I love these little ornaments. They are a great way to decorate the bare winter branches outdoors, and the kiddos will love the fact that the birds are there because of them.
You’ll need:
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 envelope unflavored gelatin
- 3 tbsp. corn syrup
- 4 cups birdseed
- Christmas themed cookie cutters
- Large cookie sheet
- Cooking spray
- A straw
- Waxed paper
- Ribbon
Directions:
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, water, gelatin and corn syrup.
- Add birdseed to the mixture and stir in well.
- Line a large cookie sheet with waxed paper. Coat the wax paper and the cookie cutters well with cooking spray.
- Place the cookie cutters on the waxed paper pan and spoon the birdseed mixture into the cookie cutters. Press the mixture down firmly into the cookie cutters.
- Cut the straw into 2” segments. Use the straw to punch a hole into the mixture. Make sure the hole goes all of the way through and leave the straw in the ornament, so that the mixture will dry around the hole. This is where you will tie your ribbon to hang the ornament.
- Leave the molds to dry for 2-3 hours. Then, gently remove the molds and straws.
- Leave the ornaments to cure overnight.
- Tie the ribbon through the hole in the ornaments and you’re done.
Merry Crafting,
Mavis
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Sadie B. says
Would these be ok to use as treats for the chickens?
Dawn says
do you have to use the gelatin?
Krista says
I made a similar craft today! I also made peanut butter & bird seed coated pinecones for the squirrels. I added some dried cranberries into the birdseed mixture for the ornaments, too.
Jillbert says
We made these for teacher gifts one year. They were a big hit!
Theresa Wallace says
Yay I have all of this stuff might make it tonight thank you for sharing this one.
SJ Smith says
Thank you for the inspiration. I just made them last night. My folks have some conure parrots, and I think the birds will love them. I was able to get some higher quality wild bird seed at a local feed store. I plan to let my free range hens have the extra bits from the bowl for a treat today! I also made some into balls. I’m thinking it might be fun to put one down in the birds play perch and watch them chase it. I am trying to figure out the best ‘ribbon’ for them however. I don’t want the birds to get hurt if they chew it up.
Leanna says
These r awesome. Just made them and can’t wait to see how they turn out. One tip is to make sure your hands have a bit of cooking spray on them as the mixture starts to get a bit sticky. Cheers!!
Diana Bergmann says
Can you freeze these and use at a later time?
Katherine daughtry says
Excited to make these for the entire family! Using a cat-shaped cookie cutter – 🙂