IF THIS CHEEKY-LOOKING BIRDIE BRINGS A SMILE TO YOUR FACE, WHY NOT MAKE YOUR OWN?
by Jacq Chorlton
Materials
- One long piece of flexible wire – approximately 80cm
- Thin piece of card
- Old newspaper (or similar. Jacq used dressmaking pattern instruction sheets)
- PVA glue
- Hot glue gun (optional)
- Masking tape
- HAMA Beads or similar and a grid*
- Old bowl
- Long-nose pliers
*If you don’t have any HAMA beads, torn pieces of brightly coloured paper would work just as well.
STEP 1:
Cut out a template of a simple bird shape approx 15 – 20cm across.
STEP 2:
Make a small hole for the legs using the template as a guide.
STEP 3:
Find the centre of the wire and bend in half, making a little ‘U’ shape in the bend.
STEP 4:
Poke the wire through the hole in the card so that the bird shape sits in the ‘U’. The bird is only two dimensional at this stage.
STEP 5:
Scrunch up little balls of newspaper and stick them to the bird with the masking tape, to build up a 3D bird shape. (Jacq finds it easier to build it up by starting around the wire first as it holds it in place.)
STEP 6:
Thread your beads onto the legs. Make sure you leave a length of about 15cm at the bottom of each end to make the bird’s feet.
STEP 7:
Using long-nose pliers and the image of the birdie as a guide, make the feet. TIP: Jacq bends the wire at a right angle first to make an ankle.
STEP 8:
Cut a rough circle from the card approximately 4 – 5cm diameter. Then cut it in half. Use one half to roll up a cone for the beak, then use the masking tape to stick the cone to the bird.
[By this point you should have a standing bird with colourful legs.]
STEP 9:
Make up a mix of glue and water in the bowl, approximately half a cup of glue to one cup of water. Dip little strips of newspaper into the glue mix and fix them smoothly over your bird. When working in curved areas like the beak, it’s easier to work with tiny pieces as this gives a nice smooth finish. Allow it to dry.
STEP 10:
Using the HAMA Beads and grid, make two wing shapes then iron them to form your wings – following the bead instructions. Jacq has a little bowl of cold water at hand so that when her wings are ironed but still soft, she curves the edges a little then pops them into cold water to get a slightly curved wing.
STEP 11:
Make the tail feathers in the same manner.
STEP 12:
Stick your wings and tail feathers onto your bird with PVA glue or hot glue gun (preferable).
STEP 13:
Paint on the beak and eyes then apply a thin coat of varnish to create a shine.