Make a Feather Duster - PEP BB nest.straw.featherduster

Mar 17, 2021 11:05:16

This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum. Completing this BB is part of getting the straw badge in Nest.

In this Badge Bit, you will make a feather duster.

To complete this BB, the minimum requirements are:
- if using wood it must be untreated and sanded down to prevent splinters
- if oiled you must use a nontoxic oil (e.g. linseed oil)
- must use natural feathers on the feather duster

To show you've completed this Badge Bit, you must provide proof of the following with pictures (or a video < 2 mins long):
- before, during, and after of making a feather duster
- demonstrate it meets the above stated requirements

gir bot · Oct 11, 2021 09:18:05

I bought some natural feathers from a craft shop. I used a bamboo pole - it’s long, light and smooth, so no issue with splinters. I tested to make sure it would reach the hardest place to dust around the top of the kitchen cabinets.

The biggest issue was getting the feathers to all lean outwards and be reasonably well distributed. I decided to use a fine cotton yarn and weaver the feathers into a loose mat, that I could wrap around the end of the poles. I then used some natural garden twine to tie a loop around the top of the pole and then wind all the way down, over the feathers and and an inch of pole before circling back up to the top, over the previous layer. I tied it off at the top and trimmed the ends. The feathers are secure and well distributed around the end and all facing outwards.

Here are my pictures.

gir bot · Jun 15, 2023 21:05:54

My geese are molting, and my daughter wanted a feather duster. I figured it was time to make one! I used wool I'd spun to attach the feathers (a less stretchy yarn/thread would have been better, but this is what I grabbed first.). I then wrapped the quill tips with pink cotton yarn (because my daughter loves pink).

For the stick, I cut down a tiny cedar sapling and pealed the bark off. It didn't need any sanding, because it was all smooth.

To complete this BB, the minimum requirements are:
- if using wood it must be untreated and sanded down to prevent splinters
- if oiled you must use a nontoxic oil (e.g. linseed oil)
- must use natural feathers on the feather duster

To show you've completed this Badge Bit, you must provide proof of the following with pictures (or a video < 2 mins long):
- before, during, and after of making a feather duster
- demonstrate it meets the above stated requirements

gir bot · Aug 23, 2023 09:01:49

Since I live in a rather dusty area, I will never get my house (or anything else) dust free.
But, I made the feather duster just because I can!

The wood comes from my own olive trees, used no oil on the branch for the feather duster.
The feathers come from a chicken that was harvested, and I asked if I could take the feathers home.
I washed them by hand and selected the biggest feathers to make the duster.
The tools in the pictures are all the tools that I used to get the branch ready and as smooth as possible. By using them all, I get to know my tools better every time, and I learn which tool works best when.

gir bot · Sep 07, 2023 18:03:00

Make a feather duster

My chickens were molting so this was the perfect way to use their feathers! These are from Bard Rocks and Buff Orphingtons. I used a small dowel rod for the handle and blue string to wrap it. I sorted the feathers and started with the smaller ones, wrapping 3 at a time.

gir bot · Mar 29, 2024 15:25:19

My sweet niece has been collecting the chicken feathers as they molted and she let me create a feather duster with her collection. (I gave it to her to keep after I made it, she wants to add more feathers as her collection grows!)

Thank Nicole for the suggestion of wrapping the feathers more - I used some cotton thread I had in my bag.

Mar 29, 2024 15:57:04

I think your feather duster would be a bit more stable if you wrapped all of the quill tips with twine or yarn. They do like to come loose, and the more you wrap the ends, the better attached they'll be. If you look at the other BB submissions, they all have the ends of the feathers covered. It's pretty easy to just wrap around the ends until they're all covered.

gir bot · Sep 22, 2025 09:17:06

The chickens are molting so I walked around and collected some of the larger feathers I found. I tied the feathers together to a stick with some jute twine. I carved down the stick a bit to get the bark off and it's pretty smooth (no splinters). I did not oil it.

To complete this BB, the minimum requirements are:
- if using wood it must be untreated and sanded down to prevent splinters
- if oiled you must use a nontoxic oil (e.g. linseed oil)
- must use natural feathers on the feather duster

To show you've completed this Badge Bit, you must provide proof of the following with pictures (or a video < 2 mins long):
- before, during, and after of making a feather duster
- demonstrate it meets the above stated requirements

Gathering the feathers.

Finding a stick.

Trying to get the stick and the feathers together to tie without everything falling apart.

All wrapped up. Ta-da!

It's not the best duster for surfaces but it works well with cobwebs.

Tomorrow is the first day of the new metric calendar. Comfort me tiny ad:

The new purple deck of permaculture playing cards

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/paulwheaton/garden-cards

Full online Permaculture Design course and Appropriate Technology Course video Rocket Mass Heaters

Sepp Holzer Desert or Paradise Documentary