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Painted birdhouses are an easy craft that’s perfect to make with your kids. In this craft tutorial, you’ll find out what supplies you need and see some pretty birdhouse painting ideas.
This post is part of our ongoing sponsored series for Testors Crafternoons.
Last week for our Crafternoons activity, we showed you how to make a DIY flower press. Tonya is here again today to show you another fun spring craft — painted birdhouses for your backyard. This is a perfect activity to spend time with your children because you can all get your creativity flowing with your own birdhouse painting ideas.
Spring is coming and soon we’ll be able to enjoy time in our gardens again.
Do you often have birds nesting throughout spring in your backyard? We do and I love it. They make their nests under the eaves and in the shrubs. So this year I thought I’d add a couple of pretty painted birdhouses in our backyard in the hope they use them as a home for their babies.
Whether or not any birds end up using our decorated bird houses this spring, our family will enjoy how they brighten our garden throughout the year.
Supplies To Make Painted Birdhouses:
- Testors Craft Acrylic 2oz Paint – assorted colors
- Testors Craft 3oz Aerosol Paint – assorted colors
- Testors Spray Lacquer – Paint Sealer
- Basic wood bird house – available at craft stores
- Wood stand – available at craft stores
- Wood letters or a word – available at craft stores
- Wood glue
- Pencil
- Painter’s tape (optional)
The Testors Craft Acrylic Paint comes in a variety of colors in 2oz bottles and can be used on many surfaces including glass, fabric, wood, clay, metal, plaster, and more. You can purchase the paint online from Amazon.com, Walmart.com, and at Menards and Do-It-Best Stores.
The Testors Craft sprays are a bit more of a challenge to find, as they are not available on Amazon.com. They can be found at Bostwick Braun, TruServ and Ace Hardware.
How To Paint A Bird House
The first step is to attach the stand to the bird house using wood glue. Set aside until completely dry before you begin painting.
You can paint your bird house and stand all one color, or different colors… whatever brings you joy. Use painter’s tape if you need to tape sections off when you switch colors.
The best part about this activity is coming up with pretty birdhouse painting ideas. Sketch out some ideas on paper first to plan your design. If you are crafting with your kids, suggest they draw out lots of their painting ideas on paper and then pick their favorite. This will extend the time they get to spend drawing and stretching their artistic abilities.
Painting flowers on your birdhouses is a lovely choice and allows for variety and bright colors. If the only goal of your bird house is to attract birds, then you may want to choose softer, neutral colors.
But we really wanted our birdhouse to be a cute decoration in our garden as well as a potential home for birds.
So I chose a cheerful blue paint and added daffodil flowers using acrylic paint and sealer to protect the bird house from the weather.
I painted the bird house and stand different colors, spray painting 3 coats each of Testors Craft Gloss in Smokey Beige and Turquoise.
Next, add a little detail to your bird house. We painted spring flowers on ours. I sketched the basic shape for the flowers out first, and then painted using Testors Craft Acrylic Paint in assorted colors.
We began with the flowers in white, daffodil, vanilla, and orange, followed by the stems and leaves in seafoam, green, and deep sea.
The final step was to paint the wood ‘home’ sign using Testors Craft Acrylic Paint in Daffodil, and once dry, attach it to the front of the bird house using wood glue.
Apply a sealer over the top of your bird house to help protect it from the weather, and you are done.
A sealer you can use is Testors One Coat Lacquer #1834MT (not acrylic) which you can find at Michaels and Hobby Lobby.
Where Is The Best Place To Put A Birdhouse?
Once your painted birdhouses are finished, you want to find the best place to put the bird houses to attract and keep the birds safe.
Since many of us have small yards these days, you may not have a lot of choice for where to place your birdhouse, but there are a couple of points to consider.
In this bird house design above, we really wanted a cute decorative birdhouse to liven up our backyard as a cheerful piece of decor that might also provide a home for nesting birds.
If you’re working hard to attract birds for nesting, you might want to research what types of birds you have in your area to help you pick the best location in your yard. Since each bird species has different habitat requirements, you can plan where to mount or hang your birdhouses.
