Create An Outdoor Sanctuary For Birds With DIY Bath Decorations
Looking to add a calming oasis for local birds while sprucing up your outdoor space? Installing a decorative birdbath handcrafted out of recycled items is an easy weekend DIY project that achieves both in sustainable style. Not only do artfully repurposed birdbaths provide our feathered friends with essential hydration stations, but they also serve as charming garden accents to admire from afar. Whether your goal is to draw more diverse species to view up close or simply cultivate a mini avian refuge, a customized bath decorated with mosaic tiles, marbles, or glass baubles promises to do just that without breaking the bank.
Read on for beginner tips, upcycled approaches, and maintenance musts when planning to erect these functional conversation-starters that are sure to have the neighbors tweeting!
Why Install a Decorative Bird Bath?
Before detailing the DIY nitty-gritty, let's review why outfitting your yard, patio, or garden with an artisanal bathing station is beneficial beyond standard landscaping strategy.
Add Visual Interest to Your Outdoor Space
Custom-designed baths allow you to add a touch of handmade personality to your green space's layout and decor. Mosaic your own concrete bowl, repurpose a vintage sink in robin's egg blue, or affix marbles to the inside of a galvanized bucket - the options for transforms are vast. Even the most basic terra cotta plant saucer becomes infinitely more special when embellished with acrylic paint or glittering stones. For small gardens, grouping a collection of mismatched vessels at varying heights creates enchanting instant dimension.
Create an Oasis for Local Birds
The primary purpose of installing a birdbath is to create an avian watering hole to promote visitors of the feathered variety. Strategically situating your bath near dense trees or vegetation provides sanctuary and shade, while pairing it with nearby feeders or houses establishes a well-rounded rest stop. Not only do baths provide necessary hydration in hot months, but they also enable essential preening - allowing birds to dip wings and splash water on their coats to dislodge dirt, debris, and parasites.
Simple Weekend DIY Project
Constructing an artisanal birdbath yourself using everyday items already on hand is a relatively simple venture for all skill sets. Perfect for individual completion or as a family backyard activity, basic bath forms like old sinks and buckets require little heavy lifting or complicated tools to install. The bulk of effort goes into decoration - choosing eye-catching embellishments like marbles or Painting exterior surfaces in lively hues. With minimal time and effort, these eco-friendly creations promise an instant sense of DIY accomplishment.
Key Design Tips for DIY Birdbaths
While no two handcrafted birdbaths need to look the same, incorporating strategic design elements contributes to both aesthetic appeal and functional viability across various styles.
Use Natural Materials for Texture
Dotting the basin surface with pebbles, stones, shells or moss elevates a basic bowl from boring to brilliant by adding earthy texture, grip, and delightful little nooks for resting birds to nuzzle inside. Securing dried botanicals like hollow sticks or pinecones around the exterior echoes the surrounding landscape in miniature vignette form. Nestling small succulents or drought-resistant plants around the base enhances the biophilic spirit while naturally camouflaging concrete foundations or plastic buckets quite literally with greenery.
Incorporate Color for Visual Interest
Infuse your birdbath with invigorating colors or let it shine bright white to contrast foliage. Use glass beads, marbles, or ceramic pieces as vibrant fillers floating inside neutral vessels, or paint the outer sink itself in your hue of choice using waterproof spray paint. Punchy colors not only add festive personality but also better attract birds and butterflies looking for a quick dip mid-flight.
Focus on Durability
While DIY designs allow room for whimsical embellishments purely decorative in nature, the underlying structure must withstand elemental exposure from sun, rain, and cold temperatures. Carefully drill drainage holes into repurposed containers, seal paint and surfaces with waterproofing spray, and use non-toxic, pet and wildlife-safe materials whenever possible. Checking stability and refurbishing fading or cracks through seasonal maintenance preserves your bath's integrity and purpose.
Offer Various Perches and Surfaces
Tailor baths to serve species of all sizes by incorporating roughed pebbles, smooth river rocks, gnarled branches, and found items of varying textures and at graduated heights along the rim. Tiny wrens appreciate shallow puddles as much as plump robins relish deeper pools to douse wings. Additionally, a small attached birdhouse provides shelter from rain and storm winds.
Unique Approaches to DIY Birdbaths
Looking for offbeat ways to craft an uncommon birdbath from nostalgic pieces collecting dust in the garage? Let's review four quirky upcycling approaches sure to produce eye-catching focal points suited to personalize spaces modern and traditional.
Upcycle Tomato Cages
Transform the wire rings once home to lush vines of tomatoes or peas into a charming circular perch. Simply flip the cage over and adorn the outer rim with receiving plates in glossy colors or wine corks in muted earth tones using Gorilla Glue for ultra adhesion. Fill the basin with marbles, sea glass, or malachite stones. For three-season weatherability, apply two coats of spray sealant to prevent rusting.
Repurpose Old Ceramic Sinks
Salvage cracked or outdated bathroom sinks collecting cobwebs in the basement by giving them renewed purpose outdoors. After scrubbing away grime, customize with spray paint, tile fragments, sea shells or faux greenery like foxtail ferns secured around the drain opening with silicone glue. Prop on an old table base or pedestal outdoors for easy viewing - glazing provides built-in weather resistance.
Use Terra Cotta Saucers
Group extra clay saucers crafted for potted plants into an asymmetrical standing bath with Zen-inspired style. Opt for natural earthen hues or coat the smooth ceramic surface in bright teals and sunny yellows with durable outdoor spray paint. Line basins with marbles, colored glass or pea stone before topping with rainwater captured from gutters using attractive buckets.
Craft Concrete Birdbowl
Up for a challenge? Create unique shapes and sizes by pouring a custom concrete bath molded to your design whims. Cut plastic buckets or cardboard strips to form rings, tape together milk cartons for definition or lay out elaborate birdbath-shaped foil forms. Carefully pour premixed concrete, slowly peel away frames after partial drying and use hands or tools to imprint leaf patterns, animal tracks or initials around the rim before the final set. Paintconcrete birdbaths in any color once fully cured.
Maintaining Your Decorative Birdbath
Installing new decor is always an exciting endeavor, but remembering to uphold creative projects with consistent care ensures your birdbath endures season after season of use. Follow these simple habits for longevity.
Change Water Regularly
The most critical element of long-term birdbath care is refreshing water at least once weekly, if not more often in hot climes. Stagnant water enables mosquito breeding and the spread of deadly avian diseases. Scrub away algae or mineral build up with non-toxic cleanser and a soft brush before refilling with fresh, cool water.
Gently Clean Basin
Check decorative fill elements like marbles, sea glass and stones when changing water and remove any debris clogging drainage holes or passages. Reapply durable weatherproof adhesive or sealant if pieces loosen over time. Manage hard water stains or soap scum on sink basins with baking soda or lemon juice versus harsh chemical cleaners.
Winterize for Cold Temperatures
Move birdbath basins to covered outdoor areas or inside the garage once freezing nighttime temperatures persist to prevent cracking damage. Remember to properly thaw and drain any baths left outside to ensure flowing water and prevent unhealthy ice formation.
Inspect DIY birdbaths after harsh seasons and address issues promptly to limit deterioration. Check for leaks, cracks, paint chipping or loose elements requiring replacement or repainting. Compare stability and appearance to original plans and refresh with new embellishments to revive creative motivation.
Your handcrafted birdbath should provide years of performance with proper care and maintenance. Don't forget the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!