The Avian Architect of Carmine

  He’s been building birdhouses for more than 30 years and according to Frank Burt there have been no two exactly alike.

  Burt’s Birdhouses on Highway 290 in Carmine, Texas is an adventure in avian architecture. Frank and his son Chris are the in the shop much of every week “dreaming up” new handcrafted designs, from brightly colored feeders blinged out with silver spoons and cut glass door knob perches, to multi-family birdie bungalows with tin roofs and decorative accents. Frank is quick to admit that he really has no idea what the end result will look like, but that’s just fine with him.

 Four years ago the Burts set up shop in Carmine next door to the family home. The small showroom is packed with fowl flats of all sorts, while the attached workshop is a filled of works in progress and sawdust accented by the aroma of fresh cut pine and cedar.

  Everywhere you look there are swallow sized replicas of a Fredericksburg guest house, and a traditional Georgian style home. There is a miniature design of a Castroville B & B alongside a hummingbird Hilton with doors and windows on all sides for easy access. Churches and castles, both painted and natural, are decorated with ornamental pieces found in antique and junk shops, at the Salvation Army store and at Goodwill.  It’s an eclectic blend of traditional folk art and modern day yard art.

 A professional brick mason by trade, the self-taught “home” builder has decorated the walls of his showroom with more than 100 classic tools of the trade that he still uses from time to time. Mounted from floor to ceiling are century old hammers and hatchets. Similar to a piece in the Smithsonian is stone mull dated at 1790 hanging next to a wagon spoke tool from the 1800s. Nearby is a strapped shingle hatchet for splitting cedar shakes and an antique tool for cutting bricks and stones.  It’s a cleaver contrast of the old and the new that works well in this rustic wood shop setting.

 It doesn’t take long to realize that it’s folks like Frank Burt who give character to small town Texas. He’s a true Texas craftsman, has years of stories to tell, and is a great guy to just hang with. “Tweet” him the next time you wing through Carmine. He might share a tale or two among the birdhouses and you’ll be all the better for it.   

Burt’s Birdhouses is at 410 E. US Highway 290 in Carmine, Texas.  The shop is open Thursday through Sunday. 

The Texas Travel Writer