Garden Art

Hi,
I want to share one of my favorite garden art pieces.

It was originally a table top sculpture I found on clearance at Hobby Lobby.

I thought it was interesting, and it reminded me of a flower, so I brought it home with me.

It needed some color to bring out the flower characteristics.  I tried painting it purple with pink tips, but it didn't pop.  So, I decided to try yellow and purple.  Much better.

Once I had it painted, I cut off the base using bolt cutters.  I left the "stem" so I could mount it outside. I had a piece of copper pipe I hammered into the ground, and I inserted the stem into the pipe opening. 

I like how it turned out. 

I hope you find something that inspires you to be creative and create a unique piece of art for your garden.

Shutter Angel

Here is a garden angel that I have enjoyed in my garden this year.  She is was out of an old window shutter, a brass candle bowl, wings made from pieces of an old barrel, and rebar for legs.

I laid my shutter on my workbench and started laying different boards, spindles etc. behind it for wings.  I originally made this to display at an Eco Fest last fall.  So, it needed to be made entirely of recycled objects.  That's right up my alley!!!

I had a window shutter about 36" tall.  I decided to use boards from an old barrel for the wings.  I love the rough texture and curve of these pieces.  I used the adjustment pieces of wood that came with the shutter as arms.  I decided on the angel I wanted and cut the top to fit the shutter.  I then cut them to the length I wanted the arms.  They were as long as the shutter and I don't know about you, but my arms aren't as long as my body.

I added a brass candle bowl for a head and rebar for legs so the shutter doesn't sit on the ground and wick moisture.

Here's the finished angel when I added it to my garden in early spring.

The rebar legs allow me to push it close to the ground but not touching the ground.

Here it is amid my hosta.

It's outside my kitchen door by the cornzebo where I see it every day.  I have enjoyed it this summer. 

If this project inspires you to create something similar please let me know.  And if you need more info I'll be glad to share more details on how I made it.

Myra

Refurbished drawer display cabinet, dragonfly sculpture, and gathering nature

My oldest daughter Angie, my granddaughter Kaylee and I went in search of nature over the weekend.
We harvested some wild bittersweet along a fence row.  We just had to wade the weeds to get to it.
Next we ventured to the local cemetery to gather buckeyes and acorns.  The squirrels had beat us to most of the acorns, but we gathered some of the hairy caps. Then Kaylee and I gathered some tiny pine cones from beneath my black forest spruce tree.  But it can't be all work and no play.  Kaylee needed to go swing in the back yard for awhile.

I also made a very delicate dragonfly sculpture.  This dragonfly is much smaller than most I make.  It's wings are made of a strip of brass flashing off an old door. One wing even has a nail hole in it from where it was fastened to the door. The side of the brass exposed to the weather has a beautiful patina. It sits atop a steel rod, inserted into an a piece of antique walnut.

And I painted this old drawer to convert it into a display shelf.  It can stand or hang.

Other than this hubby and I took a short trip on the motorcycles to get an ice cream cone, we did a little tinkering in the garage, but mostly I was lazy.

I hope you found something fun to do with your weekend. 

the making of a found object or folkart dragonfly

For those who are interested in winning my dragonfly, I thought I'd show you what it used to look like...

This old chair was a bit wobbly so I took it apart and salvaged most of it to make other things, such as dragflies.  I little whittling, a lot of sanding, some paint, and accessories like eyes, mouth and wings.... and a wooden spindle evolves into a one of a kind garden accessory, aka yard art.  :)

Niagara, My mother's birthday, Monkey has a new red shirt, and a dragonfly giveaway

Hello,

I, like many people have been thinking about 9/11 off and on all day.  About the disregard for those who would be killed, and the hate that exists between people who have never met.  I have been thinking about my niece serving in the Navy, and I have been thinking about my dear sweet mother.  Saturday September 17th will be her birthday.  My mother died almost two years ago.  In some ways it seems longer, and in some ways more recent.  I'm sure its that way for everyone who loses someone they love.

The hubby and I went to see one of the natural wonders of the world last weekend.  It was very cool.  We took a quick 6 hour road trip to Niagara Falls.  Since hubby doesn't have a passport we only did the US side, but for anyone who hasn't been there, I recommend it.  Here is a pic we took.

Kaylee and I went to an estate sale last Saturday, and what do you think she wanted to buy..... a pop can cozy that looked like a shirt.  She wanted it for her monkey.  I wasn't sure it would fit monkey but she was confident. Turns out she had a good eye.  Here is monkey being pushed on the swing, and playing on the bar in his snazzy new shirt.

Look how lush my wheelbarrow still is.  It's my favorite thing this summer.

