Mar 8th, 2009
Mary Poppins redux: “Yarn the birds”
A few years ago, I started saving my yarn scraps and snippets in a large Mason jar. They’ve proven useful for crafting with Sylvia (yarn cuttings make great hair), and last spring she enjoyed spread handfuls of them outside for the birds to use in nest-making.
This year we decided to kick our bird-aiding efforts up a notch and made a little box to hold the yarn bits. I covered this Barilla pasta box with packing tape (to make it a bit weatherproof), and Sylvia decorated it with stickers that she thought the birds would like. I punched holes for a little perch and punched yarn holes. She then filled the box with yarn from the jar, and pulled some strings through the holes to give the birds a hint. (I think of this as akin to the “suggestive change” in a busker’s open instrument case.)
We hung the yarn box on the dogwood tree outside our dining room window. It’s just a branch away from the birdhouse and a different branch away from our new goldfinch feeder. All of this is easily visible from the dining room, so I hope this spring nature will provide us with some mealtime entertainment.
5 Responses to “Mary Poppins redux: “Yarn the birds””
What fun!
That is a really fun idea!
What a brilliant idea! Won’t it be just wonderful watching all the little birdies pulling the yarn from the box?
So far, the birds haven’t taken the hint. I think they are all too busy tweeting and flying about in an “OH MY GOSH spring is finally on its way!” frenzy!
This looks great! Be sure to post a follow-up photo.