I have to admit I can't take credit for this craft idea. It came from my mother (who is not crafty, which is kinda funny she came up with this). And if she can do it anybody can! It's a perfect craft idea for Christmas or really anytime you want to feed the birds!
If you are looking for something easy to do with your kids or grandkids the bird Christmas Tree is a perfect go-to fun project.
Lucky for us, we already had the tree assembled (found amongst our grandmothers treasures), but you can easily make a tree by attending a local craft store and purchasing the following cheap items.
First you will need something to set your tree on. For something easy you could use a plastic plate. A wood platform (for something that won't fall over) or even a pot that might be a little heavier would be a little sturdier. If you don't have those items, put some heavy rocks on your plate to make it stay put after you make your tree. If you want you can even buy green or red for the holiday season.
Next you will need to get a foam tree. These can be purchased at craft stores like Michaels, Hobby Lobby or even Walmart. There are different sizes available for you to choose from. Super glue the foam tree to the platform, pot or plate. You could even make a few small ones for an interesting look of different heights.
A fun family trip may be to go up to the mountains and pick pine cones up off the ground. You might need about 30 just in case depending on your tree size. If you don't want to travel to the mountains, I've even picked up pinecones in my local park off the ground!
While you are at the craft store pick up some wooden skewers and super glue. I believe Target and Walmart carry all these items, too! You can also get these items at the grocery store (minus the glue gun). We use wooden skewers to make shish-kabobs all the time! They are the same things.
Next, stick your pinecones into the tree while putting some glue on the back of the pine cone to ensure a good fit. You may need to break the skewers in half so they aren't too long.
If you have a hot glue gun, that's even better and you can just hot glue the pinecones on the tree itself (skipping the whole skewer idea). But, be careful the kids aren't utelizing the hot glue.
Your tree should end up looking something like this. Using different sized pine cones will make your tree even more interesting.
You can even add some greenery or canned spray snow to make it look even more fabulous!
You can then start to put whatever you like on it. Real ornaments, kids craft poof balls on it. Whatever you think may be fun!
Ours was purely for the birds, so we kept it very bird food friendly.
First my mother dried sliced some oranges and bananas and dry them in the oven. Ingenious! Broiling them may be the fastest, but keep an eye not to burn them. You may also need to turn them over if you feel they need dried on both sides. This should go really fast, so watch out not to burn.
Then she was able to easily string them with some ribbon. You can also use yarn. Kids are more than able to join in this task! Stringing and threading is a great developmental task for young kids. If you need a little help with the string threading you could stick a safety pin on the end of the string to guide it through the fruit easier. Shoe laces also work well.
Next, pop some popcorn and string popcorn like the time old tradition! You may need to use a needled to thread the popcorn so it stays on the string. Parents or grandparents may need to do this stringing if your kids are too young to use needles.
You can also string Cheerio's. Make sure you tie the string or ribbon in a knot after you are done so that the fruit and cheerio's don't fall off.
Next, cut some bread slices into shapes (cookie cutters if you are feeling extra festive) or just cut into circles or squares. Make sure you put a hole in the bread for the string before you toast it in the oven. Make sure you don't lace them like ornaments before you dry them in the oven. You don't want to cook your ribbon or yarn in the oven.
Now you are ready for the final touches.
After the bread is toasted then you can lace it and decorate it. Your kids will have fun spreading peanut butter onto of the bread ornaments and sprinkling bird seed on top.
You are ready to take your creation outside for the birds to feast!
This was the kids final product with their grandmother. Looks pretty fun!
Sad to say, we have not had a single bird yet (mostly because we are living in a construction zone right now), but when they do come, they will be in hog heaven!
Any extra bird seed you have you can put out on a pretty plastic plate or dish for extra munchies. (Just make sure you put your tree up away from your dog. We put ours on our patio table.
Next, you can commemorate your bird Christmas tree experiences by hanging a bird ornament on your indoor Christmas tree. Your kids will enjoy the time they spent with you or a grandparent and remember it for years to come! You can even use a sharpie marker to write the date on the bird so you remember when you made celebrated.
Happy Holidays and have a good luck with your own Bird Holiday Tree!
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