Blue Bird Cake Pop Nest

Instructions

1. Cut out patterns. Align bird head/back on large foam disc and trace with a pencil. On newspapers, use a serrated knife to cut along the pencil line, keeping the blade straight up and down for a straight edge. Gently press and roll disc all along its edges on the table to smooth and round slightly. In the neck/back area, press with fingers to smooth.
2. Prepare paint area with toothpicks and scrap foam sheet to hold foam discs while they dry. Using a paper plate as a palette, paint all sides and edges of a bird with Turquoise. Insert a toothpick into the bird’s bottom edge and set it into the scrap foam to dry. Similarly, paint a smaller disc with Cocoa and set it into scrap foam. Let both thoroughly dry.
3. Trace wing, beak, and banner patterns onto appropriate papers and cut out. Use a pencil to lightly write a message on the banner, keeping in mind the location of the beak’s overlap. Go over the message with a paint marker. Let dry.
4. Set glue gun on low temperature. Lay foam bird down on the table. Apply glue to the backside of the wing, along the curved edge only. For dimension, press wing onto foam bird so that point of wing extends out. In the beak, cut a slit as indicated on the pattern. Glue rounded part of the beak to foam bird, leaving points un-attached.
5. For the eye, insert purple brad into the foam. Decorate the rest of the bluebird body with twenty flower brads. (Just press them into the foam – no need to glue.) Curve banner on the table to curl under on top and out on the bottom. Use tape on the back to hold in beak as shown.
6. To assemble the bird onto the base, insert two toothpicks into the bottom edge of the bird and press them down into the center of the base. Then remove, apply a generous amount of glue, and press back into place, holding momentarily until set. “Scribble” glue around the front of the base and set paper crimps into it. Repeat on back, scrunching crimps together to blend and arrange.
7. Use a utility cutter (and a helper to hold the stick, for safety) to trim sticks down to 1/2″ from twist tie holding cellophane. Use a pencil to poke holes, one at a time, through paper crimps into foam disc to hold cake pops.