Bird house herb labels

This past weekend the sun finally came out to play! I finally get to show you some of the crafts I have been working on for my garden. First up are my birdhouse herb labels, which I painted in Cuprinol Garden Shades to protect the wood from the damaging effect of the weather. You can order 30ml mini tester pots from Cuprinol for £1 each! I made the Lavender and Beach Blue colours paler by mixing with Pale Jasmine.

Birdhouse herb labels
Tools and materials

• Wooden lollipop sticks - 114mm x 10mm
• Birch plywood bird house shapes
• Cuprinol Beach Blue garden shade
• Cuprinol Pale Jasmine garden shade
• Cuprinol Sweet Pea garden shade
• Cuprinol Coastal Mint garden shade
• Cuprinol Lavender garden shade
• Ink jet water-slide decal paper in clear
• Clear vanish spray

Start by painting the birdhouse wooden shapes and lollipop sticks in several coats of paint till you have a solid even colour on all sides. When paint is completely dry, glue lollipop stick to birdhouse shape.



Print labels onto a regular sheet of paper so you can check the labels for size and colour. Once you are happy with the size and colour of the labels, print them on to the glossy coated side of the decal paper. In a well ventilated area, and with newspaper laid on the ground to protect the surface, coat the printed labels with an even coat of clear varnish. Leave to dry for about 30mins. Next, carefully cut out the labels. Place cut-out labels into a bowl of water and leave for up to 30 seconds. Before placing the decals onto the painted birdhouses, wet the surface of the birdhouses so you can slide the decals into position easily. Remove label from water and place it facing up on your birdhouses. Carefully slide the decal paper slightly and attach the corner lip of the decal onto the birdhouse shape. Once you have the lip attached to the birdhouse shape, gently pull the backing paper away and adhere label to birdhouse shape. Once the decal is attached to the birdhouse shape, carefully slide it around to your desired position. Then gently rub the label with a lint free cloth to remove any air bubbles and leave to dry for 3-4 hours. Finally, spray birdhouse label with a coat of clear vanish.

Tips: Use clear varnish spray in a well-ventilated area and protect your work surface from overspray with a newspaper. To start the paint flow properly make sure you have shaken the paint enough (refer to directions on can) and spray first on to newspaper. Spray varnish 30cm away from labels and spray in a sweeping motion maintaining a constant distance from the printed labels. Ensure labels are fully coated in varnish or there will be a leakage of ink when placed in the bowl of water at the later stage.


To make my pale aqua colour I mixed Pale Jasmine with Beach blue.




Have a sweet day!