Whimsy in the Garden

Am I the only one who wants to take crafting outdoors? I found this garden wind chime project in Parents magazine last month and had to try it.

Here are my supplies: Christmas bells leftover from the holidays, buttons I got on sale, and we buy sodas in glass bottles from a local bottler, meaning we’ve been saving bottle caps for… years. These came in handy!

But if you didn’t have all these supplies handy, try an online store like Factory Direct Craft – they have lovely buttons, bells, googly eyes… I especially loved their felt selection, as that’s a craft area I want to branch into sometime! (Also check out their kids’ craft kits!). Literally, any craft I have ever seen on Pinterest… this site has the supplies for it! I love one-stop shopping like that! 🙂

So on to the project!, I used hot glue instead of the tacky glue recommended. The hot glue got a little messy with all the stringy-ness. But I figured it would take less time to dry. I definitely was faster, but lining up the buttons/bottle caps was time consuming. I think I spent about an hour on this project (not counting time getting supplies).

I don’t want to put full instructions here, since it was printed in the magazine, but you can see my creation and probably figure out how it works. After a few days outside, several pieces fell off – I hoped the hot glue would hold up to summer heat better. I repaired them and maybe it’ll do better now. Should I have used the tacky glue? I just don’t have the patience for the drying time!

I have another idea for a fabric garden banner that I might try soon!

What crafts have you been making lately?

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