Sunday, October 3, 2010

Halloween Birdhouse Tutorial

So here it is - the tutorial for the Halloween Birdhouse. Think about all the possibilities for these little wooden pieces - you could turn it into a Christmas house or you could make it a shabby chic cottage with lots of flowers! Anything's possible!

Supplies:
1. Wood birdhouse
2. Patterned papers (I used 3 different patterns) die cuts and stamps - I used the My Mind' Eye Blackbird collection
3. Two inch circle punch
4. Tracing Paper
5. Black acrylic paint (not pictured)
6. Mod Podge (I used matte)
7. If you are stamping - stamp block, distress inks, archival ink, watercolor brushes
8. Nonstick Craft Mat - because EVERYONE should have one of these!
Paint the edges the birdhouse with black paint (you only need to paint the parts that will show) Unfortunately I didn't have black paint (who doesn't have black paint??) So instead of driving the half mile to the local craft store I decided to paint it with black soot distress reinker. Which totally worked - until I wanted it to be dry - and it wasn't drying - but I had this brilliant idea to seal it with mod podge and hoped that would make it so I could handle it - and it totally worked! But it would have been SOOO much easier with acrylic paint!
2 Use tracing paper to trace the sides of the birdhouse. Use the patterns to trace and cut out your sides from patterned paper (i picked different patterns for the top, sides, and back and front) And I totally learned to use tracing paper from Melissa Samuels - genius!
Use mod podge to adhere your pieces to the birdhouse ( I apply the mod podge to the wood)
Sand down the corners to make sure the papers are flush with the sides of the house. You could ink the sides at this point (I planned on it... but I forgot...oops!)
Apply mod podge to the outside of the birdhouse to seal it - it also gives a really cool texture.
Now comes the embellishing! Instead of cutting the birdhouse hole out of the paper I punched a 2" circle out of black cardstock and glued it to the front - made my life SO much easier! (helpful tip - when using punches flip the punch over (like pictured) so you can see where you are punching - much more relevant when punching patterned papers)
I used the coordinating stamp set and stamped a punch of tree images. I then used my distress inks to watercolor them. To do this I picked a couple colors I liked (spiced marmalade and peeled paint) and wiped the ink pad on the craft mat. Then taking watercolor paint brushes (they have water in them - when you squeeze them the water comes out) I added a little bit of water and painted the ink on. When I was done I cut the images out. (tip - I use ranger archival ink to stamp the image - it's waterproof so it won't bleed when you paint the distress ink on - staz on would have worked as well but I LOVE archival ink)
I embellished the rest of the house by cutting images out of the patterned paper and adhering to the house. To get the trees in the front yard to stand up I left an extra piece at the bottom to fold over so it would stand up.

Well there it is! I hope you enjoyed and if you decide to make one send me a picture, I'd love to see! And who knows.. it might end up on the blog!

This post is linked at Polly Want a Crafter? and Blue Cricket Design and:
Join  us Saturdays at tatertotsandjello.com for the weekend wrap   up           party!HookingupwithHoHgiveaways
Make it Yours @ My Backyard EdenUndertheTableandDreaming

29 comments:

senovia said...

That is so cute! I love it!

Anonymous said...

super cute birdhouse!!!

Dru said...

Great project Melissa! Thanks for stopping by my blog and your sweet comment!

Sharla said...

Love your Halloween project,so clever and really cute! Your blog is cute too! I'm following! Thanks for stopping by my blog and for your comment!

Bumbles and Fairy-Tales said...

Wow! What an adorable spooky birdhouse! I love it :)
Thank you for your sweet comment today!
hugs, margie

Heather-Paper Princess Studios said...

Cute birdhoiuse! Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving a comment, Happy Fall!

Anonymous said...

Darling project Melissa!! I love birdhouses so this is right up my alley!

Lindy said...

That has to be the cutest birdhouse ever! What a good idea....Lindy

Jana said...

This is adorable. I love the garden. It's a perfect Halloween House.

Mindy said...

This is adorable, and I love how you improvised in a pinch with no black paint! That's resourceful and creative!

Stephanie Lynn @Under the Table and Dreaming said...

Super cute! Love the papers and the little figures - Fantastic tutorial! I'll be featuring this tomorrow - Stop by and grab a featured button if you like. Thanks for linking to The Sunday Showcase - I greatly appreciate it! Hope you have a fabulous week! ~ Stephanie Lynn

Leslie said...

Hi Melissa! I love the birdhouse ~ super cute!!!
Thanks for the follow.. I too am now a follower of yours. Pretty blog that you have here.

Have a great week

Christie said...

Just adorable! I am a new follower! Thanks for stopping by Three Pixie Lane!

Jen @ EmbellishingLifeEveryday said...

What a cute and unique birdhouse!
http://embellishinglifeeveryday.blogspot.com/

Unknown said...

I LOVE your blog! I had to stop by and tell you that I am YOUR newest subscriber! I can't wait to read more from you ;)

Kendall
Songbirdsandbuttons.blogspot.com

liana suwandi said...

Hi melissa!
I love your blog, so much inspirational. Thanks for comment on my blog :)

Mary Beth said...

What a wonderful decoration...too cute!

Michelle said...

Wow this is amazing...what a cute Halloween decoration!

the cape on the corner said...

love this! so flippin' cute, and such a creative idea!

thanks so much for stopping by the cape on the corner, and for your comment on my halloween decorations!

Alison @ Oopsey Daisy said...

This is BEYOND amazing!! I featured you today on my Wednesday's Wowzers:

http://oopsey-daisy.blogspot.com/2010/10/wednesdays-wowzers.html

Thanks for the inspiration!
~Alison

Unknown said...

Love all the different paper styles you chose. And, I bet that black circle made it a LOT easier!!

Tara said...

I love this. You inspired me to make one for christmas. Thank you for sharing!

http://tarahebison.blogspot.com/

The Single Nester said...

How fun and super cute. I have this same birdhouse and you have given me great ideas!

Anonymous said...

This is darling! I have always loved birdhouses. Please come share it on Make It Fantabulous Friday!
Joy
Mommaskindacrafty.blogspot.com

Sarah Lou said...

now this is really making me wish we did halloween!!!

Kitty Deschanel said...

This is more like "super cute"! If you get a chance, please swing by tonight or tomorrow to link up to Not "Baaad" Sundays with LambAround. I'd love to feature this :)

Krista @ While He Was Napping said...

This is adorable. I'd love for you to link it up to my Halloween party happening this weekend. It would be such an awesome addition!

whilehewasnapping.blogspot.com

Krista

Unknown said...

Yay! I love this so much.

My Spy Birdhouse said...

Thanks for posting. Designing a birdhouse seems to have endless possibilities and options. Good read.