Get your craft on: DIY birdseed ornament tutorial

For Valentine's Day teacher gifts, we're doing heart-shaped birdseed ornaments.  Popular for bird-themed wedding favors, too, this was an easy DIY project that the Gravy Kids enjoyed.

For the heart shapes, I used a donut baking tin I found at Target.  You can use cookie cutters, too, but shelling out the $9.99 was worth it over digging through my basement looking for the box of cookie cutters.  The payment of convenience.

Here's the recipe:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons corn syrup or honey
1 packet unflavored gelatin
4 cups birdseed
Cooking spray


1. In a large bowl, combine flour, water, corn syrup (or honey), and gelatin.  
2.Add birdseed and mix well.  


 **MODIFIED INSTRUCTIONS BELOW** 
3.  Scoop into greased molds and let dry for several hours before removing from mold.  
4.  Let ornaments dry overnight on wax paper.  


The result should be a distinctly hard ornament the next day.  Any squishiness means that the ornament is not completely dry and may mold if packaged up too soon.

Alternatively, you could use cookie cutters by putting wax paper on top of a cookie sheet and filling the greased cookie cutters with seeds.  Just be sure to insert pieces of straw to leave a hole to tie the string through after the ornament dries.  A mini-bundt pan would probably work well, too.

We wrapped the heart birdseed ornaments into a plastic bag, topped it off with a "love is for the birds" gift tag and voila!  Instant gift.