This is a new package of coffee filters, each stack colored with a different flavor of koolaid.

We saw this at the bird fair. Get a hemp rope or ?, cut hole in the middle, and thread them on, looking like a flower.
A fun shreddable toy that smells so good!

groovie idea thanks

Hey, those look really cool!!

Okay Gail, I can't visulize how you kept from getting the entire filter wet....Please explain....I sure think that is neat too...Gonna try it when I find out how you did it.. Thanks

its quite easy actually and there are lots of different ways to do it...

I use my wiltons food color pots and just dip the edges in the pot...the color absorbs and you get great patterns...the longer obviously that you hold it the more color you get!


And Rats...someone snitched my idea...Oh well...makes GREAT toys! Have fun, be creative...skys the limit!

Connie---Do you dip one at the time? I assume you would, but not sure...You all have a lot of tricks up your sleeve.... Again, thanks

Actually, you know how they are grouped in stacks of 25-50 or what ever...I do a whold stack at a time one color I buy the BIG bags at Costco and do them...and then I just press them out flat to dry in the group, it just depends on how you want your pattern to be...

I've know some people to put it in a squirt bottle and just do a single line some where in the middle etc... some use a paint brush and do them seperately...that's too time consuming for my needs...Whew..I do quantity stuff...LOL...

Connie? When using the Wilton's stuff, do you water it down? I decorate cakes and I use the Wilton's colors to tint icing, but it's generally too thick to paint it on wood pieces and the like. So exactly what do you do when you use it? I'm very curious because I really enjoy making my own bird toys. It surely is way less expensive than buying them.

Thanks,

Heif

Gail, you should get the unbleached coffee filters. They are brown, so the colors wouldn't be as vivid, but no bleach used in the making

Heif...I take boiling water and dilute the color gel/paste and melt it down. and then depending on how big of vat of dye I want to make I add more food coloring...Because I like my toys BOLD I will use 3 some times 4 of the little bottles of dye per vat of water...and I use the big Ziploc type plastic containers to use as my vats...you can use bigger if you want depending oh how much you want to be able to do at one time...

I don't have the room too do too big of vats in my kitchen, I wish I did! Just remember...that stuff STAINS and if you don't get spills wiped up quickly it could be there for a long time...

Its just like dying easter eggs...you just have to leave it in the water longer...

It can get fairly expensive. so if your only planning on dying enough wood for one or two toys at a time, you might want to reconsider I figure. I use the primary and secondary colors..Red,Green,Yellow, Blue, Orange and Purple...for all my toys...to 6 x 3 is 18 x $1.39 - $1.69 ...that's more than one or two simple toys...in most pet stores....And for the leaf green and the purple to get my desired color I use 4 and sometimes 5 tubs of food coloring...so the price goes up from there. The tubs I use for my dye vats are the 72 oz Ziploc plastic containers.

Something else to be aware of...is that after about 3 days if you aren't CONSTANTLY changing the wood out and what not, The tubs will mold over! as I said before...DISGUSTING...

I find that for me most soft woods like pine and fir will soak up as much color as they're going to in about 6-8 hours sometimes less...
Again depending on how dark you like your wood. I'm trying to remember what thread I posted some of my toys in so you can get an idea of how vibrant the wood is when I'm done... Since I can't remember...I'll post a couple here...Click to view attachmentClick to view attachmentClick to view attachmentClick to view attachment
and here are a couple more that I have made as well Click to view attachmentClick to view attachmentClick to view attachment The one of the Swing was my first proto type and as you can see the proportions were WAY off...that has since been changed and the swing isn't nearly that big...LOL...and it comes in a bunch of different sizes!

These are just a few of the ones I have done and please keep in mind that the idea has a patent on it..Which means...you may copy it for your own use, but you can't sell them as your own idea. (thanks)

So Heif...there you have my methods in a nutshell...heheheh...Good luck.

Oh one other things since I posted these...My business name for my toys is Connie's Critter Creations...and Hopefully soon there'll be a website up with a link from Andie's Ark to it.
If any of you are interested in purchasing any of these types of toys...PM me and I'll give you prices.

Sorry didn't mean to steal the thread for advertising....

You think you could do that with newpaper? like I make shredable for my fids with that.. but wondering if I could color them?

I also decorate cake so have plenty of wilsons..

I think that is a cool idea Gail..

Actually, they are wet, sitting out to dry.
I just put about a half cup of hot water to a pack of koolaid.
Then took one stack of filters, and squeezed the tips into the cup to absorb the liquid. They are still setting out on the deck to dry. We'll see how it works.

Connie, thanks for the info! It was really helpful. I'd been using food coloring but it just doesn't give that great color.

I also found this stuff, which seems to be more economical than the Wilton colors: http://www.kopykake.com/cd_food_colors.html I haven't ordered any yet so I don't know how well they'd work, but the price is not bad at all.

