The Lost Art of Knapping and Easy DIY Arrow Bookends
Guess what popped up in my Pinterest feed the other day? Arrow bookends from Pottery Barn. Yup and I fell head over heels. But Pottery Barn doesn’t ship to South Africa. Nope. In fact, I can’t even get onto their website. Its restricted here. Hmmph!! Not fair guys. Well if I can’t buy one, I’ll just have to make my own.
Did you know that arrows originated in South Africa? Yup, the oldest arrows dating back almost 70 000 years ago were found right here. Take that Pottery Barn 😉
Fortunately, some companies are willing to work with us. Like the lovely people at Sizzix. They kindly sent us a Big Shot, a bunch of fun dies, and made us part of their Creative Team. Isn’t that just awesome? So imagine my surprise when I found this in the package.
A feather Bigz™ die. OMW, how did they guess? Aren’t those perfect for cutting arrow bookends from an empty soda can? If you don’t have a Sizzix download these beautiful feather templates from the Graphics Fairy and use them instead. For the shaft of the arrow, we used some thin bamboo sticks we had lying around. All I had to do was figure out how to make a realistic tip.
Okay, before I get to the tutorial, please do me a favor and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram. And don’t forget to subscribe so you’ll never miss a post!
The Art Of Knapping
I have never tried napping before. Fortunately, there’s always YouTube, and I found tons of videos on how to knap. Pssst…..That’s the technical term for chipping away at a piece of stone or glass to form it into some kind of shape. After gathering my pre-historic tool, aka big garden pebble, I started knapping a piece of slate that was left over from making our heart serving boards.
Those videos made it look so easy, HA!! Not!!!!
Next time I’ll try to remember to wear some gloves to protect my hands. I think I hit them more often than the slate 😀
If you’re not keen to try knapping, you can make an arrowhead out of an empty soda can too.
When life gets tough, put on your boxing gloves
Anyways, once I had a decent arrowish shape, I cut a notch into the bamboo using a craft knife, added a dollop of glue, and slipped the arrowhead inside.
To hold it in place, I just wound some leather tightly around the bamboo.
Adding Some Feathers
Making the feathers was a breeze, sore knuckles and all. I just took the feather Bigz™ die, placed a flattened soda can on top and sandwiched the whole lot in between two cutting pads, before cranking the handle on the Big Shot.
Pretty cool, right? If you’re using the arrow template from the Graphics Fairy, just place the template on top of the empty soda can and trace around the feather before cutting it out. The feathers were glued onto into the back end of another piece of bamboo.
Putting the Arrow Bookends Together
To make sure that the books wouldn’t be too heavy and topple the side supports, I picked a pallet bit that was solid and dense. Pallets come in all shapes and sizes, but you can usually feel the density. Pine feels very different from oak. We cut the pallet into two pieces measuring 15 cm x 10 cm (5 7/8″ x 4″) and another two pieces 6 cm x 10 cm (2 3/4″ x 4″).
After a light sanding, the shorter pieces were glued and screwed onto the longer pieces at a 90-degree angle. Drill a small hole, just a teeny bit bigger than the bamboo, in the front of each bookend.
Add a little bit of glue inside the hole and squish the bamboo pieces inside. Then we added some silver and turquoise beads for pops of color.
I’m super happy with how our arrow bookends turned out. Not only did I learn a new skill but they fit right into our boho, slightly crazy decor style. What do you think?
The soda can feathers on the back add just the right touch.
And I’m loving the rustic simplicity of the silver and turquoise beads against the slate arrowhead.
I don’t think I’ll win any archery awards with our homemade arrow, but I learned how to knap. Even if my knuckles look like they lost a fight against a wall 😉
If you like the idea of making your own arrow bookends, don’t forget to pin it for later
Do you like using arrows in your home decor? I’d love to hear about it. And if you’re not keen to try your hand at knapping, then you can make this easy arrowhead by repurposing soda tins.
Oh before I forget, if you’d like to make something similar or prefer to buy rather than DIY, we’ve got you covered Disclosure: Clicking on the links below, means we may receive a commission from Amazon. But don’t worry it won’t come out of your pocket, and it helps us come up with more crafty ideas to share with you 😉
Wishing you a blessed week and may you always stay true to your path. Thank you for popping in for a visit.
This is a brilliant project, I love all the little details. How exciting that you have a sizzle machine. You can emboss some cans now.
After seeing your beautiful embossed wall art, I most definitely will be 😉
Very cool bookends! If it’s any consolation, Pottery Barn doesn’t ship where I live either. Weirdly enough, my husband has really wanted to try knapping and I’m sure he’d love to follow your tutorial!
Tell him to where gloves Natasha unless his aim is better than mine 😉
What an amazing idea! I never thought that an arrow can be a beautiful piece of art as a book end. Creative!
Thank you so much 😀
You did a fantastic job of it. I’m impressed by how professional your new bookends look, and the arrow adds a nice touch to it. I love your tongue in cheek sense of humor too. 🙂
😀 Thank you so much Elizabeth 😀
This is a really cool project, and I’m cracking up over the part where you admitted it wasn’t as easy as it looks. I’ve been working on embracing my crafty side.
LOL Missy, silly me and here I was thinking all I needed to do was smack a stone against another stone 😀 I’m so impressed with how skilled our ancestors were
I saw these on instagram and loved them (as every wooden arrow craft that there is in the world). Great job!
