Every Harry Potter fan knows the importance of a good wand. You may need a wand to complete your Hogwarts uniform, or perhaps you’re going to a convention. Maybe you just want to practice your wandwork ability, or you want to have duels with your friends. Whatever your reason, it can be quite costly to purchase a wand at the Wizarding World or even online. Not everyone has 50 bucks to drop on a new wand- I know I sure don’t. This tutorial will show how to create a wand for cheap with items you will more likely than not have at your home- and you won’t have to break Gringott’s to do so.
There are two ways to create a nice wand at home, one being paper and the other wooden. The first is considerably cheaper, and don’t worry, despite it being made from paper, it’s INCREDIBLY strong. You won’t be needing any reparo spells for this one!
The items you need to make the paper one are:
- printer paper (preferably white, although you’ll be painting it)
- double-sided tape
- the drippy type glue (I used Elmer's)
- paint
- paintbrushes
- scissors
- hot glue gun
- jewels or rhinestones (not necessary, but provide flair to your wand)
- something to cover your table or workspace with (if you don't want glue or paint on it)
- paper towel
Got everything? Let’s begin!
1. Put the piece of paper flat on the table horizontally and place a long piece of double-sided tape from the corner to the middle of the longer side. DON'T go corner-to-corner.
2. Look at the line of tape. Start rolling the paper from the corner, where it would be EXACTLY parallel to the tape line, and TIGHTLY roll the paper up to the line so you cover the tape. You should have a medium-sized corner of not-yet-rolled paper left.
3. Spread the drippy glue over that corner. When I did it, I poured some of it out of the bottle and smeared it with a paintbrush, instead of squeezing it out. Which might be better, because it got rid of a lot of the excess glue that would squeeze out normally. You definitely don’t want to saturate the paper with glue, so be careful.
4. Continue rolling the paper, tightly, over the glue until you reach the other corner.
5. Wipe any excess glue off the wand with the paper towel. LIGHTLY- it's not strong yet, because the glue hasn't dried yet.
6. Let the glue dry. While you're waiting, plug the glue gun in if you haven't already.
7. Cut the pointy ends off the paper. Not too much, just enough to remove the tips and leave flat ends on both sides of the wand.
8. Now take the hot glue gun and put the glue in one hole at the end. Essentially you’re filling the wand with the hot glue. Place the wand so it's standing straight up, and just keep squeezing the hot glue gun down into it for as far as it can go. If it's the tip of the wand, you can make it rounded if you want.
9. Turn the wand upside down and do the other hole the same way if you were unable to fill the wand with hot glue the first time.
10. Now you can get creative. This is the part where you put whatever markings or designs you want in the wand with the hot glue. Since the paper wand doesn’t use rope or leather as a handle, you may want to create a handle with the hot glue.
11. Wait for the glue to dry.
12. You can now start painting! Paint the base coat all the way first, and wait for it to dry. The next step will be to color the designs you made.
13. Now you can color over the hot glue gun design bumps with whichever color/colors you want!
14. If you want to, you can put a jewel or rhinestone on the end of it, too. Put a dab of the hot glue on the back of the jewel, and stick it on the end of the handle.
15. Ta-dah! You successfully completed your paper wand!
If you’d prefer a sturdier wand or a handle made out of leather or rope and don’t mind spending a little bit more than the paper wand, the wooden wand is for you. Here’s what you need:
- wooden dowel
- hot glue gun
- paint
- paint brushes
- sandpaper (if you want a rounded tip for your wand, but it’s not necessary)
- something for the handle, like suede leather/ribbon/rope
- jewel/rhinestone (not necessary, but adds flair!)
- something to cover your table or workspace with (if you don't want glue or paint on it)
Ready? Here’s how you make it!
1. If you want, rub the sandpaper against the tip of the dowel to create a rounded-tipped wand. This is pretty difficult and requires a lot of time and force, but if you think it’s worth it, go for it!
2. Pick whatever color you want your wand to be and start painting the entire wooden dowel. Feel free to experiment with patterns and such!
3. To do the handle, take a DAB of hot glue and glue the end of the ribbon/leather/rope to the base of the dowel. Then wrap it around and around and around, until you get it the length you want- you might want to hold your hand on it like you would if you were casting your spells normally to measure size.
4. Once you finish wrapping, tie a knot in the ribbon/leather/rope around the wand.
5. Take a dab of glue and glue the end of the ribbon/leather/rope into place.
6. If you want, glue a jewel or rhinestone at the bottom. Put the glue on the jewel, and push it into the wand. Wait for it to dry.
7. You’re done!
Congratulations, you now have your own wand and you didn’t lose any galleons! Have fun casting your spells with your friends and making as many more wands as you want!
Don’t forget to be careful, and never run with your wand or jab it at someone’s face.
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