Materials

• An empty, half-gallon, cardboard container
• Brown acrylic paint (Note: Poster paint does not work for this project. When using acrylic paints, be sure to wear art smocks or old clothes and monitor children.)
• Paint brush
• Twigs and branches (either collected from your yard or purchased from a craft store)
• Craft glue
• Scissors
• 2 small wooden dowels (about ¼ inch in diameter), cut to about five inches long
• Hole punch
• Sturdy string or cord

Directions

1. Clean the empty container with a small amount of dish soap and water and dry completely. If the top has a plastic spout sticking up, push it in. If the top has an opening for pouring, staple it closed.
2. Paint the entire container brown (don't forget the bottom).
3. Cut out matching two-inch openings on opposite sides of the container. Make a small hole and insert the wooden dowels under each opening to make perches for the birds to land on.
4. Cover the container with craft glue and decorate with twigs and sticks.
5. Punch a hole in the top of the container to hang the feeder.
6. Fill the feeder only one-half full with bird seed to prevent rotting and help control the number of visitors. Hang the feeder from a tree branch with a sturdy string. Refill as needed.