How to Make a Cheap, and Easy Bird House in 15 minutes

Last year a wren built a nest on a shelf on our back porch.  In the past couple of days, with the weather warming up, we have seen a couple of wrens.  We have since moved that shelf and taken down the nest.

So, I made a simple, easy, cheap bird house...

Let's hope they like it!

You will need:

• Empty oatmeal container (or cardboard box)
• Decorative paper, paint, stickers, etc. - go wild!
• ~ 1/4" dowel
• Scissors
• Glue
• Wood glue
• Saw, steak knife, or other cutting tool
• Ice pick or something sharp and pointy
• Dryer lint

Small, empty oatmeal container

Find some pretty paper or paint

Remove the label

I chose this paper

Fit it around the oatmeal
container and cut it out.

Glue it on.
Rubber cement is so nostalgic!

Cut a hole in the lid 1 1/8"
(any larger and you'll have
other birds sneaking in) 

My nice Olfa circle cutter doesn't go that small,
so it's a little jagged, uneven cut. 

Cut out (with my Olfa circle cutter)
a top circle

Remember where the
original center was.

Like a "porthole quilt" design (sort of), you'll open up the paper to the inside of the lid. This will protect the birds from the jagged plastic.

Glue that paper to the topside of the lid.
It should come out like a sun
towards the inside of the lid. 

Cut out another circle, same size, and a center circle for it,
and glue it to the inner side of the lid.
Just to cover the "sun" 

Inside of lid

So, the circle is not perfectly round,
but it's cute! 

Then, with a honkin ice pick, poke a hole in the lid for a perch.
A little smaller than a dowel.

Put some wood glue on a 2 1/2" dowel piece,
and snugly fit it into the small hole you made.
But make dowel/perch
whatever size you want.

ta da!

To keep it from rolling,
glue two dowels to the underside of the container.

Put it on a shelf 5-10' high, and
wait for the birds to come.

Female wrens are a little picky about their nests, so put out a couple of these to woo her into the neighborhood.

I also added some dryer lint inside the container to get her started with a nest.


When I put the bird house out, I said, "Oh no! I put the perch in the wrong spot."  D'oh! The lid comes off and can be turned around to any position.  Silly me!

I hope you and your wrens enjoy their new home!