We chose to mount the house to a stand instead of hanging it. Hanging birdhouses can sway in the wind, which some birds don’t like. But other bird species do like houses hung high above the ground. For example, the purple martin likes bird houses hung about 15 to 20 feet above the ground. Whereas Chickadees are most likely to nest in houses that are 4 to 8 feet above the floor of a thicket.
Most importantly, you want to put birdhouses a good distance from bird feeders, as the feeders attract predators and might keep smaller songbirds from nesting there.
More Fun Craft Ideas
Looking for even more crafts to make with your kids? Try these:
Pin these Birdhouse Painting Ideas for Later
Be sure to pin this post so that you’ll have your step-by-step guide when you’re ready to make your own bird house.
Disclosure: This post is sponsored, so extra thanks for reading and sharing.
Written by Tonya Staab, contributor at 5 Minutes for Mom
Talk with us: @5minutesformom and Facebook.com/5minutesformom
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sunflower says
I really like the flowers. Good job
Alicia says
What kind of sealer did you use after the acrylic paint??
Darlene says
Testors One Coat Lacquer #1834MT 😊
Lucinda A says
I’ve been wanting to make something like this. Looks easy enough.
Donna L Holder says
i would love a bird house that looks like a out house. a old one. that would be neat. there is birds everywhere here. i love watching them
ae minx says
I’ve never made or painted a birdhouse before. I’d like to try though
Beverly Metcalf says
Love your birdhouse. I have never made a birdhouse, but I have bought an unpainted one and painted it. Thanks for the contest!
Marissa C says
I’ve never painted birdhouses before. But it’s something I’ve always wanted to do! If I did I’d paint a bright pattern for spring!
Marilyn Nawara says
I’ve never painted a birdhouse, but I’ve painted many other craft items.
Brandi Aldrich says
I painted one when I was a kid but would love to paint one now with my grandbabies
Jeffrey says
No. I haven’t made a painted birdhouse before.
JUSTINE KINCH says
My painted bird house is still swinging a tree. Too high up to reach and repair. No bird has ever wanted to live in it and now the floor is gone.
Danielle says
I’ve never painted a birdhouse that I recall, but a hyper-realistic one (possibly matching your own house) might be fun!
Michelle H. says
I painted a birdhouse when I was little. I would probably do something floral.
Chelle says
I have never painted a bird house. But if I did, I might paint it like my house and add the bushes and flowers that are there and maybe a couple of birds hanging about.
Charity Cram says
I have painted bird houses. One of my favorites was inspired by one of my favorite TV shows, Psych.
Leigh Ann Brackett says
Haven’t done this with my girls yet. Hoping to win this & give it a go!
Ana says
Such a fun idea
Rachel Clarke says
I have never painted a birdhouse before. We do have nesting birds in our yard. I would paint a picket fence on the birdhouse, a trellis with flowers climbing up it and a pretty home landscaping picture.
Darlene Carbajal says
I have never painted a birdhouse before, but I would love too! Yes, I always had birds nesting in my back yard. 🙂
beth shepherd says
I have with my daughters and loved it.
Cheri says
I wish I had the ability to paint like that! Awesome job!
julie says
cute
Amanda Burritt says
I’ve done birdhouses with my kids plenty of time, usually of their own design. If I was designing my own, I think I’d do a whole series of different famous artists’ works, and hang them all on one tree. I live in the country in upstate NY, so yeah, PLENTY of nesting birds.
Christa Palmer says
I’ve never personally built a bird house but my father has. Yes we’ve had nesting birds in our yard
heather padilla says
I collect birdhouses and have painted several for my collection. Made a Phillies one and an Eagles one for my husband, and others for friends as well.
Saundra Bowers says
I have helped my kids make popsicle stick bird house decorations and paint them. We have quite a number of different birds that nest in the trees in our yard.
Sarah Oswald says
I have painted birdhouses before but I tend to keep it simple by painting them white or staining them and than sealing it in with a clear coating.
