How to Make a Mold for a Birdbath

Cover your work space with a large plastic tarp. The size of the tarp depends on the size of the birdbath you want to make. The tarp will make it easier to clean up after your birdbath is completed. If you prefer to skip the tarp, you can prepare the remaining steps directly on the ground outside.

Pour a 20-lb bag of playground sand onto your tarp-covered work space. Use your hands to mound the sand into a rounded hill shape. The sand needs to stand 3 inches tall at the highest point in the center and 1/4 inch at the edges. If the sand is dry and does not hold its shape, add water to the sand to moisten it. The amount of water will depend on the original moisture content of the sand. You want the sand moist, not soaked.

Cover the mounded surface of sand with plastic wrap. Smooth the plastic wrap over the sand. The plastic wrap helps keep the sand out of the concrete you will be using to create your birdbath.

Place a large leaf, such as an elephant ear, sunflower or rhubarb leaf, on top of the plastic wrap-covered sand mound. Place the leaf so that the top of the leaf is against the plastic wrap and the underside is up.

Mix a 1 lb. bag of concrete according to its packaging. You want the concrete thick enough that you can mound it on top of the leaf and not have it run. Wearing gloves to protect your hands from the drying effects of the concrete, use your hands to transfer the concrete onto the leaf. Smooth the concrete out so that it is 2 inches thick in the center and a 1/4 inch thick on the edges of the leaf. Press the concrete down so that it will pick up the veins of the leaf.

Cover the concrete-covered leaf with a second tarp to protect it from debris and leave it to dry for three days. Take the mostly dry birdbath from the mound on the third day and turn it over so that the concave side is up. Peel the leaf away and leave the concrete to dry for another three days.