So after (and currently) making a lot of wands, I decided to make my own. River birch, 16", Strong. The hilt a soft cord that I wrapped around the wood because I want to try something other than carving. It's still in the works but for right now, this is what it looks like. I'm trying to decide whether or not to shorten it or add some wood-burning to it because it still looks a little empty (couldn't find a better word). I'm happy with it so far, and have used it in an assignment for HogwartsisHere.com. This is the fictional story behind it:
"Despite being a Hufflepuff and trying to be as virtuous as possible, I actually made my wand through illegal (and possibly unethical) means. The key word is "made." I did not buy my wand from Ollivander's or any other wandmaker. Instead, I decided to see if I could create my own.
There are two reasons why I decided to do this: 1) it was a project that I had always dreamed of doing, especially when I started whittling as a hobby, because everyone told me that I shouldn't and that it would be impossible, and 2) there is a river birch tree in my backyard that I have not only been at odds with for some years, but is also not one of the usual trees for wand woods. This tree is most likely an exception, since I have witnessed moments of magic in it, such as when it tried to swing at me in a way like the Whomping WIllow and broke my arm. Since birch isn't a normal wand wood, I wondered what would happen if it became one?
"I began creating my wand by sawing down a fallen branch so that it was what I thought to be an appropriate wand length. Afterwards, I realized that the sixteen inches I cut it down to was a bit longer than normal wands, which may be one of the factors behind its temperament. I'm not sure yet if I want to reduce the length to see if it will be behave better or leave it be and avoid any risks of it getting worse.
"After that, I traveled to a black market, where a wizard was selling Unicorn hairs plucked from those he said to have died from natural causes. Do I believe that? I really don't know. I acquired three of them (in case of accidents and needing spares), and placed them near the wood. I had heard that this was how Ollivander connected his woods to cores, and so after leaving them alone in a room overnight, I found the wood shattered and one of the hairs missing. Thankfully, I still had enough wood left over to saw down another branch (still 16") and left them overnight again. If it didn't work this time, then I would have to find another wood. In the morning, the wood was still intact, and another hair missing. When I touched the wood, something shot from the tip, inflaming the wood bits from the first that I had forgotten to take away. It signaled that the two had bonded, but that the wand would not be the most obedient.
"After this success, I applied a soft cord to the hilt to aid in grip in case of sweaty hands (which I get when holding something for too long). I am still deciding what else to do because I feel like the wand is still lacking (and my closest friends are still warning me that I should have decorated the wand first, and connected it to the core later). Afterwards, I will need to seal it with a Muggle acrylic, which I hope does not tamper with the magic in any way.
"All in all, I will call it a success, though now that I have revealed this process, my paranoia increases of being discovered by the Ministry and the likelihood that they'll destroy my wand. However, I believe in honesty, which is why I haven't lied about my wand. For right now, It works most of the time for me, though other times, it acts like petulant child; I assume that it works for me simply mostly because my friends have all tried it out and it will not work for any of them. Not one tiny charm. I love it dearly, and I hope that the Ministry ignores this (and gives light punishment for the black market thing) and just lets me keep the wand."
The real story is that I whittled a fallen branch, wrapped a cord around it, and am still working on it. I like the fictional story much more.