Donna L Holder says
yes but the paint didnt work so it wasnt that good
Susan says
Yes, it’s so important to use a quality paint and then apply a sealer over the top of your bird house to help protect it from the weather.
Carrie D Waterman says
I have never painted a bird house before but with the weather warming up me and my daughter are gonna paint one this weekend
Tom Johnson says
i have never painted a birdhouse but i built a couple a a kid
Jennifer Sparks says
I have never painted a birdhouse but it sounds like fun. I’d paint it up in VVG’s Starry Night.
sandra says
i’ve only done it once or twice
Heather Kaufman says
I have not, but my kids have made little ones. I would like for us to make a big one, as a family. It would be colorful & fun.
tanii says
We paint bird houses every year! last year it was a blue theme me and my 2 boys each painted pre-fab birdhouses in shades of blue. However the birds in our neighborhood never seem to go in the birdhouses lol the prefer 2 nesting spots right next to our front door. Maybe one day we will find the design and colors that our little bird friends prefer. Thanks for the tips and opportunity
Susan says
Sometimes birds prefer plain wooden houses… not as much fun for decoration though.
Kelsey Vinson says
I have not Painted a birdhouse before but we are moving into our new house soon and it would be a neat project for me and the girls to do.
MelodyJ says
I have never made or painted a birdhouse.
Jeanne Coulombe says
I have not painted a bird house but have done many projects for Easter and winter. I love doing crafts
athena graeme says
I’ve built a birdhouse, but never painted it aside from plain white. I would let my super creative daughter decorate it if I won. She is crazy about art!
Jeanine says
Yes, my grandaughter and I painted a birdhouse before in rainbow colors
Christi says
We paint lots of birdhouses around here but they need a weather coating.
Susan says
Yes, a sealer you can use is Testors One Coat Lacquer #1834MT (not acrylic).
It is sold at Michaels and Hobby Lobby.
Cynthia Gaarder says
Yeppers with my son – its in my Mom’s backyard
Chris L says
I have had birds nesting in my yard (and on my porch 🙁 ). I have never painted a birdhouse.
Alisha says
I have never made a birdhouse, but I would like to make that and a birdbath. We have made a bird feeder, though. We love birds and would like to attract more to our yard.
Michelle Dooley says
We made birdhouses a few years ago and had a blast. I’d love to know how you are sealing these!
kimrk56 says
I have never painted a birdhouse before. I would paint something flowery or woodsy on it. I have had birds nest in my backyard. I love watching the babies.
monique s says
Yes, I have made a painted birdhouse before. So much fun and I love watching the birds
Connie says
Hello…
Can you please tell me what acrylic sealer you used on your birdhouse? I want mine to last a very long time, however, everything I am looking at says it turns the paint hello! I want a clear coat that will protect it from UV rays, rain, etc. I am almost done with this birdhouse and I don’t know what to buy…can you help me? I was told to use spar varnish but I read it turns paint yellow also. I have DuraClear matte varnish from Michaels craft store but I don’t know if it will last a long time on the birdhouse.
Susan says
Hi Connie, a sealer you can use is Testors One Coat Lacquer #1834MT (not acrylic).
It is sold at Michaels and Hobby Lobby.
Billie Rowell says
I have yet to paint my own birdhouse, but I think it would be a lot of fun. No specific ideas on how I would paint it, I would just go with however I felt at the moment, but bright colors for sure!
Anne Higgins says
I have never made nor painted a birdhouse. However, we had a neighbor with great talent that created birdhouses the resembled the neighbors houses, including his. He even painted them to resemble the houses (like people do with playhouses.
Christina Sparks says
No, I haven’t. But, I been looking up articles how to make one in the last week.
Francine Anchondo says
I have not painted birdhouses but sounds like fun. I would love to paint some flowers on my birdhouse as well.
Dana Moore says
My dad used to make birdhouses all the time and I helped him by doing the painting
Abigail Gibson says
I painted a few birdhouses as a child with my grandmother. She loved feeding the birds on a daily basis. Mainly sparrows and a few red birds.
