|
|
Make-it-Yourself Flower Pot Wind
Chimes
by Patricia A Ziegler
These natural-looking flower pot wind chimes will add a touch of charm
to any porch or breezeway. They are simple to make, and can be left out
in all weathers. Best of all, they cost you nearly nothing!
Here's all you need:
Five clay flowerpots in varying sizes, none larger than 4 inches
diameter (you may already have a few of these lying around the yard!)
Wooden beads (from the crafts store). For a complete set of chimes, you
will need five beads of 3/4 inches diameter, and ten beads of 5/8 inch
diameter.
Two or three plastic salad container covers (from the salad bar).
Five one-inch plastic curtain rings (Bates makes these of Luxite, and a
package of 15 sells for about $1.35.)
Stained glass paints in varying colors (optional), also from the crafts
store.
Approximately 15 yards of nylon or polypropylene garden twine.
Ready:
If your pots have been around the block a few times, you might need to
give them a bath. Scrub them with hot soapy water and a stiff brush.
After they have dried, check their physical condition by tapping gently
with a fingernail. A clean, dry, undamaged pot will reward you with a
resonant ring.
Now is a good time (while you are waiting for your pots to dry) to cut
your plastic rectangles. From the salad container covers, cut one each
of these sizes:
2" x 6"
2" x 5 1-2"
2" x 5"
2" x 4 1-2"
2" x 4"
Drill a small hole in one short end of each rectangle. Stain these, if
desired, with the glass stain paint, following manufacturer's
directions.
Set:
For each chime, set aside:
one flower pot
one 3/4 inch wooden bead (this will serve as the clapper)
two 5/8 inch wooden beads
one curtain ring
one plastic rectangle (matched by size to the pot)
one piece of garden twine, about 3 yards long
Go:
If necessary, separate your piece of twine into one ply, and tie one end
to the plastic curtain ring. Leave about 10 inches free to allow for
later adjustment. Working from outside to inside, feed the free end
through the 'weep hole' in the bottom of the pot.
Now feed the free end through one of the 5/8 inch wooden beads. This
bead will rest against the inside bottom of the pot to support the chime
when it hangs. Adjust until the measurement is as you wish, and mark the
string.
Positioning the 5/8 inch bead at your mark, loop the free end of the
twine around the bead and insert it a second time through the same hole
from the top to the bottom. (Figure 1). Tighten.
Suspend the pot by the curtain ring and determine the point at which the
string meets the rim of the pot. Mark the string at this point.
Slide the 3/4 inch bead up the string to the mark you have just made.
This bead will serve as the clapper, and should hit at the rim of the
pot.
Now slide the second 5/8 inch bead up the string immediately beneath the
3/4 inch bead. This bead will hold the 3/4 inch bead in place on the
mark.
Loop the twine up around the 5/8 inch bead and back down through it (as
you did in Step 4 with the other 5/8 inch bead). Adjust the beads if
necessary to ensure that the larger bead still hits the pot at the rim.
(Figure 2).
Now feed the free end of the twine through the hole you previously
created in the plastic rectangle. Adjust length as desired, and tie.
Repeat the above for each of the other four pots.
You're done! From the eaves of your breezeway or porch, hang each pot
upside down by the curtain ring. Now mix up a batch of lemonade, and
invite the neighbors up on the porch to enjoy the gentle sound of your
beautiful new flower pot wind chimes!
For the illustrated version of this article, please visit
www.pazpizzazz.com/chimes.html.
Patricia A. Ziegler owns and operates pazpizzazz, where you will find
useful and decorative items for your home and garden, as well as gift
items for babies and children.
You can find additional make-it-yourself projects for home and garden
decor at
www.pazpizzazz.com/articles.
Article Source:
http://www.homehighlight.org
|
|
