This DIY feather wall art project combines the soft hues of watercolor, the fun of paper clay, and the irresistible charm of feathers. And even if you’re at beginner level status with clay or watercolor, you can do this project with success!
It’s amazing how much artistry is contained in a single feather–whether it’s from a brilliant-colored tropical bird, or a tawny speckled-and-striped owl or backyard wren.
While I used quail, blue jay, and mourning dove feathers as inspiration for this watercolor art, any variety of plumage will work. So if you’re crazy about peacocks or have a passion for wild turkeys or other fowl, the tutorial below is easy to modify for other bird feather types.
With this DIY project, you can follow the cues from nature and match the same hues, patterns and designs that you would find on actual birds. Or you can unleash your imagination, and invent your own color and design combinations.
The feathers in these examples begin as shapes that you cut from Creative Paperclay before painting with watercolor. The paper clay base gives them dimension, which sets them apart from other types of watercolor feather wall art.
This project is easy to make using the free patterns and instructions below. And, it’s also easy to frame using inexpensive birch wood painting panels.
Ready to make your own set of watercolor feather wall art?
Let’s get started!
supplies
- feather patterns DOWNLOAD HERE
- Creative Paperclay or other good quality brand of paper clay
- resealable bag for storing paper clay once the package has been opened
- clay “clean up” tool, craft knife, or old X-Acto knife for cutting the clay
- cotton swabs
- non-stick work surface (such as a silicone mat, wax paper or parchment paper)
- 220 or 320 grit sandpaper
- wood painting panels to use as frames (I used 9 x 12 birch painting panels, 12 x 18 birch painting panels, along with a 9 x 12 MDF panel)
- watercolors (I used Sennelier, but any good quality brand is fine)
- brushes suitable for watercolor paint
- white paint (flat or matte finish works best for this project)
step 1: download the feather patterns
First download the feather patterns. Print the patterns on normal copy paper, making sure your printer is set to print at 100% scale. Then use scissors to cut the patterns out.
step 2: roll out paper clay
Next open the package of paper clay and take out about half of the clay. (Place the remainder of the clay inside a resealable bag or airtight container so that it will not dry out while you are making your first feather.)
Knead the clay a few times and then roll it into a ball. It will feel similar to the consistency of chilled cookie dough. Then use a rolling pin or thick wood dowel to roll out and flatten the clay into a slab about 1/4 inch thick.
step 3: cut
Place a feather pattern on the clay.
Use a craft knife to cut the feather shape out of the clay, following the edge of the pattern as a guide. The knife will cut through the clay very easily, and the pointed tip is helpful for getting into small angled areas. You can modify the feather design however you like. Omit those little fly-away ends near the bottom if you want a more streamlined and less fluffy look.
Lift the feather pattern away…
…and then remove the excess clay from around the sides. Return the leftover scraps to the resealable bag with the rest of the extra clay so that it will stay moist.
step 4: smooth edges
Use your fingers (or cotton swabs) dipped in water to smooth away any rough spots on the side edges of the feather.
Step 5: cut additional feathers
Use the same process to cut out and smooth the other clay feathers.
step 6: dry
At room temperature, the feathers may take a couple of days to dry. If you want to speed things up, you can place the feathers on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, and bake them in a low temperature oven (170 – 180 degrees F) for a few hours. You can also place them outside on a warm day and let them dry in the sun. If the weather is cold, place them near a heat source.
As the clay begins to dry, the edges may slightly curl up and curve. This will give the feathers a nice dimensional quality.
When the feathers feel dry and firm enough to handle without compromising their shape, flip them over so that the underside will dry as well.
When the feathers are completely dry, use 220 or 320 grit sandpaper to gently smooth away any remaining rough edges.
step 7: paint a base coat
After the drying step is finished, base coat your feathers with two applications of white paint in either a flat or matte finish. (I used a Behr white paint sample from Home Depot in a matte finish.)
