What to do with feathers.

[Chris-n-Kate]

I have only processed once and threw the feathers away, but got to thinking there might be better options. Can the leftover feathers be used in the nest box?

 

[NuggetTheChicken]

Maybe the down could be disinfected and used for pillows?.

 

[21hens-incharge]

I would bury them in the compost pile.

As for in the nest box.....I really don't know.

 

[featheredplanets]

I’d compost them. Or maybe you could use a poultry disinfectant and donate them to a bird charity for when they raise chicks? Just a thought.

I wouldn’t use them in a nest box as they’ll just get poopy, matted and mouldy in a few days.

 

[Chris-n-Kate]

I like composting. I will probably do that then. Thanks.

 

[Molpet]

@Faraday40 makes hair pieces and jewelery

 

[N F C]

I thought these Christmas trees made with feathers were pretty:
Post #8 of 87

You could do something similar with styrofoam balls and feathers.

 

[Faraday40]

@Faraday40 makes hair pieces and jewelery

Yes, I do! Crafts are great, and craft feathers are very expensive.

I use pretty feathers as accents for cards. (When the cost of a decent card went above $1-2, I started making them. They're so much nicer. )



I also made hair pieces for my daughter's dance recitals



& a friend's wedding.

I even made some feathered floral pics to slip into the bouquets & flower arrangements. (.... I had a lot of extra purple feathers!)



Basically, all you have to do is wash the feathers in dish soap and hot water. A bit of vinegar helps remove the soap residue & also disinfects feathers. (I store feathers outside in Ziplock bags, so the freezing winter temps kill any unseen tiny critters.) Let feathers air dry & they'll fluff back up.

Food coloring can dye feathers easily and using white, lavender, blue, buff, etc. feathers can achieve different hues. My favorites are the barred, laced, spangled, & penciled feathers. They look so exotic.


Here's DD making some of her own feathered hair pieces:


So what to do when you've collected too many feathers????
Preschools! Teachers of young children actually buy feathers and love to have pretty diversity of backyard chicken feathers. (Just wash/disinfected them 1st) I teach in several schools every spring & the students go crazy to have a few "souvenirs" from their feathered visitors. Better to bring in a bag of them for the teacher to distribute than to have those little fingers try to pluck.
Here are my kids helping me at a school assemblies:

 

[Duckfarmer1]

Yes, I do! Crafts are great, and craft feathers are very expensive.

I use pretty feathers as accents for cards. (When the cost of a decent card went above $1-2, I started making them. They're so much nicer. )
View attachment 1996502 View attachment 1996503 View attachment 1996505 View attachment 1996507 View attachment 1996509 View attachment 1996510 View attachment 1996544View attachment 1996506 View attachment 1996511 View attachment 1996512


I also made hair pieces for my daughter's dance recitals
View attachment 1996515 View attachment 1996518 View attachment 1996520


& a friend's wedding.
View attachment 1996525 View attachment 1996526
I even made some feathered floral pics to slip into the bouquets & flower arrangements. (.... I had a lot of extra purple feathers!)
View attachment 1996524


Basically, all you have to do is wash the feathers in dish soap and hot water. A bit of vinegar helps remove the soap residue & also disinfects feathers. (I store feathers outside in Ziplock bags, so the freezing winter temps kill any unseen tiny critters.) Let feathers air dry & they'll fluff back up.

Food coloring can dye feathers easily and using white, lavender, blue, buff, etc. feathers can achieve different hues. My favorites are the barred, laced, spangled, & penciled feathers. They look so exotic.
View attachment 1996504

Here's DD making some of her own feathered hair pieces:
View attachment 1996549 View attachment 1996550 View attachment 1996551 View attachment 1996552 View attachment 1996548

So what to do when you've collected too many feathers????
Preschools! Teachers of young children actually buy feathers and love to have pretty diversity of backyard chicken feathers. (Just wash/disinfected them 1st) I teach in several schools every spring & the students go crazy to have a few "souvenirs" from their feathered visitors. Better to bring in a bag of them for the teacher to distribute than to have those little fingers try to pluck.
Here are my kids helping me at a school assemblies:
View attachment 1996546 View attachment 1996555

Very cool and great craft...but you’re very good at the art of it!

 

[Faraday40]

Very cool and great craft...but you’re very good at the art of it!

Thank you.

Not all crafts have to look "polished" The preschoolers slap some glue & feathers on a folded paper plate and call it a hen. (To go with it, they also make nests & pom pom chicks inside plastic Easter eggs) It's one of my fav crafts.


I teach a park district class, and at the end, each child gets a photo of him/her holding a baby chick hatched during the program. (I obviously don't send the kids home with the baby chicks. LOL) We glue the photos to a piece of cardboard, and the children get to decorate it with feathers. Here are past examples using my own kids.