They are really neat looking stones even without the extra paint. I had bought them from my Home and Garden Party selling days, so I bought several of them, it was a deal I just couldn't pass up. I wish I had bought a few more! I was feeling tired of having no color in the garden though so I thought I'd personalize these beauties.
As you can probably see, they have been outside for quite some time. I have used them for several years in my garden as is. The first thing I needed to do before I painted these stones, was wash them. I used an old toothbrush to get the dirt out of all of the hidden away nooks and crannies.
In the sink you can see one that has been scrubbed which is laying down and one that has been rinsed, but not scrubbed. They were all full of pine needles and mulch too.
I used patio paint that was specially formulated to go outside without any special shelac or anything needed, well for two of them anyway. This is what they looked like after all three of them were painted. I debated if I should paint them all the same, but I decided that would be BO-RING! Now that I think about it, I should have added more color to a couple of them. The yellow, green, and black paint isn't the special formula, so I'll have to seal it. I forgot about that until now. Oops!
It just occured to me that they were still hidden away in the closet so I brought them out today. Now they are comfortably nestled down into the garden into their original locations. I may look for a different home for them though, I'm not so sure.
Walk on over to my yard from the sidewalk. I thought that giving the children a visual path that they could use to walk through the garden would keep them from stepping on some of my plants. I guess it's more wishful thinking than anything, but one can sure hope!
Thank you for stopping by. Please leave me a message and a backlink. I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Cindy
13 comments:
Great stepping stones! Doing each one up differently provides a bit of contrast, yet the shape & pattern provide continuity. I'm always kicking myself when I fail to take full advantage of a bargain. I think we're a little too cost conscious sometimes.
Oooo, now they are too pretty to walk on!
Those are beautiful even without the paint! Love em! Did you make them with concrete vinyl patcher? That is what I use for the marker stones and it works well. Looks great!
Looks good! What will you seal the non-Patio paint sections with? I love to paint and have done some painting on the walls of my back patio using Patio Paints. I'm just finishing up a vine w/"fantasy" flowers behind a fountain. Patio paints really hold up well to the weather--at least the weather here.
Very beautiful work Cinj! I love butterflies, I always try to have as many as I can in my garden. There's some finishing spray you can buy as well.
You did a great job painting these. I was just making a stone path through my new bed this morning, for the kids as well!
You did a great job with them!! And even if you get tired of the colors you can always paint over them again. I'm always changing stuff out and redoing. Kids love to walk on stones too so that was a clever way to solve that problem.
Those are so pretty. I like the before and after photos. That way, we really got to see the difference. I was going to tell you too that my Sophie cat looks a lot like your Speedy. She was a stray.~~Dee
Thanks for all of the wonderful compliments!
MMD- That's for sure. I think the price for these beauties on the clearnace sale were around $3 each. Oh well. We'll make our own this summer. Thanks for the encouraging words.
Barbee- Well, the kids don't bother using them for their intended purpose anyway. Poor plants are always getting stepped on.
Tina- I didn't make them, I bought them. I'd love to know how to make my own stones like that though!
Lin- I was thinking of an exterior varnish, but I'll ask the "experts" before I make my final decision.
Kathi- Thanks. I wasn't real sure on the color combos, but they're growing on me.
Amy- Do your kids use it or does it end up being more decorative like mine has?
Anna- Yup. I am always making things into new colors, it keeps life interesting without the expense of buying new all the time. Peanut like to jump from one to another, but refuses to stay on the stones anyway so I'm not so sure that they'll work for the intended purpose. I guess they can at least add a splash of color to the yard.
Dee- I love to keep track of the before and afters. Then when I'm feeling like I didn't get much accomplished, I can look back and see exactly how much I got done.
Speedy is really quite a special kitty. I hope your Sophie brings you as much joy as Speedy brings us.
Cinj, I think you only need a mold. I made some hypertufa in a tupperware mold which had a flower on it and the flower turned out. That is why I don't see why any mold with these indentions in it wouldn't turn out. They are wonderful.
Really? I'm thinking concrete would probably work the best. Is that right? It's going to be a fin project.
Yes, concrete vinyl patcher since it doesn't have any rocks in it.
Hi Cinj. I was over here the other day and got called away before I could post about your butterfly pavers. These are so fun. I agree with the person who liked them not painted too. They are just plain cute whatever way you look at them.
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