And for anyone who would enjoy one of my hand crafted folkart dragonflies here it is.  This dragonfly is made from an old oak spindles out of a 100+ year old kitchen chair back, with eyes made from grommets, eyelets, and flashing wings.  It sits on a small steel rod.

All you have to do is leave a comment about what you like about the dragonfly and your name so I can contact you after a winner is chosen.  Very easy :)  I will pick a winner Sunday 9/16th.

Just checking in...

It's been busy here the last few weeks. The month started out hot.  Hubby and I travelled down to Ruby Falls in Chattanooga, Tennessee. We enjoyed seeing the underground waterfall, and all the cave formations.  Then for Hubby's birthday we did a zip line obstacle course.  We thought we were going to a zip line course, where you access different zip lines via hanging bridges, but it was a bit more tricky than that.  I am sad to say that the obstacle course kicked my butt.  I ended up falling and chose not to complete the course.  Hubby however finished the course triumphantly.  After all that exhausting fun (in 106 degree temps) we headed toward Hot Springs, Arkansas to spend a couple of days with family.  We had a nice visit, except for the 108 - 110 degree heat.  We spent a little time lounging in the lake keeping cool, thrift store shopping, and just hanging out.

My sister Heather, my daughter Rachel and I took the kids to the Columbus, Ohio zoo on Friday.  We had a good time.  I think I enjoyed the polar bear exhibit and the aquarium the most.  They started back to school today.  I guess summer if officially over.  We got to pet a flamingo.  That's something I don't do every day.  I may carry around a chicken, but not a flamingo.

My daughter Angie spent the weekend peddling her wares at a craft show.  She enjoyed meeting new people, and making new friends, but sales were lighter than she had hoped.

My yard and house are in need of some attention.  I spent Sunday tearing apart two old chairs for the spindles.  I am working on some new dragonflies, scrap metal sculpture and assumblage collage.

Would anyone be interested in winning a free found object dragonfly for your garden?  I was thinking about have a giveaway...

I'll hope to get the flowers weeded, the cornzebo floored and have some fun in the next couple of weeks.  I'll post again soon.

If there are enough comments and interest in winning a free one of a kind hand crafted found object dragonfly I'll post one. I dismantled a beautiful old rocker the other day and I got a lot of spindles out of it. 

Man is it hot outside... and a few things from July 2011

Work on the cornzebo has been disappointingly slow.
It's been too hot to work on it.
I borrowed my SIL Sherman's truck a couple of
Saturday's ago and got some pea gravel from the local
quarry.

It took me a couple of hours to unload.  My furry

helper wasn't much help.  He wanted to lay in the doorway

of the cornzebo, or stand on the gravel, anywhere that

was inconvenient. :)

I used a small grinding stone in the center.

You may remember the red bird we made earlier in

the year.  Well now its perched in a large patch of

daisies. 

I made this little planter for my desk and

added one of my smaller hand crafted

found object wooden dragonflies.

Since the cornzebo isn't round, and more

octagonal, and I laid the footer pavers underneath

the corncrib free hand, I'm afraid it will be a

huge undertanking to try to lay a solid brick

floor.  So I decided to add pea gravel and try

to create an old abandoned relic type feel.  Like

it's been there forever.  I started out thinking maybe

brick sections large enough for the chairs surrounded

by gravel but I'm not feeling it.  So, I think I'm going to

continue the round center out, and see where it takes me.

Any ideas?

We made this bench out of limbs that came out in a huge storm.

It's one of my favorite things.  This year its starting to

grow fungai on it.

We hung this old kettle in the trees for a robin to nest in, but

alas no birds have yet called it home.  I guess I'll be moving it

before next spring.

This is a $5 wheelbarrow missing the tire.  I found the

old wheel in someones trash and drug it home.  Hubby

added it to this wheelbarrow for me.  Love the way it

looks now full of blooms.

I have always liked this crooked old brick.

I have been wanting to tear up our stained, ugly carpet for several

years but my husband said we needed it.  Well, he went to work

one day, and I didn't.  Bye bye carpet!  I just couldn't live with

it another day.  I had to cut around the heavy tv cabinet, and a very

large cupboard, until hubby could help me remove the last of it.

He wasn't happy abut it, but has pretty much gotten over it. :)

This pig was my mothers. It guards my shed now.

I bought my first new piece of furniture. I'm 53 and just bought something

new.  Hubby and I like to recline when we watch tv, so we got something

new.  I tore the carpet up the morning this was to be delivered.

One more thing:  We hung some cute lights up around the

round brick patio and pond.  I love them.  They remind

me of the days when I went to camp as a kid.

They're hard to take a pic of so maybe I'll show

them off later.

We enjoyed everyone who came to our July 4th cookout

and watched the fireworks with us.  Thanks for making

our day special.