Cement Garden Globes
In the search for a perfect outdoor accessory, I wanted to find something that wouldn’t blow away in the wind (we live outside of Chicago, so many outdoor lawn ornaments fall victim to the howling winds) and that was economical. Here is where my cement garden globes come in.
What You Will Need:
- Quick-setting concrete (you can buy a bag or bucket at Home Depot or Lowes or other hardware store)
- Lighting covers (try finding these at a thrift store or flea market first, then check hardware stores for sales or the cheapest options they offer – you are going to break them after all!)
- Non-stick cooking spray (yes, the kind you use in your kitchen!)
- Small garden shovel
- Hammer
- Gloves (for when you break the glass)
- Large piece of cardboard or trash bag to perform project on
- Old towel or blanket
What You Will Need To Do:
- Spray the inside of the lighting covers with non-stick cooking spray. The spray will help the glass break away from the cement when you break it.
- Set the glass ball in an old towel or blanket so it can’t roll away while you’re filling it and as it’s setting up.
- Now it’s time to make the concrete. Pour the dry mix in the bucket and then add water until it reaches the consistency of peanut butter (See image below).
Step 3: Mixing the cement. Step 7: Breaking the globes.
- Use a small garden shovel to fill the balls. After every scoop, give the ball a shake or twist to help it settle and break up any air bubbles.
- Fill the ball to the top and try to make it as level as possible. You might have some concrete left over depending upon the size of your globes, however I was surprised how much concrete it actually took.
- Let the balls sit for at least 24 hours to fully set-up (See above image).
- When the concrete has turned light, use a hammer to lightly tap the glass and break away pieces off the concrete ball. Make sure you wear gloves so you don’t injure yourself. Throw away the glass and you’re done. This is where performing the project on cardboard or a trash bag will aid in clean-up.
All done! Now place the globes in your garden for the perfect added touch. After seeing them in place, I think I am going to paint them in bright vibrant colors – whenever I get around to it!! For now they are perfect!
Lovely end product, but it does seem a bit destructive/wasteful for a craft item. Certainly even thrift store light globes are still useful for their intended purposes, and will save someone the money and energy of buying a new one. I would be interested to see if a similar effect could be achieved with materials intended for a similar purpose (ceramic molds, perhaps?) that wouldn’t have to be destroyed afterwards. Thought-provoking tutorial!
Thanks for the idea. I particularly like the knobby looking one.
One point of clarification is needed. Cement and concrete are not the same thing. In your article, you use the term “concrete”, but the picture shows “cement”. Concrete is cement mixed with sand, gravel, or other aggregate. I’m assuming that since you want a smooth texture to your casting that you’re using cement (otherwise the gravel will show through in places and it will look rough).
Thanks Mike for the clarification and yes I did use cement versus concrete! I bet you could use either depending upon the look you wanted to achieve!
Perfect, absolutely perfect.
Thanks for the info. I am so excited to try this!