DIY Pond Ideas

For as long as I can remember, I've wanted a water feature.  The sound of running water is so peaceful in a garden!

This article has a bunch of pond ideas and links to their tutorials.  You have to check it out if you need inspiration for a new project for your yard!

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Leaf Casting Water Feature

This is the most awesome water feature I have seen yet!

The leaf castings are made of concrete . . . there is no tutorial to go with this photo, but it should not be too difficult to figure out how the water feature part of it could work.

Use the photo as inspiration, as well as some of the websites listed below.  These concrete leaves are used for stepping stones in the garden, bird bath, decorations and water features.  You can also do a search on Pinterest for leaf castings for additional inspiration.

Here are some articles and tutorials on making concrete leaves . . .

Concrete Leaves for Garden or Fountain

How to Make a Concrete Leaf Casting

Casting Nature

Concrete Casting How To

Make A Concrete Leaf

How to Make Concrete Garden Fountain with Rhubarb Leaves

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DIY Garden Decor - Inspiration and Tutorial

This is what I call some awesome yard art!

The painted teapot is just one of the projects in this awesome article that I found.

I just goes to show you that looking at what you once thought as "junk" can be given new life in your garden.  You will hopefully be as inspired as I was with this article!

Click here for the entire article and tutorial from The Navage Patch.

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Tea Cup Mosaic Stepping Stone

This stepping stone is beautiful.  While it is heartbreaking to break a treasured tea cup from your collection, all is not lost!

Click here to go to the tutorial.

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Inspiration from Brenda's Patio

It has been years and years since I've followed Brenda's life adventures through her blog, Cozy Little House. She and her precious dogs went from a large house in Texas with a gorgeous yard with babbling brooks and waterfalls, to a small house in Oklahoma and finally has settled in her tiny apartment in Oklahoma.

The photo is from her latest blog post about entertaining outdoors. Click here to go to the post and get a look at the rest of her impressive patio garden.

Her patio garden is a run of the mill apartment concrete patio.  She has used her imagination and turned it into a very impressive, peaceful place.  She takes container gardening to a new dimension.  I want that gazebo!

Hope you draw some inspiration from Brenda!  If she can create a paradise from a concrete floor, those of us with a real yard can create a beautiful and peaceful place too :)  Check out the rest of her blog for great home dec ideas for indoors too.

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Fabulous Stepping Stone Inspiration

Stepping stones are a quick way to add color and sometimes functionality to an area of your garden.

My favorites are the colorful mosaics like the ones in the photo.

Making your own stepping stones can be a fun experience the whole family can participate in.

Click here for an article that features 23 stepping stone projects!

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DIY Lace-Like Stepping Stones

Here's another creative DIY project to add some pizazz to your garden design.

Karen from Mindful Matters came up with a most unusual way to use lace doilies to paint these stunning stepping stones.  What really makes them special . . . they glow in the dark.  How cool is that?

Her painting technique will work for a number of projects.  Anywhere there is a surface to paint on!  How about a boring concrete carport floor or that back room floor that needs to be painted . . . garden containers, walls . . . you get the idea, you are limited by your imagination.

I will be incorporating Karen's painting technique for a future project for sure!

Click here for Karen's article on how to make these gorgeous stepping stones.

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DIY Fake Rocks and Boulders

There is no limit to what you can create with this type of project.

You may simply want to add some large fake boulders in your garden design, make the facade for the waterfall and pond you have been dreaming of or a raised bed that doubles as a place to sit.

Once you know the basics of creating a rock, the method is the same no matter what the size of the project.

I've worked with concrete for garden projects for more than 10 years and I must say that for me it has been a very satisfying and addicting endeavor.  One project leads to another!

Click here to go to the article, "How to Make Fake Rocks and Boulders" from eHow.  You will also find links to other methods of making rocks, boulders, etc.

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Need More Space in Your Garden?

It is also about pest and disease control and convenience.

No doubt about it, I tend to gravitate toward container gardening for ease of movement, seasonal gardening, herb and veggie gardening . . . it is so much easier for me even though we have more than enough space in our garden.

Want some ideas?  Click here for an excellent article from Organic Daily Post.

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DIY Garden Fountain

Can you imagine building your own garden fountain in one weekend?  I have wanted another water feature for the longest time . . . 

The tutorial shows you, step by step, how to make a garden fountain out of anything.

Click here to go to the tutorial.

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A Cozy Spot

There is no better therapy for stress than to have a cozy spot outdoors to enjoy the sights and sounds of nature.

Back in the day, we had "rooms" set up in the garden for different times of day as the sun would hit the area a certain way.  Then we had the spots that were perfect for watching the stars at night.

We are blessed to live in Florida when we can enjoy a meal outdoors just about any time of the year.

Fine Gardening is a great website to gather inspiration for creating a new spot in your garden.  I love spending time going through all the awesome photos of gardens from all over the world.

This photo is from a garden in Connecticut . . . so comfy and cozy, yet very simple.  To see more photos of this beautiful garden, click here.

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Tin Can Man . . . trash to treasure project

Trash to treasure yard art is one of my favorite crafts.

This little guy is so cute and seems like a relatively easy project to put together.

Here are the materials used in the project:

• 1 medium vegetable, fruit or coffee can (head)
• 1 large can (torso)
• 2 medium cans (upper arms)
• 6 small vegetable or fruit cans (forearms & legs)
• 5 lids cut from cans (ears, nose, hands)
• 4 tomato paste cans (ankles, feet)
• 5 round bottle caps (eyes, buttons)
• 11 screws with bolt backings
• heavy gauge wire
• Epoxy glue or clear-drying caulk

Tools needed include drill, hole punch, hammer or mallet, metal cutters, “church key” can opener, duct tape, screwdriver.

Click here for instructions

Please note!

The original instructions are no longer available, however, I will leave the information up in case the page becomes available again.

Some other pages that include instructions for a tin can man:

http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf43267298.tip.html

http://worththewhisk.com/2009/09/24/how-to-make-a-tin-can-man/

http://www.hometalk.com/4126480/craft-tin-man-upcycle

http://serenityinthegarden.blogspot.com/2012/11/make-tin-can-man-in-your-garden.html

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Outdoor shower

When it comes to the garden, there are many projects that are still dreams and ideas in my head . . . an outdoor shower is on the top of that list!

From Sunset Magazine . . .

This weekend project has three basic parts: two wing walls and a center pole with the plumbing attached. 

Time: One weekend (4 hours of labor, plus drying time for sealer)

Difficulty: 3 (on a scale of 1–10; requires modest woodworking skills)

Cost: About $170

Click here for the full article, including instructions and material list.

Awesome collection of backyard projects!  

Click here

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