Our Crafting has Gone to the Birds!

Hey Everyone!

Lately it seems like Hannah and I have been seeing more and more wildlife during our week.  Yesterday we saw 2 coyotes walking along the side of a city road (scary since they have to go through our neighborhood to get to the closest safe spot of them), and we've been seeing more and more birds flying overhead.  To celebrate the animals and to try to encourage our feathered friends to come visit our yard, we decided to make new bird feeders.  Our toilet paper tube feeders fed the magpies quite well, and we have been saving up more tubes for spring feeders.  In the meantime, we thought we'd try a different type of feeder. 

This idea originated from a Pinterest post of a project first posted on the HGTV website.  Click here for the link.  Hannah and my husband have been eating a lot of oranges lately, and he is a pro at keeping the peels whole, so I thought it would be perfect for us to try.

To make these feeders you need:

* Orange peels (try to keep them as hole free as possible.  One of ours had a hole from the bellybutton, so I used a snip of coffee filter to plug it)
* Bamboo skewer or chopstick (cut in half)
* Twine or string
* Hole puncher or nail

To make them, you take either your hole punch or nail and make small holes just a touch down from the edge of the orange.  You'll need to make at least two, directly across from each other.  I was a bit off, so I made four holes for better balance. 

Once your holes are made, slide your skewer/chopstick through the holes.  Despite having four holes, we only used one chopstick per feeder.  I wanted a bit of stability, as well as a perch for once the bird food gets lower. 

Then, simply tie the twine to the ends of the skewer, fill the feeder with your food of choice and hang in your favorite tree!!

You can fill these feeders with most anything.  We wanted to give the birds an extra treat, so we mixed up some peanut butter food for them.

To make the filling, you need:

* 1/2 cup peanut butter
* 1 cup of cornmeal or oats (we used a 1/2 cup of each)
* 1/4 cup raisins or any other dried fruit or nuts. 

Simply mix all of your ingredients in a bowl and fill your feeders.  For ours, we used raisins and dried apricots.  I found that the mixture was a bit too dry, so I added a touch more peanut butter to bind it all together.  You can adjust the amounts based on what looks right and what you have in your pantry.

We have two trees in the backyard, so we hung a feeder in each one.  Let's hope we see some customers real soon!!

This project is great for younger children.  They can help measure out the ingredients, mix everything together, fill the feeders and of course, eat the oranges!!

Cheers!
Sharon

DIY Recycled Bird Feeders

Hello All-

I was going through some photos left on my camera and I came across a project that I had been wanting to post and forgot.  About a month or so ago (before the snow), Hannah and I decided to do something nice for both the birds and the environment.  We made toilet paper tube bird feeders!!  This was a mildly messy project, but easy to clean and lots of fun!  Even though many of you may have snow, this can easily be adapted to being an indoor project...just be sure to cover the surface you're working on well to avoid a big mess.

First, we collected a few toilet paper tubes from our craft bag.  I had been saving them for a bit with no project in mind, so this was a perfect use for them!!

Next, you'll want to gather all of your supplies.  I suggest getting everything out first, since things can get a bit messy once the peanut butter comes out! 

For this project you'll need:
- Toilet paper tubes
- Bowl for peanut butter
- A child safe knife (or an adult can do the spreading)
- Birdseed
- A tray to catch extra birdseed

Once everything is ready, you'll want to put a fair amount of peanut butter in your bowl.  It doesn't take much to cover the tube, but little ones may have some trouble spreading it because of the stickiness, so you'll want to give them some extra. 

Then, spread the peanut butter all over the tube.  I found it best to put my fingers inside the tube to hold it and keep it's shape better while spreading.  The oils from the peanut butter tend to make the cardboard a touch soggy and it will crush much easier.  you might even want to hold the tube for your child while they cover it with peanut butter.

Next, roll the tube in birdseed.  I found that putting a bunch of seed into an old pie plate worked well.  It also made clean-up easier.

Once your tube is fully covered, find a tree branch to slide your tube over.  Be sure that you can easily see the branch from a window in your home, since snow may prevent you from getting outside to view.

Finally, admire your work and wait for a few new friends to stop by! 

The best thing about this project is that we had all of the materials in the house already, so it cost nothing.  It is also easy enough to make year round, so your feathered friends won't go hungry!!

Have fun making your toilet paper bird feeders!!

Happy Crafting!
Sharon