Make Feathers for Assemblage and Other 3-D Art

As you may have noticed, this month is dedicated to the "Put a Bird on It" theme with bird-related art.

paper feathers for assemblage sculpture
Jenny Cochran Lee made feathers like this to embellish
her 3-D collage assemblage art.

Today, I have a handmade feather tutorial from mixed-media collage and assemblage artist Jenny Cochran Lee. Jenny decorates her 3-D mixed-media collage assemblages with these easy-to-make embellishments.

She developed this technique when she wanted to use some feathers for a wire and paper assemblage sculpture she was creating, but didn't have any.

Says Jenny: "I decided to just walk around outside for a while and think about how to create something else. A change of scenery gave me the idea to use small sticks with paper and embroidery floss to create these fun feathers. I liked them so much better than my original idea!"

Here's the how-to:

1. Make a feather shape with paper of your choice. Fringe the edges on each side.

supplies for making paper feathers
Supplies for making paper feathers by Jenny Cochran Lee.

2. Place the stick in the center of the feather.

3. Cut at 10" piece of embroidery floss (two strands.)

4. Starting at the tip of the feather, wrap the middle of the 10" piece of floss around the back of the feather. Bring the floss pieces to the front of the stick, cross the pieces, and take them back through the fringes to the back of the feather. Cross them in back and repeat.

5. When you get to the end of the feather, wrap the end of the stick several times and tie a tiny knot. Add a dot of glue.

I think these feathers are so cute. You could make all kinds of variations to decorate your assemblage art or other 3-D art or any other kind of art project.

Jenny shows you how to create her mixed-media assemblages made from wire, paper, and stitch in her new Cloth Paper Scissors WorkshopTM Collage in the Round: Building wire and rice-paper sculptures. If you've ever wanted to lift your collages off the canvas and into 3-D, this fun and informative workshop will give you the tools, techniques, and inspiration to try it.


P.S. Do you use feathers in your art? Do you make your own? Tell me about it below.

Categories

3D Art and Assemblage, Blog, Mixed-Media Techniques

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