Concrete Pumpkin

Posted in diy, Gardening, Holiday by peppermintsandhoneybees

Happy Halloween! Halloween is my favorite holiday and I have one more pumpkin diy to share. I wanted to make this last Halloween but just ran out of time so it was definitely on my list this year. The Concrete Easter Eggs were my first experience with concrete and it was pretty easy so I was pretty excited. Also I did some research and I guess cement and concrete are not the same. Cement is an ingredient of concrete. Concrete is a mixture of aggregates and paste. So Concrete is stronger and will last much longer. The original idea is on the blog Fox Hollow Cottage.

First cut a hole and and design you want on the pumpkin with a knife. This one was a light I got at Goodwill so it already had a face and a hole in the bottom.

Next put plastic wrap tightly around the face so the concrete won’t leak out. Turn in upside down and spray the inside with cooking spray. I forgot this stepsons mines isn’t stick too bad but I would recommend using spray. I put my pumpkin I. A bucket to get it to stay upside down while I poured the concrete in. The concrete I used was Quikrete from Home Depot.

If you’ve never mixed concrete it’s pretty easy. Some people add the powder to the water, I like to add water gradually to the powder while I stir. Only add a little water at a time until you get an even and thick but pourable consistency.

Let the pumpkin sit for at least 24 hours after you pour the concrete.

When you cut the foam pumpkin off use a knife, scissors, and a screw driver came in handy for prying pieces off.

When I took my pumpkin off the eyes and eyes didn’t fill in all the way so I mixed some more concrete up in a cup and speckle some on to make them bigger and more triangular. It doesn’t have to be perfect though. The cracks and rough spots are what makes the concrete pumpkin interesting!

Show me your costumes in Instagram by using #peppermintsandhoneybees. Now go get your spook on!

23Jul2015

Bird Feeder Save

Posted in diy, Gardening by peppermintsandhoneybees

Last Fall I may have gotten into a minor turf war with one of the squirrels that was stealing bird food. They were good all summer and only ate what the birds dropped but then they got greedy ad found out they could crawl up the brick wall to get to the feeder. After I slapped one on the tail when he didn’t leave I came home the next day to this.

Yup, that’s all from one day. This was personal!

Anyway I really didn’t want o have to throw out the feeder and tried to still use it but the bird seed would spill out when the birds sat on it. I got the idea to glue a plate into the bottom to catch what was spilling out and then the birds could also have a place to perch again.

So far this seems to be working and no squirrels have gotten in yet this year. I’ll probably get a new feeder eventually, I just like to reuse if I can and I was afraid they would just ruin a new feeder too. Bird feeders aren’t exactly cheap! Hopefully everyone can coexist peacefully this year. 😉

P.S. We’re in Portland, OR right now on vacation for my birthday today so I’ll probably be posting pictures next time!

9Jul2015

I joined the Air plant club

Posted in Gardening, home by peppermintsandhoneybees

I’ve actually been wanting an air plant for a while after seeing them all over Pinterest. One of my friends bought some at the Renegade Craft Show in Chicago last summer and while one died she said the other one was pretty easy to care for after she got the knack for it.

According to articles I’ve read the best way to care for them is to submerge the actual plant in a glass of filtered water for a couple hours and let dry on a paper towel after that. Do this once a week or so. I’ve had mine for a couple weeks now and this seems to work so far.

If you are new to air plants they don’t need soil because they don’t have roots. They get their nutrients from the air. (hence the name) They like bright but filtered light best so as long as you keep this in mind they are extremely easy and fun to display. The possibilities. Are endless and here are some fun examples I found on Pinterest from Centrogarden, Buzzfeed, and Decoist.

I put mine in a little terrarium with some sphagnum moss and fish rocks. The glass ornament is from Joann’s. I bought it last winter after Christmas on sale. I’m going to hang it with jute and hang it up somewhere.

