Here is how this house was created and some tips for making your own:
1. Collections-as I have said before, gathering items to stockpile is my favorite way to have a variety of things to choose from when the urge to craft hits. The house number on the side of this birdhouse was from a bag of old house numbers I bought for a buck at a yard sale. I had no idea what I was going to use them for but I knew I thought they were need, so I took them home. When you are out and about, pick up things that strike your fancy, you will find a way to use them, believe me.
2. This house was constructed using 2 tools: and screw gun and a chop saw. Chicks that use tools are awesome, but if you are not comfortable, bat your eyes at your husband or son to get them to help you out. All of the wood for this house was scavenged from my husband's garage. You only need a couple pieces of wood and if you garage is anything like mine it will be full of left-over wood from previous projects and barn wood that I like to pick up where ever I can (I often ask owners of falling down wooden fencing if I can take a few boards and I have not gotten a "no" yet)
3. Choose your base first-this will determine the size of your birdhouse since you will want a bit of your base to show around the sides of your house.
4. Cut the sides first-if you would like a sloping roof like the one on this house, cut your side pieces first and save yourself a lot of work. For this house I measured 10 inches from each end of the board and drew a line. This left an "open space" in the middle of the board between the two lines I had drawn. I then drew a diagonal line from the corner of one line to the opposite corner of the other line. (The 3 lines will look like a capital N in the center of your board) When you make the cut along that one diagonal line,(and only cut on that diagonal line, not the straight ones) you end up with the two side of your birdhouse, and the angles for the slope of the roof will be the same on each side.
5. Front and Back-decide how long your front and back slats will need to be based on your base. Then cut a hand full of boards to that length for the front and back of your birdhouse (you will need more for the back since it is taller then the front) You will then be able to screw the boards onto the 2 side pieces, starting with the bottom slat and working your way up. the first board will be tricky, but one you screw it onto the 2 side pieces, it will go faster since it is more sturdy. I used pieces of old barn wood to give an interesting texture to this house.
6. Holes- I chose one hole for this one, but you can have as many as you wish. I used a hold saw that attaches to my cordless drill to put the hole in this one
6. Once you have finished putting the front and back slates on your house you will need to screw on the base (before you put on the top!) Flip you house over so you can screw through the bottom of the base into the walls of your house, then flip your house back over so you can add your roof.
7. This roof was made from a leftover piece of paneling that I found in the garage. I painted it, sanded the edges to give it a worn appearance then screwed down through the roof into the walls of the birdhouse. I dry-brushed the boards of my house with a white paint, but you can leave your the natural color of your wood or choose any color combo you wish.
8. Decorating-the fun part! I make perches out of many things, from door knobs to nails, hardware to dowels, but one of my favorites is a branch from outside. There are so many great shapes to choose from, and I attached my branch with some metal clasps that originally designed to work with a padlock clasp, but I re-purposed as fasteners.
9. Remember-there are no mistakes and no wrong moves! Use your imagination, try different things, you can always swap out decorations and move things around and practice does make perfect.
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