Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Birdhouse tutorial

birdhouse tutorial
Birdhouses are so charming, even so when you bring them to the indoors.  Now you can make one yourself!  (No woodshop experience required!)



Materials needed:
  • Cardboard (reuse a cardboard box)
  • Fabric
  • Glue
  • Scissors
  • X-acto blade
  • Clothes pins
Note: Right now I’ll tell you how to make your own template.  I’d like to have one for you to download but I’m not familiar with how to create a pdf pattern yet.  If anyone would like to share how, please email me and let me know!
birdhouse template
To create your template, free hand a simple drawing of how you want the front to look.  Side “A” should be the same measurement as side “B”, and this should be consistent all the way around the birdhouse.  For the roof, it should be as wide as side “C” and as long as sides “D” and “E” combined.  You may want to add a little extra for overhang.  I hope this helps.  But like I said, I would be happy to share the template with you for download once I figure out how to do that.

Now, on to the tutorial!
birdhouse 1
Once you have your birdhouse cut out, lay it on the wrong side of your fabric.  Fold over edges and glue down.  For the circle hole, you need to cut multiple slits like a star and fold in the fabric.  See photo below.
birdhouse 2
birdhouse 3
Now you can fold up the walls to form the birdhouse.  You will need to cut little rectangles to hold the sides together.
birdhouse 4

birdhouse 5
Glue the little rectangle pieces to the inside corners of the walls and use clothes pins to hold them until the glue dries.
birdhouse 6

birdhouse 7
Now for the roof. 
birdhouse 8
Cover the roof with a coordinating fabric.
birdhouse 9
Add a bead of glue to the top of your birdhouse.  Start with one side….
birdhouse 10
then move on to the other after it dries.
birdhouse tutorial
birdhouse tutorial
birdhouse tutorial
birdhouse tutorial

So much easier than carpentry and cheaper than buying the wooden birdhouses in the store!  These would be cute on a shelf or hanging on the wall in a group.

 

7 comments:

  1. What a cute project!

    Looks like you've changed up your blog design a bit again. I like the simplicity of the header.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! Yes I did change it. I can't help it. I love trying out new layouts and figuring out html. Maybe one day I'll stick to one design.

      Delete
  2. Thank you for taking the mystery out of template design!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you for taking the mystery out of template design!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's what my blog's purpose is all about!! I'm glad you came!

      Delete
  4. It looks like you made the roof a little wider than C and a little longer than D and E. Could you tell me the measurements of the base? I'm gonna make these for the centerpieces for my bestie's baby shower. It's the perfect craft for us. I love the short fat one, but making one template seems to be challenging enough for me.

    Thanks,
    Ashley Mae

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've looked at probably 20 different cardboard birdhouses and I just want to tell you that none compare to yours! Kudos!

    ReplyDelete

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