Go Back
A natural bird nest out of string with three blue eggs inside with some evergreen branches in the background.
Print Recipe

How Do You Make a Bird Nest Out of String for Spring?

Wonder how do you make an easy bird nest out of string? Easy for kids, spring decor, Easter, or anytime. So cute from yarn, string, or twine.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Nature craft/activity
Cuisine: Craft
Keyword: bird nest diy, bird nest making craft, Easter craft nest, easy bird nest, family activity, how do you make a bird nest, how to make a birds nest craft, kids craft, nest for home decoration, nest out of string, spring bird nest decoraiton, string nest
Servings: 1 bird nest
Author: Shelly
Cost: $3

Equipment

  • Bowl, spoon
  • Muffin tin (something to set wet eggs on)
  • Scissors

Ingredients

Instructions

  • To form the nest, it seemed best to use a water balloon. They are smaller in size than the bigger party balloons.
    When looking at the nest that I found, a water balloon was almost exactly the size of the nest. I wanted this nest to be similar in shape and size, so it was a perfect starting spot.
    I blew the balloon up to about the size of my fist.
  • Next I poured about a cup to a cup and a half of white glue into a bowl. Some people like to use Mod Podge for this type of project, but I find the glue to work well and it is less expensive. 
    I purchase my glue in a gallon container because I use it so often and it is much less expensive when there is a need for a larger quantity like this project.
    Keep adding more glue to the bowl as needed during the project.
    Oh, and it's a good idea to use a table covering like waxed paper or parchment paper as this project can get messy!
  • I tried making this nest from two types of string. The first nest was made with yarn, the second was made with a brown string that was a twine type of material. Choose which you would like to use.
    Yarn: So from the yarn stash, I chose a variegated pastel yarn (one yarn that is different colors). The yarn color changes from blue to lavender to pink to white.
    Twine: The second thing I tried was exactly the same technique except using twine.
    Note: The instructions will use the word yarn or string but this also refers to the twine as well.
  • Pull out about 10 yards of yarn out of the skein. Let it gently loop on the floor next to you and hold onto the end that you clip.
    By the way, I measured the yards by pulling the string out the length of my arm, and measuring from my finger to my nose. You can use a yardstick if you would like. :-)
    Move the yarn up into the bowl by taking the end you still have in you hand and looping it on top of the glue in the bowl. 
    It’s very important that you do not tangle this string by stirring it, or just bunching it up from the floor and sticking it in the bowl.
    Loop the string gently into the bowl until it is entirely looped and setting on the glue.
    Be sure to hold onto the end of the string as you finish looping it into the bowl. 
    Now press the yarn down into the glue with a spoon.
  • Next take your balloon in one hand, along with the end of the string that you held onto. Older children will have an easier time of this than the younger- so be ready to help as needed.
    With the other hand begin to wind the glue covered yarn onto the balloon. Kind of pinch the yarn between your fingers and pull the yarn through your fingers before winding in order to get the excess glue off of the yarn.
    Only wind the yarn onto the bottom half of the balloon. When making the string eggs, we covered the whole balloon in order to get the full egg shape.
    Obviously, this time we’re wanting a nest shape so we will only cover half of the balloon.
    The hardest part of this is covering the bottom or end of the balloon. This will be the bottom of the nest so it can't be open or the eggs will fall through.
    I ended up making a few small loops with the yarn on the bottom of the balloon, and then attempted to kind of wind the yarn across this. I will tell you that this did work as the bottom of the nest. 
    If you don’t cover every little spot of the bottom of the nest that’s alright. It will still dry and hold up OK.
    If you run out of yarn before you feel like you have the shape like you would like it, just cut another bit of yarn, put it into the glue, and keep covering the balloon until you have it the way you like it.
  • While I was wrapping the twine, I tucked in a little bit of Spanish moss into the sides of the nest now and then just to give it some different texture. It also helped fill in between the pieces of the twine because they are stiffer.
    I also tucked in a few pieces of some brown packaging paper that I had from a gift that someone gave me. It’s ⅛th inch wide and about 2 inch long pieces of brown craft paper that are kind of wrinkled and provide a little packing material in the bottom of a gift box. 
    Both of these different types of materials are optional, so don’t worry about it if you don’t have them.
  • When you are finished wrapping the yarn, set the balloon and yarn nest in a muffin tin cup. Balloon side down.
    Set this aside to dry for at least 24 hours. Because my yarn was thicker, it took it another full day before it was dry. So you do have to be patient. :-)
  • When the nest was dry, I just popped the balloon out of the yarn nest, I didn’t even need to pop the balloon. It left this nice cup shape in the middle of the nest.
    This little nest sat nicely on my Easter tree and several small chocolate eggs fit inside. It’s really cute.
  • The twine nest popped right off of the balloon just like the yarn one did.
    Set or pressed some Spanish moss in the bottom center of the nest to kind of line it. It will cover any small holes that you might have inside of the nest.
    I had found a few small foam eggs for Easter that I painted kind of a turquoise like blue. Then I flicked a little bit of light brown paint on the eggs with a an old toothbrush. Just to give it a little bit of texture. I was pleased with how they turned out.
    I looked in more than one store for some small wooden eggs, but didn’t find any in the craft stores like Hobby lobby where I live.
    I cut off a branch from a cedar tree outside and set the nest in the branch. It almost looks like a real birds nest don't you think?

Video

Notes

If you would like to see the entire step-by-step process for making a nest, check out the YouTube video at this link: Make a Bird Nest From String Full Length Tutorial. You can follow along with me on the video as I break the process down into easy steps to make our own nests.
Note: The instructions will use the word yarn or string but this also refers to the twine as well.