Painting Birdhouses is a fun and easy birdhouse craft for any time of the year. I am sharing How To Decorate  A Birdhouse with Paint including the stencils I used and my favorite paint to use when crafting.

We have teamed up with DecoArt and a few of our creative blogging friends to showcase Americana Decor Outdoor Living paint from DecoArt. You can enter to win a very nice collection of crafting paint and supplies and also visit more outdoor decor ideas at the end of this post.

We are a birding family who enjoys creating ways to invite the feathered friends into our  yards.  Painting birdhouses is always fun and it allows the creativity to come out in all of us. 

Our Previous DIY Birdhouses

Previously we have made birdhouses from a coffee can, a classic toy and the grandchildren created birdhouses using milk jugs. This time we decided to purchase unfinished wood birdhouses and let everyone paint them however they  wish.

My first painted birdhouse to go on our outdoor shelf, is this one with the slanted roof I found at Michael’s. Standing there in the store I knew in my heart that roof needed to be red!

Shop online at Michaels here.

STEP 1

I began by adding a primer coat of white which turned out to be overkill since I added two coats of that beautiful Succulent color.

STEP 2

Next, I painted the outside with a lively shade of green called Succulent, from the DecoArt Outdoor Living collection. Then here comes that red roof using Ladybug also from the DecoArt Outdoor Living collection.  I used two coats for each color because my goal was deep bold coloring for the entire birdhouse.

STEP 3

Adhere your stencil to begin painting the design. 

Repositionable Stencil Spray Adhesive (affiliate link) is the way to go when using stencils. A word of caution, don’t get in too big of a hurry and not let the glue dry! If you do not wait on the glue to dry, it will not be adhered and the stencil will bleed. Does that sound like the voice of experience? 

I used the Birds and Butterflies laser cut Stencil from DecoArt. It comes in one long sheet as seen above. You can cut each design section apart making them all separate pieces and easier to fit onto your surface. 

Paint colors

Paint colors used on the butterfly stencil are all from DecorArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living collection including; Sunset (orange), Iron Gate (Black) and Succulent. 

The paint colors for the bird stencil also include DecoArt Americana Outdoor Living Morning Glory (blue) and Iron Gate. 

My Inspiration

Folk art and specifically the kind of folk art you see on display at House of Blues restaurants. It is called Outsider Art which basically means, self-taught and not mainstream. For me, I like it because it isn’t ‘perfect’. The colors are typically deep and the paint is often thick.

If you have never been to a House of Blues, the food and music are both good. Try their cornbread!

STEP 4

Adding the map to the front was the last step.

For this process I used outdoor decoupage. If you look closely, you may realize this is a map of the interstate system in Georgia. It’s rather old and was falling apart having been used many years by my family. 

Adding the map

To add the map, I cut it to fit by first cutting the section I wanted to use into a small enough piece to fit over the front of the birdhouse. Then I used a sharp straight edge blade to cut the map along the edge of the birdhouse. 

Cut the hole by making a small center cut using the sharp straight edge then create slits like cutting a pie. You will fold those into the hole and glue them down using the decoupage. 

TOTAL TIME

My total time invested in this project was really about 3 days because I was in no hurry. You could easily do it one day with paint and decoupage drying times included though.

This birdhouse is part of a larger project to attract more birds to our back yard. We are creating a bird house shelf where we will continue to add more DIY birdhouses from time to time. Painting and decorating this one was fun so we plan to do more.

MORE DIY BIRD PROJECTS

• How To Make Milk Jug Bird Houses
• Easy Homemade Bird Suet Recipe
• Patriotic Repurposed Coffee Can Bird Feeder
• DIY See Rock City Barn Birdhouse

Scroll down for Printable instructions complete with supply list.

Also See:

Michelle from Our Crafty Mom – Outdoor Table From A Wooden Cable Spool 

Heather from Daily DIY Life – DIY Rustic Wood Stained Bird House In Patriotic Colors

Shirley from Intelligent Domestications – How To Decorate A Bird House With Paint 

Michelle from Michelle James Designs – Rejuvenate Painted Flower Pots

Beverly from Across The Boulevard – Patriotic Lawn Decor Sign 

Toni from Girl, Just DIY – DIY Garden Signs From Fan Blades

Please note you must be 18+ to enter and a U.S. Resident. One winner will be chosen at random. DecoArt is responsible for shipping the prize directly to the winner. This giveaway is in partnership with DecoArt. Good luck!

The Giveaway Has Ended

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Yield: One Decorated Birdhouse

How To Decorate A Birdhouse with Paint

How To Decorate A Birdhouse with Paint and Stencils.

Print

Materials

• One unfinished wood birdhouse with a faux tile slanted roof
• DecoArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living Ladybug
• DecoArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living Succulent
• DecoArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living Sunset
• DecoArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living Morning Glory
• DecoArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living Iron Gate
• DecoArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living Picket Fence
• DecoArt Americana Decor Stencil Birds and Butterflies
• Outdoor Decoupage
• Old road map
• Repositionable Stencil Adhesive

Tools

• Stencil brush (Round foam)
• Paint brushes
• Decoupage brush
• Sharp straight edge razor tool

Instructions

1. Paint a base coat onto the birdhouse and allow to dry completely.
2. Paint a second coat and allow to dry.
3. Paint the roof and allow to dry then repeat. Allow to dry before moving on to the next step.
4. Follow the instructions on the Repositionable Spray Adhesive to adhere your stencil onto the side of the birdhouse. (Do only one side at a time)
5. Using the foam stencil brush, dab your paint onto the brush then wipe most of it back off before painting inside of the stencil. Allow to dry.
6. Repeat step 5 until your paint color is as deep and well covered as you desire.
7. Remove the stencil.
8. Follow Steps 4-7 to add the stencil design to the opposite side of the birdhouse.

ADDING THE MAP

1. Select the area of your map that you want to use on the front of the birdhouse.

2. Cut the map down to a workable size so that you can lay it onto the front of the birdhouse to cut it to fit.

3. Lay the map into your desired position onto the front of the birdhouse and using the sharp straight edge cutting tool, cut it to fit along all four sides.

4. Beginning at the top of the birdhouse just under the roof, apply decoupage onto the birdhouse and carefully place the map onto it smoothing as you go.

5. Continue to apply decoupage and smooth the map onto the front of the birdhouse until the front is covered.

6. Using the sharp cutting tool, create a slit over the hole.

7. Now carefully slit small sections like cutting a pie until the hole is completely open. Do not remove the 'pie sections'.

8. Fold the pie sections into the hole and secure them in place with small amounts of decoupage.

9. Allow about 20 minutes for the decoupage to dry

10. Add a top coat of decoupage. Allow to dry then add another top coat.

Notes

Follow the drying instructions on the outdoor decoupage. Most dry in about 20 minutes.

Fitting the map in place sounds harder than it is.

Recommended Products

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  DecoArt Americana Decor Outdoor Living Paint