DIY - Mosaic Plant Starter
September 11, 2009 | By
Every gardener has probably started some plants by placing shoots in water and watching them grow. It is an economical way to increase you plant population.
Instead of purchasing a commercial planter, consider making your own. You can turn any watertight container into a beautiful mosaic plant starter by recycling items you can probably find around your house. In the fish mosaic planter shown polymer clay and a plastic box (4”x 4”x 5”) destined for the trash was used.
Directions:
1. Pick a container to cover. It will need to be watertight, with a smooth flat surface. If you don’t have a clear container, you can easily adapt a terra cotta pot to this plan. Just nestle in a plastic cup before using it as a planter.
2. Pick a pattern that fits on the side(s) of your container. Children's coloring books are an excellent source for this, because the shapes are simple, and they work well for mosaics. When you find the pattern you want, cut it out and tape to the INSIDE of your clear container. This will be your pattern to follow when gluing your mosaic pieces in place.
*Terra cotta folks will need to trace the pattern on the outside of your pot using a piece of carbon paper.
3. Pick out the coordinating colors to match your pattern that you selected. Roll out sheets of polymer clay to uniform thickness and cut out your tiles. (You can also use paper, stained glass, or even paint instead of clay.) In the example shown, small square tiles were used and then trimmed after baking to fit the shapes of the fish and seaweed.
Helpful hint: To make the tiles uniformly square, lay a piece of graph paper on top of a sheet of polymer clay. Then use a needle to poke holes at every intersection of the graph lines. When the paper is removed, it's simple to cut straight lines by lining your cutting blade along the dots. This way all the tiles are the same size.
4. Follow the manufacturer’s directions for baking the clay. After it is baked and cooled, choose the appropriate glue for the surface you are covering and glue your tiles in place following the pattern taped on the inside. After all your tiles are in place and the adhesive has dried, apply a sand free grout, and wipe the excess off. In the example shown, polymer clay feet were formed from a shell mold, baked, and then applied to the bottom of the planter with epoxy. Since the grout is dry in 20 minutes, and is only on the outside of the vessel, the planter is ready for immediate use. Depending on the size of your container, you may choose to use aquarium gravel, rock chips, or marbles to help stabilize your new shoots while they begin rooting.
Now you have a functional plant starter made from something you almost threw away. Your plants will thrive in this pretty planter as they root, until they’re strong enough for replanting in their own containers.
For inspiration and ideas, browse through the work of these talented mosaic artists:
Broken4Art
GlassyLassMosaics
mjmosaics
Mosaicme
DoMosaics
Photos courtesy of Cindi Thayn.
Cindi loves purple, painting, and playing with clay. For more crafty articles, please visit Cindi in the Just For Fun department
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