Wednesday, July 5, 2017

DIY Dollar Store Glass Garden Mushrooms


Today I'm taking a little departure from my summer Sewing with Knits series to delve into an easy outdoor craft project: DIY Dollar Store Glass Garden Mushrooms.



Super quick to make and easy on any budget.  It's a great way to add a little decoration and color to the garden:
  


I saw a similar idea in a photo (with no way to track down the original source), but it used cheap styrene plastic bowls and vases.  The concept was cute, but it totally looked like what they were - thin plastic bowls with a fake flower carving designs stuck on cheap plastic bud vases.  Not the most stylin' garden decor.  

Flimsy clear plastic couldn't withstand the sun, wind or rain longterm either.  One good gust of wind and they'd be airborne!  I figured glass would be a much better option for durability and appearance, as well as river rocks inside for extra base weight and aesthetic detailing. Using colored glass also makes them pop against the plants and mulch: 



I got my supplies from the dollar store.  They literally cost me $2.25 apiece.  A much better price than most garden decorations I've seen for sale!

Materials:
- Colored glass vases
- 5 inch glass bowls
- Bag of river rocks
- E6000 glue
- Rubbing alcohol 



Start by using rubbing alcohol and a paper towel to clean the top edges of the vases and insides of the bowls.  This makes things sparkling clean & residue free and insures the glue will hold well.



Add river rocks to each vase until one third full:



Run a line of the glue over the top edge of each vase:



Set an inverted bowl on top of each vase, being careful that it is straight and wait for the glue to dry and cure.


Place them out in the garden and enjoy the added whimsy.



Their durability means they can be hosed off and no garden critters can easily tip them over.  My garden & my wallet are both happy!





12 comments:

  1. I love these!!! Cheryl....you need to write your own craft book! You have the most creative ideas and they are so inexpensive to make! Thank you so much for sharing this with all of us! Hugs, Jennifer

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  2. Beautiful! But better use glass from the thrift store instead of new. It is better for the environment when you use the old glass nobody buys at the store that then gets thrown out in the dumpster by same store Less waste and new life for the forgotten glass.

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    1. That's well and good, but in my area, thrift store glass is ridiculously expensive. It was just faster and cheaper to utilize materials from the Dollar Tree. I plan to look at yard sales and see if glass ware will be cheaper for future projects. I enjoy making these mushrooms for my garden and for my friends.

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  3. I love the idea! Hitting every dollar store, resale shop and maybe garage sales if there are any in my neighborhood since Covid-19. Wish me luck!

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    1. I hope you find some - this was a really fun (and easy) project!

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  4. I used a hot glue gun and so far they are holding together!

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    Replies
    1. Good to hear - the less fumes the better when crafting. Mine are several years old now & still hanging in there!

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  5. Hi - I love this idea. Went to salvation army shop and scored some glass ware.
    I plan to buy a solar light inside.

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    Replies
    1. Great to hear & that's an excellent upgrade idea. Would love to see how yours turn out!

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  6. Love the idea, thanks for sharing. May I ask if the glasses could stand well in the heat of the sun? We have kids around and it would be hard to clean up.

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    Replies
    1. They do. Our kids have knocked them over and they were left out over the winter in MI and still look good despite being 5 yrs old!

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