25Jun2015

Mounted Wall Vase

Posted in diy, Gardening by peppermintsandhoneybees

I made this wall base for my uncle for Father’s Day and I thought I’d share it. All you need is a slab of a log. They sell them at most craft stores or you can get your own if you’re into that sort of thing! I used and old glass jar and bought a hose clamp from the hardware store for cheap. I nailed the clamp to the wood, but the jar in, tightened it, and added a picture hanger to the back. It was that easy! You could also fill it with dirt and grow plants in it.

Also Ben had to hold it for me on the brick. 😉

25Mar2015

Concrete Easter Eggs

Posted in diy, Holiday by peppermintsandhoneybees

Hey everyone, it’s Wednesday, woohoo! We’re half way to the weekend and even though we just got about 4″ of snow here on Monday, (not cool Mother Nature) I’m excited for Spring and Easter. My family never did a whole lot to celebrate Easter other than Easter egg hunts and and getting together to eat too much food, but its always been one of my favorite holidays to decorate for. I think its because I love rabbits and animals in general along with anything Spring/Summer related. I found this diy on Pinterest by Camille Styles for making concrete eggs with real egg shells. I’ve actually been working on this for a while because I needed to get enough egg shells to fill. When I would use an egg to cook with I would just break out the bottom with a knife of my finger. You want to take the bottom out so that you can fill it from there and then when the concrete is dry they can stand up. Below are the supplies I used; the cup and knife were for the concrete mix and make sure to have paper towels handy. You can usually find concrete mix at any craft or hardware store, it’s pretty fun to work with! If you’ve never mixed concrete, plaster, or anything similar, I use the mound method which is where you fill the cup up with about 1/3 water and slowly add the mix until there is a little mountain on top that doesn’t sink down immediately into the water. Stir it up until there are no clumps or bubbles. it should be about the consistency of pancake mix. I have to admit I got some of mine a little too thick and some didn’t quite turn out perfect but I like some imperfections in mine.

I got a little messy and broke one, whoops! 😉

After your eggs are filled let them dry outside for at least 24 hours. Use an exact-o knife to help peel the shell of and that’s all! If you’d like you can paint or stamp you eggs or anything else you can think of. I might do something with mine but I’m not sure what yet. If I do change them I’ll give an update.

My Easter Table

P.S. the adorable basket and grass cloth are from my good friends at Glory Days Mercantile, check them out they have tons of cute Easter decor!

23Jun2014

Colander Hanging Basket

Posted in diy, home, pinterest by peppermintsandhoneybees

Hi everyone, I hope you’re all having great Summers so far! Sorry it’s been so long since I posted anything, I was in Indiana visiting family and friends and have been busy doing typical Summer things like weddings, garage sales and so on. I’ve also been trying to beautify my outdoor spaces as well so I thought I’d share this DIY colander hanging basket. It’s pretty easy and I’ve been meaning to make it for a long time now I just needed to acquire a metal colander. I was helping a friend have a garage sale this weekend and she had an old colander that she let me have in return so voila!

all you need is:

A colander

Dirt

Plants of your choice

Chain plus S hooks to stick either in the colander holes or around the handles

And another hook for the top

my supplies

I actually found a hanging basket chain kit at Walmart, it was in the chain and rope section. I had to bend the S hooks to get them to fit but all in all it was very easy.

Before the chain, I made a mess!

Plus the colander is perfect since the water drains right though the holes!

Happy making! Let me know what other found objects you have used to put plants in.

Jenna ♥

14May2014

DIY Hummingbird Feeder

Posted in diy by peppermintsandhoneybees

I’m so excited for warm weather finally and cannot wait to decorate my patio since this is the first summer we have had one in about 4 years. I want it as nature friendly as possible. (partly because I like to watch my cats freak out at birds and other animals!) I made this hummingbird feeder very easily with just a red bottle, copper colored wire and a special hummingbird feeder that I bought off of amazon. The color of the bottle doesn’t have to be red but I know they are attracted to red so I figured it wouldn’t hurt. I bought my bottle from Pier One. I just wrapped the wire around the bottle, making sure it was secure and made a loop at the top to hang it from.