A couple of weeks ago, we talked about a few different ways you can recycle your empty glass bottles around the house. After all, those of us who love good olive oil and vinegars end up with more than our fair share of pretty glass bottles to figure out what to do with.
Here are some cool ideas that fit right in during warm weather.
Summer DIY Crafts
We all love summer flowers. And even better are when the flowers in our yard attract those beautiful little flying jewels—hummingbirds. Tiny and busy, gloriously colorful and always hungry, hummingbirds are a treat in any yard.
Here are some clever ways to make your own unique hummingbird feeders from old bottles.
1) Beaded Harness
In this beaded wire feeder harness, simple thin wire and colorful beads turn a cool looking glass bottle into an even cooler looking hummingbird feeder. Easy to make, and you and the local hummingbirds can enjoy it for years.
2) Copper Cage
If you like a bolder look, check out this wrapped copper cage instead. Just an old bottle and a few extra items and you can have a lovely hand-made feeder hanging outside your kitchen window or next to your back porch. Most of the necessary pieces can be purchased at your local hardware store.
3) Recycled Dish AND Bottle
As you can see in this example, you can build a feeder base using other recycled items from your home. You just need an empty dish with a raised lid, and some little colorful flowers for the birds to drink out of.
Click here to see a few more ideas on how great you can make your hummingbird feeder look with just a few creative touches. Deeply colored glass with bright copper twisted around is so simple and so elegant. There’s no reason not to try making one of these clever designs at home!
Pieces and Parts
Unless you live in a very small town, there’s probably only one thing you’ll need to shop for online, and that’s the feeder tips.
- Simple long tips can be purchased on Amazon or World of Hummingbirds.
- Pretty flower stoppers are nice too.
- And if your back porch is better suited to mounting a bracket on the railing to hang the bottle from, those are available as well. They can help suspend the feeder out over a flower bed where the birds will be more comfortable.
And Finally, the Recipe
Feeding a hummingbird is done with simple sugar water. Skip the red food coloring since it isn’t good for birds. Just use colorful glass or beads or a bright tip on your feeder to attract the hungry little things.
The ratio is one part sugar to four parts water. Bring that to a boil to kill bacteria, then after it cools, fill your pretty bird feeder and sit back to watch the hummingbirds arrive.
Happy crafting. And happy summer!