Easy Backyard Birdhouse Painting Project

Whether you build your own backyard birdhouse, or buy one already built, you can spice it up with this super easy design. All it takes is a little paint, water and brushes. Put out a welcome mat for your backyard birds this year with this beautiful, and easy design.

• Unpainted birdhouse
• Assorted colors of acrylic craft paint (the kind in bottles, not tubes), including black and a large bottle of white or off-white for the base color..
• Assortment of round and flat bristled craft brushes, small to large
• 1" sponge brush
• Painter's pallet tray
• Quart jar or bowl for water
• Paper Towels for blotting
• Lazy-Susan turntable
• UV protectant, indoor/outdoor, weather resistant sealer. Gloss or matte, whichever finish you prefer.

Follow each step, allowing the paint to dry completely before moving on to the next step.

1. Pour your paints into the wells of your pallet. Use a small amount first, and add more if you need it while painting. Use the larger well to hold the base color, and the smaller wells for your flower colors.
2. Completely cover the outside of the birdhouse with the base paint, using the sponge brush.DO NOT PAINT THE INSIDE.
3. Paint wavy, vertical lines for the stems. Start at the bottom and paint to three quarters of the way up. Space them about one inch apart. A nice shade of green would would work well. A long-bristled, round brush works best for lines. Add a leaf on each stem, alternating the location for variety.
4. Paint the flower heads on the top of each stem by making five circles, arranged in a circle, for the petals. A flat-head brush works best for this.Use an assortment of colors, like I did, or one color...it is up to your own tastes.
5. Paint the center of the flower with a contrasting color.
6. Outline each flower and stem with black, using a fine, line brush.
7. Cover the entire surface of the birdhouse with the UV protectant sealer. Let dry completely before adding another coat. Follow directions on the bottle for how many coats are recommended for indoor or outdoor use.
8. Wash all brushes in warm, soapy water to get all the paint out. Blot dry on a paper towel. You can let any leftover paint in the pallet wells dry out overnight. The next morning, you can just peel the dry paint out and throw it away. The pallet will also clean up with warm, soapy water too. Make sure your paint bottles are closed up tight for storage, or the paint will dry out.

I've been backyard birding for almost 30 years, from California to Vermont. I hope you find inspiration and useful information about how to attract and care for wild birds in your own backyard.

I'd love to know if you have birdhouses. Tell us about your birdhouses and your success, if any, in getting your birds to use them.