Found Art Birdbath

We are going to show you how you can make a bird bath out of some found materials. A caulking gun and heavy duty construction adhesive will make the magic happen!

Gather up your supplies to work outside or in a workshop.

Found Art:

• Inside spinner of an old washing machine
• Artichoke candle holder (from a yard sale)

Base:

• Terra cotta flower pot (clay or plastic). You pick the size. You probably don't want it too big or too small.
• Larger plastic flower pot saucer for bigger pots - the one you typically use to put under a flower pot for draining (this will be the bath part for the birds).
• Small terra cotta clay saucer for small pots.
• Patio block (this will help greatly with stability).

Hardware supplies:

• Caulking gun
• Strong heavy duty construction adhesive that can bond with ceramic, plastic or metal. We used Gorilla Heavy Duty Construction Adhesive in the caulking type of tube.

The most interesting part of this project is finding a base that will be the focal point of your birdbath.

It can be as simple as a flower pot turned right side up or upside down.

You may want to choose an object that is not typically used as a base for a bird bath.

• You will need some type of object that can used as a sturdy base for the bottom.
• It should be high enough to raise the "bath" part off of the low ground.
• It should have a flat area big enough that you can glue the "bath" part to it.
• You will need something that is waterproof and can handle the outside elements.

In our case, we've been using this antique washing machine as a china cabinet. We took the inside spinner out and use the two inside compartments to store plates and seasonal decor. (Yes. We did use the old washing machine to hold iced drinks when it was our turn to host the neighborhood block party). The washing spinner has been in the basement waiting for a really good idea to come along... we think that this one is it!

You'll want to wipe off your parts. The less loose dirt and dust, the better your adhesive will stick.

Dry fit all the pieces together to see what you think your bird bath will look like. You may find you want to flip some parts upside down or be inspired to use something else. In our case we added the artichoke candle holder.

Get your caulking gun set up with your adhesive. Remember to cut open the inside seal so that the adhesive can begin oozing out of from the tip. (Be careful! This stuff is sticky! It will take several hours to harden up.)

Trace the outside of the spinner onto the patio block with chalk.

Run a bead of adhesive all around the inside of the drawn circle.

Place the spinner base on top.

Push down with even and firm pressure so to get the best adhesion possible.

Once you base is set you'll need to add the bird bath dish.

• Dry fit the two parts together.
• Decide which part will be easiest to add the adhesive to. In this case, we chose the top of the base.
• Run a bead of adhesive on the one part.

• Center the water dish over the base. It helps if you can see what is going on underneath.

• Once, glued and centered, push down with a gentle yet steady pressure in order to make sure the glue has full contact with the parts.

It will take several hours for the glue to fully cure. Try not to budge the pieces.

While not necessary, you can add a little place for your birds to hang out on during their visit to the bird bath.

It can be as simple as placing a flat rock in the dish so they have a place to land above the water line.

For this project we used a small terra cotta saucer- the type that go underneath the pot. They cost around $1.00 each. They are sturdy and not too heavy at this size.

Flip it over so you can get a greater flat contact area.

We recently acquired these cool artichoke candle holders at a garage sale and thought they would make a nice visual addition to this project. Add something unique that you may have around your home.

Play around with whatever "found" object you may have. In this case we tried having the artichoke upside and right side up. Either way would have looked fine. We decided to flip it over so that it looked like a mini bird bath dish inside the bigger dish.

Whatever you choose, make sure that it can handle the outside elements-- waterproof and subject to the your local weather.

If you have chosen to create your birds a landing zone, it is time to adhere that to the larger water dish.

• You can eyeball the center of the dish or you may want to add some chalk marks as guides.

• Run a bead of adhesive to your section.

• Press down fairly hard on it to get as much contact area as possible. You may want to ever so slightly rotate it under the pressure of your hand. Some of the adhesive will squish out. (You can trim the extra after it hardens with an exacto blade. This stuff is STICKY until it hardens.)

This is almost the hardest part! Be patient!!

Gently move your bird bath to a place that won't get bumped while the adhesive dries.

We put ours right in plain view on our porch. We were so excited to see it that we placed it where we could look at it all day!!

The next day, carefully place your bird bath in a bird friendly location. Birds like to be able to have some bushes nearby where they can observe safely from afar before they go come in for a visit.

Don't forget to add fresh water and rinse out the dish from time to time.

Wait patiently for birds to find your beautiful creation!! If you see some birds using your bird bath, take a photo and post it so we all can see how your project turned out!