place!

Happy crafting, sweet friends!

Happy #ThursDIY!

Happy ThursDIY, everyone!  Today I'm sharing 8 fun projects to help you kick off 2015!  Margot rocks perler beads, Aunt Peaches shows you how to make beautiful tassels in minutes and I'm hosting an Artist Trading Card swap.  If you want to get involved with it, e-mail me at MarkMontanoNYC@aol.com.

I'd love for you to get involved.

Heather Mann shows us how to make simple bunting for Valentine's Day: http://dollarstorecrafts.com/2014/12/tutorial-simple-valentine-bunting/

Cathie demonstrates how to decoupage a frame with patterns and easy zipper flowers:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8aVe-XtjTU&feature=youtu.be

Cathy Attix creates a ribbon and chain bracelet. Stack a bunch of these! 

http://www.trinketsinbloom.com/diy-ribbon-and-chain-bracelet/

Margot Potter makes a super cool perler bead necklace. Love the colors!

http://diydoyenne.com/perler-bead-necklace-diy/

Aunt Peaches shows us how to make a tassel necklace in 5 minutes. Awesome!

http://www.auntpeaches.com/2014/08/five-minute-tassel-necklaces.html

Check out how I made these huge kraft paper feathers! Chic centerpiece look...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JdOXCzA4ng

Crafty Chica creates metal stamped charms... and in Spanish! Wow!

http://www.craftychica.com/2014/12/metal-stamped-charms/

I'm hosting an event to swap artist trading cards! Check out the DIY and more info here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ut_99BTn46I

Make fun bookends by spray painting old trophies!

http://www.seesawstore.com/winning-bookend/

Kraft Paper Feathers DIY

I love a huge arrangement in the middle of a table but it's not always easy to get fresh flowers AND they can be expensive.  For my annual New Year's Eve party I decided to update my paper feather project from The Big Ass Book of Crafts.  This time instead of leaving them plain, I painted the ends with a beautiful Americana Multi-Surface Metallic Gold.  They look even better than the original project and the best part is that I never have to change the water!

Careful with your candle placement! 

I love how they pick up the light.

Watch the video tutorial!

YOU'LL NEED

Kraft paper

Scissors

Americana Multi-Surface Metallic in Gold

White glue

Paintbrush

18 gage (or similar) wire

Wire cutters

 Cut several wire pieces about 25" to 28" long

Cut several sheets of kraft paper 22" x 12"

Slightly water down the white glue so it's easy to spread

Paint it on half of the kraft paper

Sandwich the wire inside of the kraft paper

 Cut into a feather shape

Paint the ends in metallic gold

Roll a 12" x 6" sheet of kraft paper into a thin tube

Cut the sides of the feather at an angle 

Glue the paper tube over the wire and let dry

*You can use hot glue for this if you want 

 Add shiny Christmas bulbs to your table. 

Paint a basic glass vase to match your table.

Dinner Party Centerpiece Idea......Paper Feathers

Need a stunning centerpiece for your dinner table?  How about a bushel of something interesting in your foyer?  These are not only simple to make but once you get in the groove, you'll find that making them can be therapeutic as well.   Try different shapes or painting them with water colors before you cut them.  There are all kinds of things you can do with this technique.  Did I mention that you can make these for pennies each? 

YOU’LL NEED:

Roll of craft paper

Scissors

Elmer’s glue

20-gage wire

Wire cutters

Tape (any kind)

HERE’S HOW:

STEP 1:  Cut out a piece of craft paper that is 18” long by 7” wide and fold in 1/2 lengthwise and cut out the shape of a feather.  Tapered to a point at the bottom and rounded at the top.  Do this with the paper still folded so the feather is the same on both sides.

STEP 2:  With the paper still folded, start making small slanted cuts very close together to about 1/2 from the fold. SUGGESTION: The closer your cuts are together the more feather-like your plumes will become.

STEP 3:  Next you will make the shaft by rolling a piece of 2” x 5” craft paper in a long tube and gluing the end of it to keep it together.

STEP 4:  Cut a piece of wire the length of the feather and glue about 1” of the end of the wire in the smaller end of the shaft.

STEP 5: Lay the wire in the crease of the feather and glue down.  

If the wire is hard to manage then tape it in place with some very small pieces of tape until the glue dries.

When the feather is dry, gently curve the wire like you see in the photo.  About 5 of these makes a terrific arrangement.  More.....Even better! 

 A little inspiration.

Want another 150 projects?  Check out The Big Ass Book of Crafts 2!

Available now for pre-order on Amazon.com