Designer Birdhouses: 20 Upscale Homes for Sophisticated Birds [Paperback]

Richard T. Banks (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2008

Few woodworking projects are as popular and easy as building a birdhouse—and with just a dollop of creativity, plus this book, it’s simple to turn it into an amazing avian architectural wonder. Architect and commercial birdhouse builder Richard Banks reveals his savvy streamlined techniques for efficiently constructing a basic house, and then applying ingeniously doable methods for transforming its identity. All it takes are embellishments made of common off-the-shelf, home-store items: a touch of trim, a dab of dowel, a flourish of finial, and…presto! The birds can move right into a classic Victorian, exotic Casbah, A-frame cedar chalet, or bright bold blue home. The 20 projects also include techniques for special finishes such as stenciling and decoupage, along with informative sidebars.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Lark Books (January 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579908349
• ISBN-13: 978-1579908348
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #307,134 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard T. Banks,www.architecturaleditions.com is an architect/artist born in Chicago, Illinois. He attented the University of Illinois receiving a Bachelor of Architecture Degree in 1962 and a Master of Architecture in 1964. Richard taught architecture at the U of I for several years before relocating to New York City where he joined a prestigious international architecture/ planning firm. As a lead design architect for many large -scale projects Richard earned distinguished awards for excellence in interior design, building design and urban planning with his achievemnts widely published both in the U.S. and abroad. He rose to the office of president when the firm's founder retired, and later on formed his own architectural and real estate development firm. Throughtout his professional career Richard participated in many fine art exhibitions earning awards for his watercolor and acrylic painting- an interest he continues to this day.He resides in Pinehurst, NC where he designs and builds birdhouses.(www.architecuraleditions.com)
Richard is currently writing two books:A Population at Risk; Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms, what everyone over 50 should know, and Drawing With the Whole Brain: pens, pencils and neurons, relating the art of drawing to neuroscience.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful photography and layout, straightforward instructions, Perfect gift !, April 5, 2009

By 

R. Neil Scott "Writer, Professor & User Servi... (Murfreesboro, TN USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Designer Birdhouses: 20 Upscale Homes for Sophisticated Birds (Paperback)

One of the most memorable gifts you can give a child, a friend or someone special in your life, is a handmade birdhouse. We have two right outside our back den windows and we have enjoyed many special moments watching the families of birds come and go, from one season to the next.

Both of ours were handmade by an uncle from Maine, so I was delighted to come upon this book by Richard T. Banks to buy and send on to him as he continues to make more birdhouses for the next generation of children in our family.

The author's background as an architect is evident in the twenty elegant, simple-to-build designer birdhouse projects he touts as "Upscale homes for sophisticated birds." He devotes the introductory text to "Basic Tools and Materials," "Building the Basic Box" and "From basic to Not-So-Basic" and starts off with: "Building a birdhouse is not exactly rocket science, and you don't need a workshop filled with expensive power tools and hard to find materials to be successful..." Very practical !

A photograph of each birdhouse with a brief commentary as to where the inspiration for the design came from begins each section, followed by careful instructions regarding supplies needed, decorating, and tools, along with easy-to-understand step-by-step instructions on how the construct that partcular design.

For me, however, the real "wow" factor is in the photography and diagrams - Wow! This is an absolutely beautiful book ! The color photography is superb, well-placed and offers a soothing presence to the text.

While Banks states that he wants readers to explore and experiment, interchanging the designs, changing the colors, and so forth -- my thinking is that his designs are so beautifully done, it would be doubtful that one would want to deviate!

This book is a perfect gift for the man who loves to build things and work with his hands, esp. as a birthday or Christmas gift. Also, it's a great acquisition for public libraries and high school libraries with a vocational education program.

R. Neil Scott
Middle Tennessee State University

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great designer birdhouse book!, May 6, 2008

By 

L. Mattson (Pacific Northwest) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Designer Birdhouses: 20 Upscale Homes for Sophisticated Birds (Paperback)

As of date, built the cedar lattice & pine bracket birdhouse illustrated on the cover. I enjoy working with cedar, using cheap cedar fencing which I put through a planner bringing out a smooth nice wood grain finish. A coat of Tung Oil further brings out the wood grain and seals the wood.
Electric tools I used were bandsaw, drill press, 12" planner and belt sander.
The instructions are easy to follow. All 20 birdhouses are of unique design and easy to make. I will probably make most of these just to add variety and color to my yard.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Designer Birdhouses, March 8, 2008

By 

Alice C. Schalz "book maven" (Pinehurst, North Carolina United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Designer Birdhouses: 20 Upscale Homes for Sophisticated Birds (Paperback)

The adjective that leaped to mind when I firsst read Designer Birdhouses by Richard T. Banks was: impressive. This book is a visual phenomenon...with instuctions. Whether one is a master carpenter unequalled or a would-be carpenter challenged by a hammer and nail, Designer Birdhouses is unrivaled in its beautiful illustrations, ease of understanding as well as clarity of instructions. In a brief perusal of the book, it becomes readily apparent that Banks executed a brilliant accomplishment in his ability to tie together the relationship between birds and their nesting habits. This relationship is imbedded in the many birdhouse designs.
Banks is a professional architect, author and artist. There is some evidence in the pages of Designer Birdhouses that he has accepted Southern culture, language and some of the humor, e.g. in the design element called "Baffles" he wrote "it's from below that you need to thwart those clinbing critters." For the unfamiliar, "climbing critters" may be squirrels, possums or cats. Later on, in forgiving the would-be carpenter's faulty transgressions he wrote "birds are creatures of he wild...they don't go about measuring holes or potential nesting boxes. So, Mr. spprentice, stop worrying about your mistakes.
Designer Birdhouses covers all aspects of design, building and placement of the completed birdhouse. Note the clever idea of starting many of the designs with a "basic box". this concept would show the apprentice carpenter that he has the ability to recognize and build a "basic box" then move forward with various design embellishments. To assist the apprentice carpenter even further, Banks asks the question, "What makes a good birdhouse?" He answers that question in simple relevant terms. Wow! What more can one ask for in a specialty book such as Designer Birdhouses.
Designer Birdhouses sets a new standard and ranks in the summa cum laude category. It would make a wonderful gift for bird enthusiasts as well as do-it-yourselfers and other hobbyists.