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birdseed wreath
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Posted by nrusinak 7 (My Page) on Mon, Nov 22, 04 at 8:59
| Hello All - I would like to make birdseed wreaths for Christmas gifts. I have seen these in the stores for $15-$25. The ingredients tend to include gelatin and corn syrup. Does anyone have a recipe for such an item? I'd like these to be classy, if possible. No peanut butter smeared on anything. Thanks! Nancy |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Hi! I went searching around and found the link below. Hope it helps! (I'm going to give it a try myself as soon as I get a minute - what a great idea.) Jules |
Here is a link that might be useful: Birdseed Wreath
RE: birdseed wreath
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| You're a life saver. This past weekend I went to a Christmas tour of homes and in one courtyard, they had a snowman (about 4 feet tall)coated with birdseed. I thought "I can do that" but wasn't sure how to adhere the seed to the foam balls. The gelatin sounds like the way to go. Thank you! |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Hi Everyone, Thanks for the replies. Here's a recipe I found online. I've made 4 so far and all have turned out great - much like the ones I see in the stores. These are so easy to make! I can't believe anyone would pay $20 for them. I think each one is costing me $1.50! I have flexible silicone pans, which are extremely easy to use (my advice - GET SOME!), so I'm not greasing a pan. I'm also halving the recipe, because I'm not using a bundt pan. I'm using a kougloff (French pastry) mold. It's only about 1/2 the thickness of a bundt pan. I thought the bundt was too chucky to hang on a door. Of course, you could always use a bundt and only fill it halfway. Good luck! Birdseed Wreath Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups water
4 1/4 ounce pkgs. Knox unflavored gelatin
8 cups birdseed Boil 1 1/2 cup water.
Empty the 4 packages of gelatin into 8 tablespoons of cold water in a large bowl. Let the gelatin sit for 1 minute.
Add the boiling water and stir for 2 to 3 minutes or until the gelatin has dissolved.
Stir 8 cups of birdseed into the gelatin, mixing thoroughly.
Let the mixture set for a few minutes, then stir again. Repeat this process a few times allowing the seed to absorb the liquid.
Spoon the mixture into a greased bundt pan and put in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.
Remove the wreath from the mold by inverting the pan and tapping along the bottom. The pan may need to warm to room temperature before the wreath will come out.
Allow the wreath to dry overnight or longer if necessary. (I found it needs to be on a cooling rack to let the air circulate.)
Use several strands of raffia to form a loop to hang the wreath. |
RE: birdseed wreath
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- Posted by annsb Ont z6a (My Page) on
Wed, Dec 22, 04 at 9:35
Thanks for the recipe nrusinak!
I saw these wreaths for sale this past weekend in a high end wild seed shop selling for $30.
They had included cranberries and pumpkin seeds which really made them a beauty to look at.
They had also wrapped them up in a bottomless box covered with cellophane so that you could see both sides.
Very cool but way too expensive!
ann |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Hi nrusinak, I tried your recipe and it works very well. Here is my question. Does rain hurt the wreath if is hung from a tree? Should we wait until weather is below freezing to hang it? All the advice I have received is great. How do these hold up? Do the birds peck them apart? I just hung my first one but I think there is still too much food around for birds to visit. I am afraid to hang it on my door because of the possibility of bird poop on my front steps. Anyone have advice on the best location for hanging? They are very pretty and such a great idea that I would like more info. Thanks guys. vignewood |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| I wanted to bump this post to see if anyone has expreience with these type of wreaths, and answers to the questions posted by vignewood. I think I will make a few of these this Fall for Holiday gifts. |
RE: birdseed wreath
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I am so happy to see this thread! We love feeding our birds, and this will be a fun activity with the neices and nephews! I think we'll do it in late December, when it's colder. Thanks, all!
