Maker post : Building a Bird Bath

So a couple years ago I was at a village fete and I saw a stall with some lovely bird feeder and bird baths. The unusual feature was they were made out of vintage pressed glass vases and bowls. I liked the idea of reusing old homeware that people don’t use anymore that languishes at the back of Welsh dressers unused and unloved!

I probably should have bought one but it was a hot day and I didn’t fancy lugging it around with me as the car was parked a fair distance away.

We have a lovely front garden with a beautiful magnolia, raspberry bushes, St Johns Wort and roses and we have lots of bird visitors.

 

The idea stuck with me and because we are crafters/makers in this household I discussed the idea with my boyfriend that I would like to make a bird bath for the front garden  and he agreed to help me.

So the first thing was to find a suitable bowl for the bird bath. I enjoy spending time browsing charity shops/car boot sales and flea markets. So it was inevitable that I would eventually find something for the job. I believe I paid about £2 for this glass footed cake stand.

It measures approx 7 inches diameter across the top.

So the next job was to find a suitable post for the bowl to sit on.I had considered getting a piece of rebar or a builders fencing pin but it came to my attention that in the shed we had an old piece of metal electrical conduit. Again, a great re-purposing of an unwanted piece of metal.

So this was duly painted with a couple layers of base paint and finished off with black top layer.

 

 

Next we needed to attach the bowl to the conduit pole! My boyfriend, who has an extensive knowledge of glues, suggested that epoxy glue would be the most appropriate (though I admit I didn’t realise it  was slightly coloured).

24 hours later  and pole is attached to the bowl and all we had to do was find the right spot in the garden and dig! I popped an amethyst crystal in the bowl for bees to climb onto and help stop them drowning.

 

 

Hey presto! Hope you and the birds like it!

Addendum; I should add I assumed the glue was creamy coloured naturally.I discovered today that my Boyfriend decided to add phosphorescent powder in to make it glow at night. I admit i’m not entirely happy about this, because to me it has impacted the aesthetic I was achieving.