Rebecca Snodgrass says
Never painted a birdhouse. But sounds fun!
Victoria Narvaez says
I would love to try to make one.
latanya says
no, I have not, but I would put some calla lillies on them with some sunshine
Dexie Wharton says
My husband made a birdhouse years ago and our daughter painted it blue for Autism. She loved it.
Cindy Brooks says
We’ve made nesting boxes for Western Bluebirds. We have four of them on our property and they return to make nests every year. The Mama birds will let you look in their box and pick up the babies. We enjoy watching them every summer.
LeAnn Harbert says
We’ve made bird houses before but I’ve never painted them. We have lots of birds nesting in our bird houses and trees and bushes in our yard.
Stephanie Mitchell says
No, but have wanted to. Our place is treed into the woods and their natural habitat. They have nested in my grill and found their way into my backyard storage to nest. It would be nice to make a home for them.
Carrie says
My kiddos and I painted a bird house a few years ago. We let them choose the design and colors, which they decided would be the colors of their favorite NFL football team
Elizabeth Boston says
I haven’t made a bird house since I was a little girl. Now that I have just moved in with my boyfriend and we are making our house a home, making a bird house is on the top of my to-do list! I’ll be searching youtube and pinterest for ideas.
Vicki Wurgler says
no I have never made painted birdhouses
dj_1973 says
I’ve never made a painted birdhouse before, but I think it’s a fun idea to brighten up the yard!
Nancy says
I have painted bird houses before. I would paint a natural plant design on the bird house if I won. We have had birds nesting in our backyard before.
patricia caradonna says
I have never painted birdhouses before but it looks fun. I enjoy arts and craft projects and love to paint. I have recently painted rocks and I can’t wait to color Easter eggs. We have had bird nests in our old shed in past years.
Kathleen T says
Never painted a birdhouse however we have many birds nesting in our backyard area and trees.
Shelly Leatham says
I made my grandma a painted birdhouse many years ago! It was painted in her favorite colors of red and green, and it gets quite a workout in her back yard!
Shannon Palmer says
Nope, never painted a birdhouse, this kit looks like alot of fun though. If I could make a design it would have Autism Awareness all over it.
Paula Ball says
I do paint birdhouses, in fact I collect them. I grow birdhouse gourds & paint them. I do cat rescue & maintain a colony of 24, mostly feral, cats. I would love to have a birdbath, feeders, & birdhouses, but the birds would be constantly in danger. So I decorate birdhouse for my shelves.
Melissa Storms says
I have painted birdhouses before and they came out really cute. It is funny because I just noticed robins outside today and was thinking I need to pick up a birdhouse.
Jessica says
I don’t have a backyard because I live in a high rise…I wonder how a birdhouse would do on my terrace in nyc??
Paula Ball says
Jessica, I have read about perigrine falcons in NYC, also supposed to be a colony of Quaker parakeets, & there’s always pigeons
joy says
I have not made as many bird houses as my hubby has but
I like to paint or decorate them. We have several on our front porch
and different ones for different seasons.
Julie says
I painted a birdhouse this past summer with my little girl it was such fun..If only a bird would just move into it..
Mary W says
I had our Cub Scout pack make and then paint bird houses for their Mothers last year. They came up with lots of cute designs and colors. The bird houses made great Mother’s Day gifts.
Maryann D. says
I never made a painted birdhouses before. But I really would love to make one with pastel colors and flowers.
Yona Williams says
I will probably make a birdhouse this year. That’s something I’ve always wanted to do from scratch. I’ve been focusing on having a bird feeder in the yard every year.
Doug says
I never painted a bird house, however I’VE been using Testors hobby paints since the early 1970’s ! Always like their colors
Surinder gurm says
I haven’t but would love to paint a pink one with butterflies on it
Christine A Labelle says
I have not done a bird house, but I did do a lighthouse using clay pots. I stacked them, painted them, and added a solar light to the top.
Laura says
This is cute! I haven’t made one before.
