DIY Clever Bird-Attracting Features By Repurposing These 15 Common Thrift Store Items

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Nothing beats listening to the cheerful songs of the birds in your backyard. Unfortunately, they may not stop by to visit very often if you don't add bird-attracting features. Our avian visitors have very basic needs: food, water, shelter, and nesting sites. Purchasing everything they need brand new can wind up being pretty costly, especially if you want more than a basic design. Luckily, you don't have to go to a high-end store to have a gorgeous backyard filled with various bird species. You can easily make everything you need with the help of commonly found thrifted items, including bowls, wood boxes, and a teacup and saucer.

There are several benefits to thrifting your materials for your DIYs. Not only is it much cheaper, but you can often find high-quality items that will ensure your creations last for years to come. Plus, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the average human contributes to about 4.9 pounds of waste per day. That's a lot of trash filling up the landfills. Giving secondhand items a new purpose is a great way to limit some of that waste. Plus, because most of these DIYs are inexpensive, you can add even more bird features in your backyard. In addition to the joy of watching the birds, bird-friendly backyards can be a saving grace for our feathered friends. They're extremely important to the ecosystem, so every little bit helps. If you're not sure what to look for during your next thrift outing, the list below will help you get started.

Mason jars are one of those items that you're almost always sure to find inside a thrift store. Surprisingly, they also make the perfect container to create a bird feeder. If you want a fully thrifted DIY project, you can thrift a small plate or tray to attach to the bottom. However, you can also purchase a base, like Little Giant's Baby Chick Feeder Base, to screw onto your mason jar. For the top piece, YouTuber My Little Slice of Paradise uses a glass candlestick that connects the feeder to the hanging hook.

Birdbaths that are both functional and decorative can be pricey. Luckily, they're incredibly easy to make yourself using thrift store items. While there are several pieces you can use, YouTuber mybloomsource shows us how to use an old lamp and a wide, shallow dish to make a gorgeous birdbath. Once you find the perfect lamp base, make sure to remove all of the hardware inside before attaching the top. Choose a basin that's less than 3 inches deep and has sides that gradually slope to the center.

If you're creating a bird-friendly garden at home, don't forget to add a spot for birds to gather nesting materials. By giving them the resources they need to construct their nests, you can potentially watch generations of feathered friends live in your yard. One of the easiest ways to display them is by using a secondhand whisk. Weave in natural items like moss, sticks, straw, and chemical-free grass clippings. Then, hang it on a branch of a shrub or tree so birds can easily spot it and grab what they need.

Platform bird feeders offer the biggest payoff for bird lovers because they attract a wide variety of species. With a thrifted chip-and-dip tray, you can provide all of your avian visitors with birdseed to go around. To hang it, keep an eye out for a wire paper towel holder. Then, all you have to do is create a hole to slide the metal through. The lower part will catch at the bottom to hold your tray, and the loop makes it easy to hang anywhere in your yard.

You can start a hummingbird garden on a budget with the help of a small canning jar. Start by removing the flat lid and using it as a guide to cut out a piece of red plastic. Bright red hues work best to grab the attention of any hummingbirds that fly through your backyard. Add small holes, between 3 millimeters and 5 millimeters across, to the top. Now, you can attach the plastic lid to the jar using the metal outer ring. Set it out on the balcony or hang it from a tree.

You don't have to choose between buying a brand-new birdhouse or creating one from scratch. Instead, head to the thrift shop and look for an old wooden box. Wine boxes work especially well, as many of them have a removable side that makes it easy to clean out your birdhouse in between visitors. Different-sized entrance holes attract different species, so make sure to size it correctly if there is a specific type of bird you want to appeal to. 

Hummingbirds are so tiny that even a thrifted cup can be the perfect size to make a fountain for them. You'll also need a small bowl to use as the stand. To create the fountain effect, grab a solar pump, such as Aisitin's Solar Water Fountain Pump. YouTuber Robbie and Gary Gardening Easy recommend using a soldering iron or similar tool to roughen up the top of the cup to make it easier for hummingbirds to grip when they land.

You can find a wide selection of glassware at the thrift store, and these beautiful pieces are great for creating adorable bird feeders. For this DIY, you'll need two bowls, a couple of candlesticks, a hook, and epoxy. One bowl will hold the birdseed, while the other one acts as a roof for sun and rain protection. A longer candlestick works best to adhere between the bowls, but a shorter one is ideal for the top piece. Put it all together, and you have an inexpensive feeder that looks high-end.

Once you know what to look for, it becomes incredibly easy to create a stunning DIY birdbath with thrifted items. A decorative bowl — or really any sloped, sealed container — can double as a basin. For the base, grab a secondhand plant stand. Once the pieces are adhered together, put your birdbath in a shady part of your garden. Fill it with water, add a few stones, and consider purchasing a solar fountain. The splashing sounds and visibly moving water make it even more attractive to birds.

The only thing that might be better than a birdbath is a DIY garden pond. Thankfully, thrift stores make it incredibly easy to create a stunning pond for a fraction of the cost. Look for a large container, whether it be a barrel, a plastic tub, or a bucket. Add lots of rocks to give birds a shallow, non-slippery spot to land on and drink from. Choose a few native water plants, particularly flowering species, to add to your mini wetland. These will attract insects, which provide even more food for the birds.

Did you know you can use thrifted cookie cutters to make adorable homemade seed ornaments for your backyard birds? It's easy to do, and it's a fun project for kids. There are a couple of different recipes you can try. Some DIYers recommend using plain gelatin to hold the birdseed in place, while others favor nut butter. Once your ingredients are mixed, fill your cookie cutters with the mixture to create different shapes. Let the ornaments cool overnight and then use twine to hang them on a few tree branches.

The best way to attract a wide variety of birds is to have several different types of bird feeders. Orioles don't eat birdseed, so you'll want to make them their own special feeding station. With a teacup and saucer, this is very easy to do. All you'll need to do is adhere the teacup off to the side of the saucer. Then, use twine to hang it from a shepherd's hook or tree branch. Fill the cup with slices of fresh fruit and add some jelly to the plate. 

Even if all of your houseplants are cozy in their planters, you shouldn't skip over pots at the thrift store. When stacked together, they make an attractive, sturdy base to hold a basin. Layer them from biggest to smallest, with the largest planter on the bottom. Make sure to grab enough so that your birdbath is about 3 feet from the ground. If your big planter came with a saucer, you can use that as the bath piece. Otherwise, any shallow dish you find in the aisles will do.

Why buy a pricey hummingbird feeder when you can use inexpensive glass bottles you found at the thrift store? Although clear glass works well, red bottles are even better for luring in the little birds. In addition to your thrifted glassware, you'll also need feeding ports. For example, Creative Hobbies Floral Tip Hummingbird Feeder Tubes feature a stopper that fits snuggly into most small-neck bottles and a red flower port that's attractive to hummers. Wrap a wire around the bottle to create a perch and a hook for hanging the feeder. 

You don't need a ton of space to create a hummingbird hot spot. Find a cheap pot or other container at the thrift store and use it to plant hummingbird-friendly flowers, like cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) or Eastern columbine (Aquilegia canadensis). Then, attach small ramekins around the planter. If you can't find red, you can use red paint to change the color. Use a sauntering iron to create small feeding holes at the top of each ramekin. Lastly, fill each of the small dishes with DIY hummingbird nectar.