Bamboo Slats

Searching for Slats That Meet Your Needs

Bamboo slats are handy for lots of craft projects. I’ve woven them into place mats and used them to embellish picture frames.

They make good paint stirrers. I’ve used small scraps in collages, on journal covers and on cards.

I am looking for bamboo staves for making large feather fans. Can you help?

A Canadian company would be preferred.

Thanks.

You can search online for "bamboo slats". You’ll find some suppliers of raw slats sold in bundles or rolls.

It may be difficult to tell if the slats have the correct stiffness for your fans just from the pictures. If you connect with a wholesaler, they should be willing to send you samples.

However if you don’t need or want to spend the time developing a relationship with a wholesaler, there is a quicker, easier way which may even save you money.

Go to your local Home Depot or Pier 1 and look for bamboo place mats or an inexpensive bamboo blind made of the type of slat you need.

Cut the item to the length you need using a Dremel Tool. Pull the slats apart as needed when you make your fans.

This is not as tricky as it may sound. Let me tell you how I know. We ordered custom bamboo blinds for our dining room, giving the salesman the exact width to fit our recessed window. Can you guess where this is going?

Two months later when we picked the blinds up and got them home, we discovered that an inch and a half had been added to the width for an outside mount.

Not wanting to rewrap the blinds, tie them to the roof of the car and make the two hour trip to the store only to get into an argument over whose fault it was, I decided to DIM (Do It Myself).

How to Cut Bamboo with a Dremel Tool

Lay the woven bamboo item flat. A cutting mat with a measurement grid is nice to help get the corners square.

Mark the length you want at intervals. Connect the marks with a straightedge and draw the cutting line with a pencil.

Place two layers of corrugated cardboard under the area to be cut. Attach a rotary blade for wood to the Dremel.

Holding the blade perpendicular to the cut line, turn on the Dremel and press down. It’s easy to feel when the Dremel touches the cardboard.

When you feel the cardboard, move the blade slowly forward along the cut line.

You may have to lift the blade and restart from time to time if you meet resistance.

I feared that some of the bamboo slats would split or fray. They did not. My DH and the two carpenters who turned down the job were quite impressed. LOL.