Turn A Decorative Lantern Into A Feeder Birds Will Love

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If you're hoping to attract a diverse variety of birds to your yard, there's a high chance you're always on the lookout for new bird feeders. The good thing is that, instead of buying new ones, you can DIY feeders that will keep birds flocking to your yard year-round. For example, have you ever thought about using a lantern to DIY one? This can give an old decorative lantern a charming new purpose and a useful second life, transforming it into a spot for local birds to come for a snack.

This DIY uses boxed hanging lanterns, which typically have glass panels on all sides and a metal frame that can hang from a hook. These have a small receptacle at the center meant for tea lights or candles, perfect to hold a fat ball for birds or even some seeds. In order to use a lantern as a bird feeder, however, you'll have to remove a glass panel from the side of the lantern, allowing birds to reach the food. In addition, you'll create a small perch with a wood stick in order to let birds rest while they snack. 

When looking for a lantern, consider models similar to IKEA's BORBY or KRINGSYNT lanterns. You can also find similar models secondhand from your local thrift store, but make sure that the glass panels are removable. Typically, this can be accomplished by bending small metal tabs to release the glass. Don't worry — no advanced crafting skills are required for this project, just a bit of patience and dexterity. In terms of tools, you'll only need small pliers and a hook to hang the lantern from a branch, if required. To make a perch, you'll need small flat popsicle sticks, like these Ktojoy Jumbo Wooden Craft Sticks from Amazon.

The first step here is to thoroughly clean the lantern with dish soap and water. If there is any stubborn residue, it's best to avoid cleaning ingredients like bleach, which can harm birds. Instead, use vinegar and a hard bristle brush to remove any dirt, dust, or grime buildup in the nooks and crannies of the lantern.

When the lantern is clean and dry, grab your pliers. On the inside of the lantern's door, you should see small metal tabs that are holding the glass panel in place similar to those behind a picture frame. The goal here is to use your pliers to open these up and release the glass panel. Set the glass aside, and close the door of the lantern back. If there is enough space under the closed door to fit one of the wooden craft sticks, do so. If the fit is too tight, attach the stick underneath the lantern with a bit of hot glue. This will be the perch that birds rest on while eating from the feeder. Now, simply place a fat ball and some birdseeds in and around the tea light candle holder, and hang the lantern as you typically would from a tree branch. 

If you'd like to customize this hack a bit more, you can use window paint to create beautiful stained-glass DIY art on the remaining glass panels on the sides of the lantern. Another option (if you're dexterous enough to reach the metal tabs from inside the lantern) is to remove all of the glass panels and make this feeder accessible from all sides.