-Donna |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Hi, I plan on trying one of these today. I'll let you know how it goes for me. I am only using a seed mixture for the first one. I get more creative with berries, etc... on the next one if all goes well. I saw one of these online the other day and couldn't find one in a store, then I looked on amazon and was surprised at the price! Andrea |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| I'd like to make these, but if they have to keep in freezing temps how do you give as a gift? housed get pretty warm, doesn't the gelatin un-gel in a warm house? don't they fall apart before gifting? What way have you wrapped them for holiday giving? |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| I made 4 wreaths using the instructions from nrusinak and they came out quite well. I added some dried cranberries to the seed and let them dry for 2+ days just in case. This is a real easy craft that makes a beautiful gift. I added a raffia bow and glued on some miniature Christmas bulbs for decoration. I'm going to give them to my best friends as Christmas gifts, as they are bird lovers like me. Thanks nrusinak! |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| I plan on making several of these in the next few days for gifts. The one I did a few weeks back did really well. I plan on adding berries to these. The birds ate it up and it held up well. It is gone and some of the suet cake is still there! Great craft project. Andrea |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| I have been making these for 3 years now and given them as Christmas presents. I use knox gelaten and flour mixture. Then decorate with cranberries. Everyone loves them. Any questions you can email me at todd.g@snet.net |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Just a follow up. The people who rec'd these as gifts loved the idea. I have made 3 for myself and they have been loved by the birds,even the turkey's! Andrea |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| someone asked about summer wreaths and I came across this recipe... 2 cups shortening or drippings Image 1 cup peanut butter 1 cup oatmeal 1 cup bird seed Spread mixture around and onto wreath, and push extra nuts, sunflower seeds, raisins, or any other edible into the suet mixture after it is on the wreath. It will be tacky enough to hold most small bits of food. If you are having trouble pushing the suet mixture into the wreath, simply work with it like clay, pushing the mixture in with your hands, and adding the seeds as you go. |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Thank you all for your advice. Our son was killed a year ago. He loved the outdoors/nature. I have been looking for birdseed wreaths to take to the cemetary. They are all so expensive and smaller than what I wanted. Your recipes and hints look easy to do. I am going to start making some now to get the hang of it before the actual date. I'm sure the birds I am feeding at home will love them too. |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| all the above comments is very much usefull for me thanks |
Here is a link that might be useful: Kerala Tour Packages
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Nice Information Thanks for Sharing |
Here is a link that might be useful: Kerala tourism
Nrusinak's birdseed wreath-modified
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Nrusinak
I took the liberty of modifying your recipe, not the ingredients, but the infrastructure. I live in a wooded area of New Hampshire and the squirrels and raccoons will NOT be defeated (although I have conquered theft of suet blocks).
I insert a chicken wire core into your recipe and use heavy duty zip ties off of the chicken wire. Squirrels can literally hang off of it and it will not break apart. Best part is after thoroughly cleaning/disinfecting the chicken wire core it can be reused over and over. I tried a plastic chip-n-dip style ring as my mold as the wreath is much bigger in diameter and less thick so it seems to make a better presentation. I also have made the wreaths out of solid black oil sunflower seeds. By reusing commercial suet block containers, you can also mold the seed mixture into DIY blocks. I also have made a full tree wrap-around as follows: four medium size eye bolts spaced at 12, 3, 9, and six o'clock into the tree at the same height. : long, rectangular box lined with saran wrap, chicken wire to fit bottom of box; layer of birdseed compacted onto chicken wire to make a sheet of seed. Shower pins in edge of chicken wire affix the blanket to the circumference of the tree. Happy Birding! |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Cash--the chicken wire core is a GREAT idea--thanks! |
RE: birdseed wreath
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| Here is a great recipe that holds up well for gift giving: Melt 1 package of gelatin in 1/2 cup of hot water over heat, stirring until clear. Add 3 Tablespoons of light corn syrup. Remove from heat and stir in 3/4 cups of flour to make a paste. Add paste to 4 cups of birdseed and stir well to combine - best to use your hands (careful, it might still be hot!). Wet your hands to make the mixture easier to handle, but take care to not add too much water to the mixture or it will fall apart. Make into whatever shape you desire. Let dry on a cooling rack for two days. I used this recipe to make bird shaped ornaments with a cookie cutter. After cutting out the bird shape, I smashed a string inside for hanging.
Enjoy! |
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