Easy Gardening Crafts

Patriotic Barn Star Accents

• Strategically distributing hand-painted barn stars around your garden adds pizazz to the area. Barn stars date back over 300 years, and are associated with religious refugees from the German region known as the Rhine. People from the Rhine region were known to decorate their barns with colorful geometric patterns; stars were favorite shapes. Barn stars are made of tin and can be painted with gloss paints that will be durable in all kinds of weather. For a particularly patriotic look, red, white and blue barn stars can be painted and used to accent a Fourth of July garden.

Painted Gazing Bowling Ball

• Gazing balls can be purchased at craft and garden supply stores and placed on a pedestal in a garden. However, for a fun DIY gazing ball, paint an old bowling ball. Bowling balls can be found for a variety of prices at thrift stores and garage sales. While many bowling balls are marbleised in bright colors, if you have the urge to create a unique, one-of-a-kind bowling gazing ball, purchase some high-gloss spray paint or enamel paint and paint away. Place the gazing ball on a pedestal in your oasis to show it off to the world.

Painted Rock Ladybugs

• Ladybugs have a charm all their own and are one of the most beloved insects by gardeners. Painting rocks to look like ladybugs is easy to do and displaying these around a garden will bring smiles to all who see them. Before starting on the project, find a cartoon-like rendering of a lady bug to use as a pattern. The supplies needed include oval rocks of varying sizes, red, black and white enamel paints, and paintbrushes. Wash the rocks until they are free of all matter and let them dry in a warm clean place. When dry, paint the rocks to look like the ladybug pattern and let them dry. Use spray varnish on the ladybugs when they are dry to protect your design.

Terra Cotta Flowerpot Ideas

• Terra cotta flowerpots can be used to create many different kinds of crafts for a garden. For example, an easy flowerpot stand can be made by buying two, same-size, terra cotta flowerpots and gluing their rims or bases together. When a terra cotta plant saucer is glued to the top of the stand, it becomes a bird bath, a gazing ball stand or a plant stand. Use enamel gloss paint in bright colors to paint terra cotta flower pots; consider adding polka dots or modern flower designs to the flowerpots for a striking effect.