How Long Does One Take?
- Christian Davila
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- Oct 23, 2025
- 4 min read
"How long does it take you to make one?” is the question I hear most and my honest answer is… I don’t know! Every bird has its own journey, and I’m usually juggling several at once, letting them all grow at their own pace.
I’d say my Scrapbook Hanging Birds have become my signature pieces. They’re simple in form; a basic bean bird shape covered in unpainted book paper (most often pages from a Harry Potter novel) but each one gets a burst of color through laser-cut wings and tails made from double sided scrapbook paper.
These birds actually began as part of a personal challenge back in 2018, during my artist residency at Idea Fab Labs Chico. My goal was to create as many birds as possible using their equipment. Over two months, I produced more than 75 birds using the 3D printer and laser cutter, completely filling their gallery by June 2018. The exhibit was a huge success and set the foundation for everything I’ve made since.
3D Printing
That experience completely changed the way I create my birds. In the beginning, I sculpted each body from air-dry clay and hot glue wire legs. Now, the process has evolved into something much more efficient. I will sculpt the bodies and legs digitally in Blender, a 3D modeling program, and print them using PLA filament on a 3D printer. What once took weeks of drying time can now be a file uploaded to a 3D printer and have a 3 inch body printed in 3 hours.
One of the biggest advantages of 3D printing is the weight difference. The printed bodies are nearly ten times lighter than clay, which makes it much easier to attach a small eye screw and hang each bird effortlessly on the wall.
Laser Cutting
The other game changer in my process was cutting the bird wings and tails with a laser cutter. I start by designing the pattern in Adobe Illustrator, then transfer it to either an Epilog or Xtool Laser to make the precise cuts.
Before that, I used to cut every feather by hand with an X-Acto knife, carefully following a stencil and making sure each layer was in perfect order. For a short time, I tried using a Cricut, but the sticky cutting mats warped my paper. The silver lining, though, was that the Cricut designs translated beautifully to the laser cutter and I still use those same patterns for my Scrapbook Birds today!
The Handmade Part
Even with all the technology I use, I still cut most of the feathers by hand or with a flower-shaped hole punch. I have a whole set in different sizes that I rotate between. I’ve experimented with speeding up this step using the laser cutter, but it came with too many complications. The laser doesn’t handle tiny pieces well—small feathers tend to fall through the honeycomb grid, get pulled into the filter, or end up stained if cut on a flat surface.
The only reason the wings and tails work so well is that they’re large enough for the scrapbook paper to stay sturdy, and the cut lines are designed to minimize burn marks.
Maybe one day I’ll revisit laser-cutting the smaller feathers, but for now, I prefer my hands-on approach. It adds a personal touch that makes each bird truly one of a kind!
Assembling
Once all the 3D-printed parts are cleaned up and the paper pieces are cut, the real magic begins... the assembly! I start from the tail and work my way toward the head, carefully layering each feather one by one with paper glue onto the 3D printed body. It’s a slow, meditative process that brings the bird to life piece by piece. Every sculpture has its own personality; my Scrapbook Birds feature ruffled paper and teardrop-shaped feathers for a simple classic look, while others get extra details that make them stand out. No two birds are ever exactly the same, and that’s what keeps this stage so rewarding ♥
How Long Does One Take?
Every bird I create is a blend of tradition and technology, from 3D modeling and laser cutting to hand-cut feathers and scrapbook paper, each step balances precision with creativity. What began as a simple challenge in 2018 has grown into an ongoing exploration of materials, movement, and storytelling.
Even with all the tools at my disposal, I still find joy in the handmade details the tiny cuts, the careful gluing, the quiet rhythm of paper taking shape. So… how long does one take? I know, but I don’t know. Each bird has its own pace, its own personality, and its own way of taking flight. And that’s exactly what keeps me making them.
It take 45 minutes to make one scrapbook bird once I get all the supplies ready ;)
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