The paint will help to seal the feather surface so that it doesn’t turn back into soft clay when you apply the watercolors. You can base coat one side or both sides of the feathers. I coated both sides so that I could use the back for practicing a few different colors and techniques.
step 8: watercolor your feathers
For painting the feathers below, I used a set of Sennelier watercolors. They were incredible–far and away better than the basic brand I used to use long ago. Like, not even on the same planet. They have a honey-based formula that gives them a very smooth consistency. The colors are luminous and highly pigmented, so a tiny amount of paint goes a long way. Just a few swipes of a wet brush over the pan of color will give you rich, brilliant hues.
Another thing that I like about this set is that the tray has an extra mixing palette that flips open. That gives you lots of room to mix your colors. That extra mixing tray comes in handy if you are painting outdoors (en plein air) or if you like taking your watercolors on vacation to make mini paintings in a travel journal.
And yet another thing that I love–the paint is contained in individual little square pans that snap onto tracks on the bottom of the tray. This is so cool! The pans can be rearranged and removed if needed. For instance, if a color runs out and needs to be replaced, you just pull it off the track and replace with a new pan of that same color. If you want to change the order of the colors you can do that, too.
One of the fun characteristics of watercolor is its surprise factor. Amazing things often happen as those fluid hues run, mix and swirl together on the surface of your feathers. You never know what might occur, and that’s the magic of it.
While working, I learned that if I wasn’t happy with how things looked after applying the color, I could just wipe the paint off the surface of the feather and start over. If the watercolor was already dry, it just took a few strokes of a wet brush to make it soluble again. Then it could be cleaned off for a blank slate. Discovering that was really freeing. So—-be creative with your feathers and have fun! There is no fear on this project of making an indelible or permanent mistake. Experiment and try different ways of applying the paint until you love the results.
quail feather
For the quail feather, I applied a loose wash of Ivory Black on the upper part of the feather, and Burnt Umber on the lower part.
Before the color was completely dry, I used the tip of a cotton swab to make spots. (Just blot away some of the paint and the white base color will show through.) Then I used the pointed tip of a detail brush to pull some of the lower brown color into the upper black color for a feathery look.
bluejay
For the first layer of color on the blue jay feather, I used a mix of Ultramarine Deep, Payne’s Grey, and Cinereous Blue (slightly brighter than Cerulean Blue).
Then I tried a few experiments.
I actually made two of these feathers (below) so that I could try different things on each one.
For the left feather, I created a white line down the center by using the wet edge of a brush to drag off a thin stripe of paint after the first coat of watercolor had completely dried.
For the right feather, I used Payne’s Grey and Ivory Black watercolor to add dark bands and shading while the first coat of blue paint was still slightly wet.
step 9: frame your feather art
To make simple and inexpensive frames for displaying the watercolor feather art, I used different sizes of wood panels.
To create frames for the smaller feathers, 9 inch x 12 inch birch wood painting panels are the perfect size. Just flip them over to the back so that they look like a tray and paint them white. Then glue the feathers to the center with a strong adhesive like Gorilla Clear Epoxy.
To make a larger frame with a more custom look, start with a 12 inch x 16 inch birch wood panel and a 9 inch x 12 inch MDF panel.
Cut approximately 7/8 of an inch off one of the long sides of the MDF panel so that it will fit proportionally within the center of the larger 12 x 16 panel. Adhere with either wood glue, like Titebond III, or an epoxy based glue like Gorilla Clear Epoxy. Then paint.
Add a sawtooth picture hanger to the top back.
Then attach the feather to the center of the panel, and you’re done!
If you want to add to the dimensional factor of your feather wall art, glue a small object (like a button or small bottle cap) to the back of each feather before attaching to your frame. Then the feather will stand off the frame a little and produce a nice shadow.
And there you have it! A lovely set of DIY watercolor feather art. A perfect gift for bird lovers and a great way to enjoy a bit of nature on your wall.
artUcreate is an Etsy, Michael’s, and Amazon Associates LLC affiliate.
