looking for help on making aloose fan

[sunktanka_sa77]

please help i want to make a flat loose fan u the ones that jingle dress dancers carry? im making a fan for my cousin and i cant get the feathers to straighten enough soo please help!

[ChahtaGrasser]

I don't believe that your talking about a loose fan. I believe you want a flat fan.

[sunktanka_sa77]

well i think its a flat fan but the feathers move when u fan urself. not a stiff fan but it looks like it. lots of chicken dancers dance with them too

[sunktanka_sa77]

like this one. where theyre strung together with beads so they dont fall over but they are still kept in shape

[Joe's Dad]

That's not a loose fan. That's a flat fan.

You're gonna have a hard time making one if you don't know the difference between fans.

[OLChemist]

There are as many ways to make a flat fan as there are Indians, so take this as one person's advice.

Making a "looser" flat fan --

Flatten your feathers with an iron or light bulb or crimping or whatever you prefer. Attach the extenders to feathers. This needs to be done carefully since feathers in these fans get subjected to more stress. This is also a case where I would recommend good bamboo skewers, since they are tougher than dowels. Make sure every thing lines up straight and flat with the spacing you desire. Use adhesive tape to get the extenders and base of quill to same diameter.

Cut strips of buckskin to the same width as the circumference as the base of quill and about 1 - 1.5" longer than the base of quill & extender. Use a non-stretchy area of the hide. Run a very thin bead of glue (I use Arlene's or Tandy Leatherweld) down the length of the extender on the front. Glue the leather in place. Stretch the buckskin as you glue it. Baseball or whip stitch up the seam on the back with heavy thread. Make a knot at the very end of the extender -- not the leather. You may need to trim the excess tab and the knot will stop slippage.

When done, you'll have a leather covered shaft with a floppy tail. This will be used to attach the feathers to the handle.

Handles can be made by carving some cedar or pine to a Y-shape. Some folks use thick handled wood spoons and cut off part of the bowl. The top of the Y need to be as wide as the bases of all your feathers lined up in a row. Then carve a shelf across the top of the Y. This should be about 3/4 as deep as your covered extender is thick and about 1 - 1.5 " long.

Starting at the edges, glue the feathers face up to the shelf. Position them so that the end of the skewer is about 3/16" below the end of the shelf. Cut off the excess tab. If you do not do this the fan will fall backwards into your face. Old-school folks secure each feather with a few wraps of sinew. (This will tend to shift the feather upwards so keep an eye on things.) Once all the feathers are on, run the thread for your bead spacers through buckskin sleeves and spread everything out. Make a solid, tight wrap of sinew over the entire group of tabs. Make sure to cover a small portion of the bases of the skewers.

At this point, you can even up the gaps and dents over the tabs with wood filler or strips of skin and sinew. Then cover the handle. Make sure you bring the front up over the bases of the skewers in the front or it flop too much.

These fans loosen over time. The glue fails and the leather stretches.

[Czechy]

What a great description OLChemist!
Thanks!

[Sunktaki]

Here are some good websites, they got lots of tips

NocBay learning circle

http://http://www.nocbay.com/learningcircle/index.asp

NocBay video : How to straigthen feathers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-X61J6Cv1SE