Birds everywhere have officially booked their tickets South and my backyard is apparently the place to be. They’re everywhere! We’ve had so much fun watching them from our breakfast room table every morning that I wanted to find a way to capture the fun of our feathery friends all year long. This DIY Painted Bird House Ornament is simple to build, perfect for gift-giving, and will look right at home hanging from the limbs of your Christmas tree.

For quick, easy decorating, we called upon the help of Handmade Charlotte Stencils and FolkArt Home Decor Chalk Paint. The stencils make clean, precise patterns and the chalk paint goes on flawlessly, making something as simple as a recycled cardboard gift wrap tube look like a beautiful hardwood bird house. With hundreds of stencil designs and an endless selection of colors, you and your kids can mix and match for days!

When people ask how you made it, just say a little birdie told you…

• FolkArt Home Décor Chalk Paint
• Handmade Charlotte Stencils
• FolkArt Spouncer Stenciling Sponges
• Sponge brushes
• Recycled gift wrap tube
• Plastic drinking straw
• 8.5 x 11 card stock
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun

Step 1
Follow these instructions to cut out each piece of your birdhouse:

• The house: Cut the recycled gift wrap tube into 4” pieces.
• The roof: Cut a circle out of card stock with a 7” diameter. Then cut it in half.
• The bird and perch: Make a little bird out of card stock with a hole punch for perching. Cut a 2″ piece of plastic straw for the perch.
• The base: Cut another circle out of card stock with a 2.5” diameter.

Step 2
Use the Folk Art Home Décor Chalk Paint and your sponge brush to paint each individual piece. The more colors the merrier!

Step 3
Once the roof piece is dry, apply the Handmade Charlotte stencil pattern with your paint dauber and Folk Art Home Décor Chalk Paint. Apply the paint in repeated, small dabs for full coverage. Repeat until your pat­tern is complete!

Step 4
Once everything is dry, it’s time to assemble. Roll the roof into a cone shape and seal it with hot glue. Apply the roof and the base with hot glue. Cut a small hole in the house piece and stick the straw through and place the bird on its perch.

After the holiday hullaballoo is over and it’s time to pack up ’til next year, keep this one out to hang from door knobs or display on shelves. I’ll be keeping mine on the kitchen window sill as a reminder of our feathery friends after they’ve flown back to their summer homes on the Cape.