Sure, most craft stores sell an assortment of feathers. One type they often feature is a bag full of wispy feathers, made for all sorts of different crafts. Another is the brightly colored, stiff feathers, made for creating children’s Indian headbands and such. The stiff feathers can work to make quill pens but, for my family, a better source is a nearby duck pond. More often than not, when we visit, we find duck feathers lying on the ground. My grandchildren love to take the feathers home and make quill pens. They’re not delicate so they can be washed and ready for crafting.
It’s just so simple to make a quill pen. Look for feathers that have large tips at the ends. A quill is hollow inside and that makes the job of creating a quill pen much easier. Take home the chosen feathers and you can get started.
Cut the very tip off of the quill so that you have a hole where you can slide in the pen. The best pen to use is one where you can easily take the nib and cartridge out. Simply disassemble the ballpoint pen and use the innards to make the quill version.
Once you’ve cut the tip off of the quill, slide the pen cartridge into it, to see if it fits around the nib. It’s best to cut just a tiny bit of the quill, check it, then cut a tad more, if needed. Once you have an opening where the nib and cartridge fit nicely, you can make that permanent. Just apply a bit of hot glue to the opening at the end of the quill and slide the pen into it. Hold it in place until the glue is set well.
Although the stiff, duck feather pen is nice, you can give it more of a frilly look by attaching some of those wispy feathers, mentioned above. These types of feathers can be glued to the stiff feather to make a more delicate quill pen. Just glue the tips of the wispy feathers to the stiff feather, working from the bottom of the feather, up. When adding the fancier feathers it’s important that you completely conceal the original feather, which won’t blend in well.
Most any girl or woman would love one of the quill pens – either for herself, or to give to a friend. You’ll find that young boys enjoy writing with them, too. Somehow, the quill pen seems to be more inspirational than a ballpoint. Don’t be surprised if you enjoy writing even more than you do now!