How to Create Super Easy Garden Art
Creating garden art is super easy if you have some interesting trinkets lying around your house. As long your treasured trinkets can withstand exposure to outdoor elements and you are willing to take a chance that something unpleasant could possibly happen to them, it can be a fun and whimsical way to enjoy special items that would otherwise remain out of sight and possibly buried beneath all those odds and ends in your junk drawer.I love butterflies, and I happened to have a purple butterfly decoration from a flower arrangement that I received a couple of years ago. I also had a beautiful, jeweled butterfly brooch that I received from a very kind lady who wanted to remind me that I'm beautiful and that God had equipped me for the road he'd set before me. Well, one day my whimsy self got the bright and glorious idea to turn these two little butterfly treasures into super easy garden art. (They'd make great fairy wands, too, I think.) I already had ALL of the supplies on hand, which was a HUGE plus! AND, it only took about 30 minutes or so from start to finish, which was another HUGE plus for me.
Garden Art Supplies
The three must-have supplies on the list are trinkets, sticks, and hot glue. Trinkets don't have to be butterflies - they can be anything lightweight enough to glue onto a stick. I've even thought about using some of the scalloped sea shells I collected on a beach trip that I took with my mom. For sticks, I used some wooden craft dowels that I had from when my daughter and I made Thanksgiving photo booth props a few years ago. Since I'm not a huge crafter, I keep a small hot glue gun for little projects like this one. Paint and glitter certainly aren't necessary, so if you don't want to use those, you won't need Mod Podge either. Below are some of the same or similar supplies I used to create my garden art. The glitter I used is Tree House Studio extra fine disco glitter from Hobby Lobby. The Disco Dust below looks very similar. Also, I couldn't find the Master's Touch pearlescent paint on Amazon, but it can be found at Hobby Lobby as well.
*It is recommended that you use some type of acrylic spray or brush on sealer to seal the acrylic paint if your acrylic paint doesn't already have a built in sealer. I didn't do this since I didn't have any on hand, but I didn't feel it was super important to protect the wood dowel. I'm wondering, though, if the Mod Podge will help with this? We've had a couple of good desert rains that the purple butterfly has been exposed to, but the paint held up just fine. Anyway, point is - you should use a sealer if you want to protect your acrylic paint job!
Garden Art Steps
First, I painted the sticks with Master's Touch acrylic paint. I started out using a foam brush but then switched to using my fingers. It was easier for me that way. I actually layered different colors of paint. For the first coat, I used a solid color. Over that I painted with a pearlescent color, and then I added a touch of white and sort of lightly streaked it across the stick. Second, I used my fingers to spread Mod Podge evenly on the wooden dowel, and then I sprinkled extra fine disco glitter onto it. It's hard to tell from the pictures, but I like the way the glitter glistens in the sun. It's like fairy dust. :) Third, I glued my butterfly trinkets to the tops of the dowels after the paint, glue, and glitter had dried. Since acrylic paint and Mod Podge dry really fast, I didn't have to wait long at all. Last, I added one of my super easy garden art butterflies to a large front porch pot that grows a lush, shade-loving jasmine plant. Then I added the other butterfly to a small backyard hanging pot that sports a sad-looking vinca plant. The scorching desert sun hasn't been too kind to my flowers this summer. Oh well, it's almost time to plant fall flowers anyway.
Since I had to remove my fairy garden from the backyard due to a giant, mischievous puppy, I decided to add some of the fairy accessories to my jasmine pot to accompany the jeweled brooch. Not where I wanted my fairy garden, but at least now my fairy and her friends are safe. :)
When whimsy strikes, search your home for little trinket treasures and make your own super easy garden art!This post may be linked up to one or more of these link-up parties.
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