Prices seem reasonable that's true...I just chose Wiltons cuz its readily available and there was NO mixing...I just couldn't get the color I wanted for purple and green by mixing some of the others I'd tried. Thanks for sharing that site.

And, without further ado, here's Abby with the first prototype:



Already ripping it to shreds!

Thanks Gail...She looks like in the first picture she is fussing that thing out...

Appreciate all the ideas....Thanks all...........

Thanks Gail and Connie! I too love ideas for cheap, easy to make toys! Mark and I made two toys for Nico and Jola on Sunday night and they are already demolished (one of balsa wood, one of foam!)! Gotta get to work on the coffee filter idea!

Beautiful... and cheap !!! Sounds like its just what I need!! Thanks for the great idea, maybe the stubborn Krunch will lighten up and play with this one!! I am so sick of paying out $10 or more at the pet store just for him to ignore it!!

Thanks for the idea. Doobie loves all of his toys and I am sure that he would love this one too. I buy him a new one everytime I go to petsmart. My husband says that if I buy one more toy to go in there we are going to HAVE to buy him a bigger cage. Thanks again, I love it.

Aries loves coffee filters. I take coffee filters and put a peanut/nutriberry/almond in the filter and then twist it and push the flowery end though the links of a plastic chain then fan it out so that it doesn't fall through the links. I do that in every other link. In the in-between links I tie strips of cotton fabric. I made one with the chain folded over and he loves to run back and forth through it. He had all the peanuts chewed out of the filters the first day. I replace them every week or so. He also loves shredding all the fabric strips. Anything to keep him from pulling out all his pretty new fluffies.

Wow,I just spent the last 20 min looking for this thread and went to post it for you and there this dumb thread was right on top...LOL

Oh, and I found this other really cool idea. Take little wiffle balls and regular plain popping corn. Push the unpopped kernels, about 8 or so kernels, into the balls (I had to make one of the holes a little bigger to do this). Then, wrap the ball in a moist paper towel and put it in the microwave for about 2 minutes. The popcorn pops INSIDE the ball and the unpopped kernels will make noise when the birds shake it. So, they have a foraging toy and noise maker and foot toy all in one! It took Gus about a day and a half to get the popcorn out. Ralph and Aries had it out in hours, the second ball only took minutes but they have so much fun with them and if you can get the balls at the dollar store they are really cheep too.





I guess you know you're addicted to this place when you keep getting the 'flood control warning' LOL

Yup - found it and got carried away reading and then had to add my 2 cents. I keep telling myself I'll just read one more thread and then go to bed - I said that about 10 threads and 2 hours ago LMAO!

Amey,

You need to post that idea (with pictures) under the DIY thread. That way someone will be able to find it.

That is a great idea.......who would of thought of that, NOT ME for sure

I don't have a digital camera (it's on my wish list but somehow keeps getting bumped for birdie toys). But, I'll try to get a pic with the old fashioned camera and get it developed and then post it. Give me a couple days, one-hour developing only works if you stick around for the full hour - if I do that I'll spend too much money and won't be able to afford to buy the pics LOL

Amey, I'll do it and take a picture...you can do the explaining...hows that...

I want to know how it goes... Until someone else does it I am afraid I'll blow up my micro wave.



I buy the pop corn on the cob for the birds, but when I cook it according to directions it burns. Nobody likes burnt pop corn.

Fiber Diet....

Some reading said to be careful of what shred-able and possibly consumable fiber products that our QP's are exposed to....

Anybody seen a no-no list anywhere?

Maxxx&Crew

This idea looks really neat and easy! This is something I could do with my kids too! I bet Wasabi would love that! She loves anything she can shred and it is so upseting to buy an expensive toy and see it all torn up and lying on the bottom of the cage in one day. I know she enjoys it but boy does it get expensive! I need more cheap ideas like this one and the q-tip idea!

DO YOU HAVE A PICTURE.........PLEASE!!!!!


Sorry I was getting excited about this new toy idea and should have read the whole thread!!!!

what a GREAT IDEA!!! I bet you could roll em up and tie them off too. I heard of wrapping treats and seeds in papers like that to give them something to do.

I know this is an old thread, but I decided to make my own! I made them for my mother's new quaker. He was scared at first, but every time I go by to see him, I notice he has shredded more and more of them.

What a fun idea!!! I can't wait to make more!

Awww cute coffee filters!

I'll have to try that!

Just wanted to make a suggestion...They make natural *unbleached coffee filters. They are brown and might be safer then the white bleached version. Dont quote me but we use them in our house (and the fids dont care about the color!)

I had fun with food coloring one day and dyed coffee filters, beads, string, and popsicle sticks ...
You should have seen the mess I had (on my counter, hands, arms, ... ) My husband just walks in, shakes his head, and turns around and walks out.

The food coloring worked great. Except I learned that just a tiny quick touch of the coffee filter in the dye is all you need. The color wicks in quickly!