Thanks so much Katerina. There’s just something about arrows that are so special
Such a great project, I’ll love to try this out over the weekend.
You’ll have lots of fun if you do Jia. Let me know how it goes
Ughhhh sooo adorable! I wish I were crafty and artsy! Tutorials like this one make appear that I am, at least. 😉 Thank you for sharing such a cute creation! Muah!
Mwah, right back at you Lisa. Thank you 😀
So so cool, as always you never dissapoint with your creations Michelle! I’d love to have these, they look amazing and you are such a creative team you two! Thanks so much for mentioning my printable arrows, I appreciate it!!! Hugs!
Always a pleasure Katrin. Those printables of yours are gorgeous
That is so cool! I love that you were able to recreate these that you saw from Pottery Barn. I’m sure these will be extra special to you since they are homemade 🙂
Thanks so much Courtney, homemade is always more fun 😀
This is really awesome. I doubt I would ever try making this (not much of a DIYer), I think it’s incredible that you’ve made this! Always wished I was able to build things made out of wood.
Thank you so much Candy. We love working with wood. Each piece tells a different story
This is the first time I’m learning about knapping and gahhh, you did it soooo well! Now I’m curious with your other works…I’m now browsing your other creations! Just brilliant!
Thanks so much Carmi. I must admit it was fun chipping away at the slate, sore hands and all. I’d probably try it again, but with gloves next time.
These are so cute! If crafting was a little more cooperative, I’d have to make a pair.
Thank you Emily. Once you get the hang of it, it’s not so difficult.
Michelle, is there anything that you won’t try? I love that about you. I never know what I’m going to learn when I stop by. These are so cool, so fun and unique. So impressed and inspired by your skills!
😀 Thank you so much Nikki. Trying new things is always fun. Now if only I could master the art of cooking, I’d be set for life 😀
Gah, where was I when God was handing out creativity? Just when I think you’ve done it all, you come up with another brilliant piece. You should be selling those on Etsy or Ebay! Absolutely gorgeous. Pinned!
LOL Jas, I think you were standing in the cooking queue 😀 Thanks so much my friend
I can`t believe how amazing this looks! You always have such creative ideas!
Thank you so much Cristina <3
I am so impressed. I thought you had just cut an arrow in half for your bookends. This is awesome. And who can afford Pottery Barn anyway???
🙂 gwingal
I know right 😉 Thank you Nikki
Well, of course, you just made your own!! You are quite brilliant! I would just think that I couldn’t have them.
It’s like my mom (the 70+ model on my blog), she’ll just make the piece of clothing she wants!!
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
😀 You’re Mom is an amazing person Jodie. I love her outfits and how she always stays true to her style
This is such an original idea Michelle! A stunning one for the lovers of tribal art and décor!
Thank you Maya, that means a lot <3
I adore this Michelle – the arrow looks amazing and you could use it in so many ways. As soon as I find some slate I’m copying this!
Yay, I’m so glad you like it Sarah, thank you so much. I’d love to try doing the same thing with other types of stones, but slate seemed like the best fit and we have loads of scrap pieces. 😀
Michelle, this is an amazing bookend! Love the effects your knapping created, the arrow is awesome, sorry about your hands though. The feathers are beautiful too, they look so real. It’s a great set to hold books.
Thank you Keri, I’m glad you like them. I suppose I really need to learn to wear gloves though 😀
Your bookends turned our lovely Michelle! I love the arrow with the blue and silver dangling off it, and that feather is so cool! Im sure your bookend is much pretty and better made then any pottery barn sells.
I bet if you put your mind to it you could win an archery award. ?
LOL Linda, I’m not so sure about that, my aim has always been horrible 😉
They turned out so well! What a great tutorial too!
Thank you so much Carlee 😀
Wow, Michelle…now you’re making like an Indian with those arrowheads. I betcha that’s exactly how they fashioned one! I love that picture backdrop you used too.
Thank you Florence. I kinda felt like Pocahontas when I was banging away at the slate 😉
Hi Michelle, I have never heard about knapping, I googled it to find out what is it? LOL. Chipping the stone is a too tough job, feathers look cool Great DIY project dear.
Thank you so much Sadhna. Before making the arrow I must admit I had no idea about knapping. Just goes to show we learn something new everyday
Oh my gosh, Michelle! I just love these bookends. I was shocked to read that you can’t even get on their site. Why would they block Pottery Barn? You are so talented GF! I would love to try and make them someday xo.
I think it’s an African thing. I spoke to some friends in Nigeria and they can’t get in either. Maybe Pottery Barn thinks we’ll hack there site or something 😉
I’ve never heard of knapping and you do it like a pro, Michelle. The feathers couldn’t be more perfect. What a great, beautiful project!
I think my knuckles would disagree with you about the pro knapping Angie 😉 Thank you so much
Love love love what you did here Michelle. Pottery Barn is so overpriced. You created this beauty with your own to hands and the help of that wonderful machine. Now you’ll be able to add this to your bookcases. Actually it is so striking you can probably let it stand alone. Like you have in the photo. A conversation piece for sure. Would you be mad at me if I told you that when I read the title I thought you were talking about napping as in sleeping. Lol!! I’ve learned a new word!
LOL, how could I ever be mad at you Mary. Your one of my most favoritist people ever!!