Birdie Buffet

May 11, 2010 6:00 am Anitra Crafts, Floral Crafts, Green Crafting, Holidays, Home Decor, Projects

By Recycled Crafts Contributor, Anitra from the blog “Coffee Pot People”.

‘Tis the season—Spring, when flowers burst into bloom, birds sit in trees crying, “Mine! My tree! Mine!” and intrepid souls flock to home improvement stores. Sometimes the things they rip out and replace are even better treasure than the new items.

For instance, this discarded bathroom light fixture, which we’re going to turn into a bird feeder.

What you’ll need to do this is:

A light fixture similar to the one above (Find it at your local thrift store or salvage center—Rebuilding Center or ReStore, here in Portland.)
Paints
One cup or mug for each socket of the fixture, matching or not
One old-style glass fuse for each socket
One small, fluted, tart pan/tin for each socket
Glue (E-6000 is my favorite for everything but plastic or paper.)
Carbon paper or Alphabet stickers
DuraClear, or other clear, protective coating

First take your light fixture and remove all the wiring, but leave the sockets where the light bulbs screw in. Protect your work surface, and paint the entire thing white. Let dry. For a more rustic, vintage look, take a bit of sandpaper and knock some of the paint off the edges.

Using paints that coordinate with the cups you’ve chosen, sponge or stipple the arms of the fixture and around the edges to form a border:

While the paint is drying, spread the fluted sides of the tart tins out until they’re wide enough to cover the tops of the light bulb sockets. Glue the glass top of a fuse to the inside center of each tin. Let dry thoroughly.

The fuses fit light bulb sockets perfectly, so you’ll be able to unscrew the cups and take them down to clean and refill.

Time to do the lettering. I put “Birdie Buffet” on mine; you might want to add your name—“Betty’s Birdie Buffet”, for instance—or name it something else altogether. Use rub-on letters, alphabet stickers, paint freehand, or do what I did—create the words using a program like Publisher, print them out, and trace them on using carbon paper, then paint them.

Add a bit of painted decoration if you like. When the paint is dry, coat all the painted surfaces with protective coating. Screw in the mugs, and you’re done with your Birdie Buffet!