Tuesday, September 16, 2014

DIY Arrow Pencils



Jaxon turns 7 this coming weekend, so I made these arrow pencils he can hand out in class this Friday.



What you will need:


1. Pencils ( I bought mine at Target for $2.99 for a pack of 12)
2. Feathers (These purple ones are from Michaels. They also carry various colors)
3. Embroidery thread
4. Felt (I used one 8 1/2 x 11 sheet for 30 pencils)
5. Acrylic paint markers ( I like Molotow available at Dick Blick )
    You can use acrylic paint and a detail brush as well
6. Mod Podge (decoupage)
7. Hot glue gun
8. Scissors


Step 1: Paint a design on the pencils.


Step 2: Set out to dry. I used glue sticks to prop up the pencils.


Step 3: Apply feathers to front and back with the hot glue gun.


Step 4: Starting at the base of the metal at the end of the pencil, then wrap the embroidery thread all the
             way up and come back down, making sure the eraser and metal is completely covered.
             Tie a knot.

Step 5:  Apply Mod Podge with a paint brush to the knot and all around the thread.
              Let dry before you cut off the extra string for the knot, to ensure that it does not unravel.


Step 6:  (making the arrowhead cozy)
              1. Cut felt to a 2 1/2 inch x 1 inch size rectangle.
              2. Fold rectangle in half and apply glue with a hot glue gun, approximately 5mm from each edge.
                  Remember to leave space in the middle. This is where the pencil tip will be.
              3. Press the other half down.
              4. Snip the ends off in a diagonal.


Step 7: Fit the arrowhead onto the pencil.


Voila! done.


I packaged the arrow pencils in lollipop treat bags and created little tags for them.


I printed the target tags on colored copy paper, then applied them with Mod Podge to a recycled file folder. I punch a hole and tie to the bags.


It was really fun to see what started out as a drawing come to life!


I hope you have fun making your own version of the arrow pencil!