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Transform bird seed to feeder ornaments
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Neighbors | Alexis Bartolomucci.Sisters Gabrielle (left) and Laila worked on making their own bird seed ornaments at the Austintown library on Jan. 13 during the Bird Seed Ornament event.
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Neighbors | Alexis Bartolomucci.The mixture made between four and six bird seed ornaments. A hole is put in one part of the ornament for a ribbon to go through so the ornament can be hung up.
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Neighbors | Alexis Bartolomucci.One of the participants worked on packing the bird seed mixture into the cookie cutter molds. Once the bird seed was packed tight, the mold was removed and the bird seed was left to harden before it was hung up.
By ALEXIS BARTOLOMUCCI
Spring has sprung early at the Austintown library. Guests were able to come in and create their own bird seed ornaments on Jan. 13.
Austintown librarian, Lindsay Platt, led the class in making the bird seed ornaments. She started by going through the instructions one by one and then showing what the final product would look like.
The class started by mixing together unflavored gelatin, hot water and Karo syrup. Then a combination of bird seed and flour was slowly stirred in to the liquid mixture. After everything was mixed together, the bird seed mixture was placed into a cookie cutter to form a shape of the participant’s choice. They poked a hole in the shape for the ribbon, then the cookie cutter was removed and the seed shapes were left to harden.
The bird seed is very sticky when you place it in the cookie cutters. Being sticky helps the seeds stay together and keep their shape after the mold is removed.
“It’s pretty gross isn’t it?,” said Platt in reference to putting the mixture into the mold and using her hands to make sure everything is packed tight.
Aside from getting your hands a little dirty, making the bird seed ornaments was a fun experience for the participants. They have something they can bring home with them while learning how to make a new craft as well.