Easy DIY Bird Feeder

 Today we are welcoming Claire from A Little CLAIREification,  who is sharing her super cute and easy DIY Bird Feeder .

 How’s your Summer been going, my LWSL friends? It’s me, Claire from A Little CLAIREification, and I just cannot believe my boys start back to school next week!

We have tried to pack in as much fun as possible over the break and, earlier this Summer, my Littlest and I decided to make a little DIY Bird Feeder. We have a sweet  pair of cardinals that live in the bushes just outside of our screened in pool patio and it’s so much fun watching them flit around – we love how they talk back and forth to each other. You can also pop over to my blog for more fun crafts like these DIY Glittery Glow Jars and I hope you’ll say hello while you’re there!!

Here’s how we did it on the cheap mostly using items we already had on hand.

Here Is What You Need:

1.5 Liter Water Bottle (I like the square kind for this, such as Fiji) A round plant drip tray, at least 5″ across

Spray paint (color of your choice)

Painter’s tape

Two wooden spatulas (optional)

Stencil pattern of your choice (optional – we used a bird stencil from Amazon)

Acrylic paint (your choice of color)

Jute twine (or picture hanging wire)

Eye hook (not pictured but shown below)

Hot Glue (or heavy duty glue such as Gorilla Glue)

Bird Seed

Step 1:  To start, we taped off the lip of the plant tray since we didn’t want little bird feet getting paint on them. Could be toxic! You’ll see that several steps here are optional like this one but I thought it would be fun to have the feeder be aqua so once the lip was taped off we spray painted it and let it dry for a couple of hours.

Step 2:  While that was drying, I used a craft knife to cut a couple of inches off the bottom of the water bottle – this is definitely a step that adults should do. I used scissors to even out any rough spots and make it sit level.

Step 3:  Next we used a Sharpie to make a half circles / arches on each side of the bottom of the bottle and then we used scissors to cut out. This is so the bird seed can flow out into the tray. If using a round water bottle, just evenly space out 2-3 little arches.

Step 4:  We love our little bird stencils we found on Amazon but you could use whichever pattern you like. We cut out the one we wanted to use and taped it on the bottle to secure it, and then my Littlest painted it. Now, I added the spatulas and I am going to tell you this right now. I wouldn’t bother if we did it again. I thought it would give a a little landing spot for the birds and envisioned the bird seed flowing out onto them. This was not the reality.

Step 5:  I basically cut a small hole and a larger hole on two opposite sides so the handle could go through and out the other side. They look kind of cute, I know, but it really was an unnecessary step. In the end, I had to use clear packing tape to cover the holes so I feel like you should learn from this trial and error. The cardinals told us they didn’t care, by the way.

Step 6:  We screwed a little eye hook into the cap for hanging. I actually added a little hot glue inside the cap for extra support because… well, “it’s for the birds” right?

Step 7: Next we placed the water bottle inside the tray and traced around with a Sharpie so I could place the hot glue in the right spot. I actually used both hot glue AND a little Gorilla Glue because… I did not want this to fall apart once it was hung, especially if a random squirrel decided to jump on board for lunch!

Step 8:  Glue the water bottle into the planter and allow to dry for several hours. Next, funnel your bird seed into the finished Bird Feeder and hang using the twine. While it might take a few days, be prepared for your fabulous little feathered friends to notice. I sooo wish I could have gotten a closer pic but those smart cardinals were hip to my jive (not to mention my children are loud).

Her bright red Husband wasn’t willing to sign a photo release but he loves the bird feeder too. 😉

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What kind of wildlife visits your backyard?