How to Make Fairy Wings for Children
Whether your children are playing pretend or you are helping with a play, there seems to be nothing cuter than watching children run around with fairy wings on their backs. You can easily make fairy wings for children with a few basic supplies and a little time. Once you have completed the wings, the children can decorate them for hours of fun.
Things You'll Need
- Paper
- Pencil
- Wire coat hangers
- Pliers
- Elastic cording
- Scissors
- Tulle, color of your choosing
- Fabric glue
- Glitter glue
- Embellishment items, such as feathers, sequins, buttons, 1-inch ribbons, etc.
Instructions
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1
Sketch out your wing design on a sheet of paper to plan the shape of your wings as well as how you want to decorate them. This will be your rough guide moving forward.
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2
Open out four wire coat hangers, untwisting the handles with your pliers, and shape each of them into straight lines. Twist the ends of two coat hangers together to form one long wire. Twist the remaining hangers to each other, as well. Each pair of hangers will make up the left and right sides of the wings.
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3
Set one pair of hangers aside, and bring the loose ends of your other pair together to form a loop. Twist these ends together to hold the loop. Look over your sketch from Step 1, and shape your loop with the pliers into the left side of your wings. Repeat this with the other pair of hangers to shape them into the right side of your wings.
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4
Pair your wings together where they should connect along a child's back, and bind them by tying a 1- to 2-foot length of elastic cording to the wings and looping it multiple times around the connection point to hold the wings together and cover any ends of the wires. This makes a "spine" for the wings.
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5
Cut two 16-inch long sections of elastic cording for arm straps. Tie one end of the cording with a knot to the top edge of the right wing about 6 inches from the newly created spine. Tie the other end of this piece of cording to the bottom edge of the right wing, 6 inches from the spine. Repeat to attach the other piece of cording to the left wing.
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6
Spread out a section of tulle, and lay your wings over the tulle. Trace around the wings an inch out from the wire. Cut out the tulle on the drawn line.
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7
Set the wings down on the tulle, and apply a line of glue to the tulle around the edges of the wire just inside the wing. Fold the cut edge of the tulle over the wire, and press it into the line of glue. Allow the wings to dry thoroughly for four to six hours.
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8
Decorate the wings using glitter glue to draw shapes, attaching various feathers and/or sequins to the wings, or adding lengths of ribbon to the base to create loose flowing aspects. Let any added pieces dry to the tulle before letting children wear the wings.
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Tips & Warnings
To make larger wings, try using three coat hangers on each side instead of two.
References
- Photo Credit powdered wings image by Allyson Ricketts from Fotolia.com
