I found myself in the position of having a clarinet available with no cleaning swab. So….I made my own,, & thought I’d share a little tutorial.
Disclaimer: Use this tutorial at your own risk. I think this will be fine to use on your instrument, but double-check with the manufacturer to be sure.
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Supplies
- fabric
- t-shirt yarn
- paperclip
- scissors
Step 1
Cut a square(ish) shape out of material, such as an old t-shirt. Mine measured approximately 5.5 in (14 cm) x 5.5 in (14 cm)..
Step 2
Fold the material in half to make a triangle shape. Snip a small hole near a corner & stretch it. Make sure the hole isn’t so close to the edge that it will rip through the edge.
Step 3
[Steps & 4 are reversed in the video]
Tie the t-shirt string onto the paperclip using a cow hitch or something similar.
Step 4
Tie the other end of the t-shirt yarn through the hole in the fabric square using a know of your choice. I used some kind of double-knot.
And now you have a homemade clarinet or flute cleaning swab!
If you make this, be sure to share a photo & tag me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or in the comments below!
-Barbara
Barbara Fischer runs Fischarper, LLC and loves her job as a harpist and private music educator. She enjoys blogging about various aspects of the music field on fischarper.com/blog. For more music resources, check out the Fischarper store. Find out where you can find Barbara on the interwebs here. And you can sign up to receive Fischarper updates by joining the email list.