Here is how you make a basic wand, as well as some materials.
Small handsaw - to gather your piece of wood and then to cut to length - adult supervision please

Colored inks - non-water soluble

Sandpaper - rough and fine

Knife or wood-scraper - adult supervision please


For fancy wands:
Twine (or yarn) - often available in different colours and materials

Glue - white glue, superglue or wood glue

Feathers and/or fur

Ribbon - narrow, of a supple weave, so that it bends easily and won't crack

Thread - preferably a heavy duty waxed thread

Glitter - of the smaller pieces (the larger, chunk, glitters won't stay on very well)

Skin - leather strips narrow and/or wide depending on use

Beads - ceramic, glass and/or metal

Paint - there are many kinds of paints available in little jars at craft stores; remember that your wand may become immersed in some sort of fluid in your adventures, so chose a paint that won't run when exposed to water, rain, dragon drool or dog slobber!

Paint brush(es) - fine tip if you are painting rune signs, slightly larger for painting the wand



Remember: when using tools of any kind, exercise caution and safety practices. Constant Vigilance! If you are creating a lot of dust in the air, use an air mask over your nose. If you decide to make a fancier wand, and use power tools, use safety goggles. Again, if you are not adept in the use of knives, saws or other equipment (like power tools) please be sure to have supervision by someone who does know about these things.


Gathering Wood for your Wand


First off, again, I believe that the wand chooses the wizard. So it might be interesting how you come across the wood for your wand.

For one of my wands, the wand that first chose me, I felt somehow *tugged* over to a clump of weeds, and in that clump of weeds was a small branch which had fallen from the cherry tree above. I pulled out the small branch, and within all the twists and breaks was a piece of fairly straight, unbroken wood. This ended up being my cherry wood wand, length 13-1/2 inches, with blueberry stain and olive oil finish (and protective coat).

Before that wand, I had been given a chopstick! I absolutely love this chopstick (yes, I still have it) and the funny thing is that I use the chopstick as a wand with my right hand, and the cherry wood wand with my left hand. What kind of wood is the chopstick? I don't know! All I know is that it works! My favourite spell with it is Wingardium Leviosa..

Often you will be able to find small downed branches or larger twigs, like I did, and not have to remove green, living wood from a tree or shrub. If you cannot find something lying on the ground, then ask permission of whomever the tree or shrub belongs to, if you may harvest a small part. (Find out, too, what kind of tree or shrub it is, while you are asking permission.)

If you need tools to harvest your piece of wood, please ask an adult to help you. If possible, cut off a piece of wood that is about 5 - 6 inches longer than you need. (You will be using the extra inches to hold onto the wood while you are working with it.)

If you find a piece of downed wood, check it for rot or breakage. It is disheartening to do a lot of work on a wand and then have it break just as you are finishing it up. Check the wood, even if fresh from a tree, to see if it is supple and/or strong. Some kinds of branches, like pear branches, break very readily, and would make a very short-lived wand.

As for the diameter of the piece of wood, how big is your hand? You want something that you can hold easily, so maybe the size of your forefinger up to the thickness of your thumb would be good, depending on the strength, availability and kind of wood. (Approximately 1/4 inch diameter is the smallest you would want, I think, but it is up to you and what you find.)