Teacup Bird Feeders

36 Comments

I grew up in an environment of “old stuff”–old houses and barns, antique furniture, and heirloom quilts and china.  My grandparents lived next door in the family’s ancestral home, and Grandma Rieley loved antiques.  Almost every Saturday morning she was either at an estate sale, yard sale, or antiques store.  All of this influenced my appreciation and love of antiques and “old stuff” in general.  So, when I ran across this craft idea for making a bird feeder from a vintage teacup and saucer, I loved it!

This would be a fun craft activity to do with older children (with adult supervision), a charming homemade gift for Mother’s Day, or even a hostess gift for a bird lover or gardener.  It’s fairly straightforward, only requiring a few items.

Gather:

1.  Teacup and saucer–This can be anything you have on hand, mismatched or otherwise.  I found a few individual vintage teacups and saucers at a local antiques store for $10.00 or less.

2.  Sandpaper

3.  Super adhesive glue–I used E6000.

4.  Twine, string, or yarn

5.  Birdseed–My birds seem to like a sunflower and safflower seed mix.

Directions:

1.  Thoroughly wash and dry teacup and saucer.

2.  Use sandpaper to scratch teacup and saucer where the two surfaces meet.  This helps them to adhere together once glued.

3.  Squeeze a small amount of glue onto the surface of the saucer.  Next, tip teacup onto its side and place on top of the glue.  Allow 24-48 hours before hanging outside.  *Please see special note at bottom of page.

4.  Pour birdseed into teacup bird feeder and hang in your garden.

*Special Note:  Achieving the correct angle of the teacup while gluing it to the saucer may be challenging.  Make sure the teacup is in the most vertical position possible; you may want to place an object under the cup to hold it in place while the glue is drying.  My first attempt produced a teacup that was too slanted for my taste.  So, I tried again with better results the second time.

Categories: Gardening, Nature

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36 Comments »

  8. Super cute! I’ve seen these, but you’re the first person I’ve known to actually make one. I’d love to do a few of these and hang them on the lower hibiscus outside my bedroom window. Totally charming 🙂

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