Sunday, February 15, 2015

Glass Garden Flowers


Nothing beats day dreaming about spring when it is ZERO degrees outside! So here is a fun project to start planning for - THE PERFECT FLOWER GARDEN! 

Low maintenance!
Always in Bloom!
Never wilting!
No dead-heading!
Glistens in the sun!
Makes your heart happy!

Supply List
various vintage clear glass plates, bowls, saucers, etc.
premium silicone glue
rubbing alcohol
3/8 inch rebar - approximately 41 inches per stem
one hockey puck per flower 
drill & 3/8 inch drill bit


Begin by gathering a variety of clear vintage glassware.  Lots of shapes and colors.  The more variety the better.  I bought most of these at thrift stores, never spending more than $1.99 on a plate.  I think garage sales would be cheaper, but I was making these for Christmas gifts and it was not garage sale season at the time.


Purchase GE Premium Clear Silicone Glue - this is amazing stuff - permanent, waterproof, airtight, and sun/freeze proof.  I found it at ACE hardware.  I could not find it in a caulking gun size tube, which would have been ideal.  So I had to purchase several of this small 2.8 oz tube. I ended up using about 3/4 tube per flower, depending on how many layers the flower had.


Make sure your dishes have been thoroughly cleaned.  I used Goo Gone to remove the price tags and then ran all the glassware through the dishwasher.  Once your glass is all cleaned, begin to design your flowers.  Mix and match, using a variety of colors, until you are happy with the way your flowers look. Once you have your flowers picked out, wipe the front and back of each piece of glass with rubbing alcohol.


Lay your bottom plate down and add a generous amount of glue to the back of the next dish


Press in place


Continue with the process until your flower is all glued together



Here is another flower laid out for you to see



















Once my flowers were glued together I placed something heavy on them and let them dry overnight.


Next you will need rubber hockey pucks.  
I ordered them at Hockey Monkey for less than $2.00 each.


My husband drilled holes in them using a vice to hold the puck while he drilled.  Use a 3/8  drill bit, but keep in mind that you want the rebar to fit snug yet still be able to easily remove the flower from the stem. 


Place a generous amount of glue on the hockey puck and place the hockey puck on the back of the flower.


Carefully flip the flower over so the weight of the flower holds the hockey puck tight.  Let stand overnight until the glue dries.


Once your flowers are glued, you are ready to plant your beautiful garden!












12 comments:

  1. So beautiful! I'm attempting gluing plates to a window and wondering if you've had any problems at all with heavy objects separating and falling off with that glue?

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    Replies
    1. I used E6000 from Michaels to glue flat marbles and glass items such as saucers, lids etc to an old window. I hung it in my bathroom 2 years ago and all glass pieces are still adhered.

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  2. Replies
    1. She said 3/8 inch diameter rebar and at least 41 inches

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  3. Could this all be done with plastic dishes ??

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    Replies
    1. I've used plastic Dollar Store melamine dishes. No problem

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    2. I've used melamine dishes from Dollar Store with no problem

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  4. Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful glass flowers and how to make them

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  5. Talk about zero degree weather. This is Bev from Bigfork Montana. I have a question about the rebar that you use. Do you do anything about the rust on the rebar or do you like it for the aesthetic value? Just curious. Thanks for the pin. I think you are awesome for sharing how to attach the plate to the rebar using a hockey puck.

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  6. Very creative! Someday I will make my own The Glass Garden. Nice share!

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  7. I have about 20 clear glass door knobs. I'm thinking of making a "glass garden" out of them.

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