One of my favorite crafters is Mark over at the Slumbering Alligator. His stuff he creates is wonky and fun. He has his own style and I love to see what he creates. He’s been one of the inspirations for me starting my blog, along with the Crafty Lumberjacks. It’s showing men can craft! One thing he did, I think as a one off was the Flamingo Taxidermy. He crafted a light fixture out of Dollar Tree Flamingos and then did the Taxidermy.
We were inspired give this a try. Unfortunately, the Dollar Tree’s around me didn’t have any Flamingos. BUT! They now allow you to order online! Just note two things. First, you have to order in certain quantities. You can’t order a one off item. For the most part, you can get multiples of 4 but some are 24 and 36. Just read the description. Flamingos were in quantities of 4. Next, the shipping was a bit more than Amazon. But I mean for $1 item you may end up paying $2 per item. Which still isn’t bad. Also, you can have it shipped to a Dollar Tree near you for free.
We had to push back the crafting lunch but finally managed to do it this past week. We broke out the FolkArt Color Shift and Brushed Metal paints. Which made a really great addition for the taxidermy. It took it to the next level and allowed each of us to create something out own! The one thing I love about crafting is you can see something, like Mark’s Flamingo Taxidermy and put your own twist on it.
I decided to make a black flamingo. I used the Color Shift Black Flash for the body of the Flamingo. I thought it would look amazing but not as well as it turned out. I was the only one who went against tradition and used a non-flamingo color. Then we used Liquid Leaf on the beak that made it POP! Lastly, I used Brushed Metal Copper on the plaque. The color combo really works well I think. On top of that, I used Brushed Metal Pearl Gold for the eyes. It’s kinda creepy but works with the black. Top that off with a ribbon Ascot and you have Mr. Feathers.
We crafted with Shauna, Anna, and Celia. Anna had the best idea. She turned the backside of the Flamingo into wings on the side. She is so creative, make sure you check out her blog Made Soulful. Celia won the award for the best plaque. She painted the name and designs on it. Shauna other than making a super fun flamingo with an amazing bow was the person behind Liquid Leaf on the beaks. AMAZING. As you can see in our pic below we all had an amazing time.
Some tips for doing your own Flamingo
- Get a super sharp knife to cut and make sure you’re cutting even. Mine is a little wonky and I have embraced the concept of Wabi-Sabi. Which according to Wikipedia is the beauty of “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete.” I’m not Martha Stewart and a perfectionist. So sometimes the imperfections make it for me.
- Painting the flamingo can be difficult. You can paint one side let dry and then the other. What is the fun in that you have to paint it all at once. The legs can be used to hold the flamingo as you paint. But I still go paint all over my hands.
- Get a strong glue to mount to your plaque. And don’t glue your fingers together! I came close but luckily it didn’t happen.
- Have fun doing it, and use colors outside the box and make the flamingo who you are!
Thanks, Mark, you are AMAZING and keep inspiring me to make my own out of the box crafts. I consider this on the wackadoodle side, cause those make are the fun and best crafts to make. It’s part of who I am and you’ll see more soon I hope on the wackadoodle side!
Craft Factor 9 