Autumnglen says
I’ve made garden birdhouses before. They really were tiny decorative ones,to my surprise birds made tgeirhome in them. I had hung them on my front porch on the house. it was so cute
Roberta Thompson says
I’ve never painted a birdhouse. I would probably go with flowers and butterflies. We have tons of bird feeders. We love having birds in the yard. Right now we have Varied Thrushes, Spotted Towhees, woodpeckers and the usual Juncos, twits and warblers.
Edye says
YES! When I was a toddler my granny and I made them together. So fun!
NICOLE S MARTIN says
I have not made them before. This looks like so much fun!!
kimberly Zais says
Yes I have made painted bird houses before. I love to buy the Birdhouses already made you just have to paint them! my daughter loves painting them with me We also own our own bird. A Love bird.
Isra says
I tried painting one when I was much younger but it all washed out pretty quickly
Tricia B. says
Sister and I made birdhouses to sell at a craft show. The houses didn’t sell well, but we had a marvelous time and they looked great on her Christmas tree.
Donna Blackmore says
I’ve never painted a birdhouse. But want to!
Robin M says
I’ve never painted a birdhouse.
Karley Moore says
I’ve never painted a birdhouse, but I’ve done lots of crafts. We recently had 2 ducks take up residence in our front yard. They are fabulous!
Douglas Burket says
I make them in the spring with my grandson
Cindy Peterson says
I have yet to make a birdhouse, if I did I would design and paint it to look like a mini version of our house. Every year we have robins bird nests in our backyard.
Robin Abrams says
My grand daughter and I made the basic bird house for our yard. We have a lot of birds come here to our yard
Julie Waldron says
I’ve never one before. I’d probably make something farm related. We have some birds here, I saw a cardinal this winter. I love them, they are so pretty.
Leela says
I’ve never made one before. I’d probably do something Simpsons related 🙂
Anne Marie Carter says
I have never painted a bird house and halve always wanted to. I would paint a floral pattern on it.
samantha Mcgrath says
I used to love painting bird houses with my grandfather and grandmother. we would sometimes buy the kits from dollar tree or build them from wood that was laying around and sticks. I grew up in the forest so we would try to make the old plantation home style houses for them when we made the from scratch. when we made them of the dollar tree kits they where always the most colorful and looked like something from the 70’s or 80’s lol.
Mindy Glenn says
My daughter then 16 year old daughter Macy and I had a blast early March 2018 painting birdhouses that we purchased from a local retailer with my granddaughter who was 3 years old at the time! We each had our own large birdhouse to paint in whatever color or style that we wanted. We put 2 coats of paint on each house. We also had several small houses that we painted too. Once they were completely dry, I sprayed them with a finish & screwed an eye hook to the top of each house. We have an above ground pool in our yard & my hubby built a fabulous deck with a tiki hut with NO PLANS without training! We have a GORGEOUS Wisteria bush that my husband trimmed & trained into a tree with stunning purple cone flowers. We hung all the colorful birdhouses on the Wisteria tree next to the tiki hut.
Anne says
When I was young my mother and I decorated a birdhouse with designs and colors for Spring. This is a beautiful giveaway perfect for my granddaughters who would love to design a birdhouse for their backyard since they love nature, outdoors and are artistic.
Susan says
What wonderful memories you have! I hope your granddaughters create the same special memories painting birdhouses.
Linda says
I haven’t painted my birdhouse yet. I will be working on it this weekend with my nephew. But when I do I will use bright cheerful colors. I live out in the country so we have birds nesting nearby all of the time.
Susan says
How wonderful to live in the country! Have fun painting your birdhouse with your nephew.
[email protected] says
It’s been a while since my girls have done this craft, but we still have the houses and feeders in the backyard! One is painted like a grocery store. Cute. I remember having them sketch, too, but they were so eager to get to the paints!
We have towhees, chickadees and robins, mostly. Some cardinals and an occasional blue jay.
Susan says
So fun! I love that you still have the houses and feeders in your backyard.