Solar Lit Garden Mushroom

[Jenxx]

I'm totally chuffed with the way my garden mushroom turned out.  It's made mostly from discards & (With a bit of engineering help from Hubby) it's solar lit.  

It's made from an old vase, the discarded glass from a  torchere floor lamp, a glass jar, & a cheap solar light.  I used one stroke technique & Glass paints to make the flower decoration.

I put it out this morning so it can "Catch some rays" & take on a glow this evening.  I can hardly wait to see it lit up.  I'll have to take another photo then.



I've been trying to get a good photo of my garden mushroom but haven't had much luck---too dark, I think.  This is the best I can do but it shows a nice glow from the solar light.



A bit more as to how we did it & how we'll do it differently next time:


The vase was clear glass and didn't match the frosted lamp shade so we spray painted the INSIDE ONLY.  It still isn't a perfect match but ---good enough for who it's for.

  Photo B

We purchased the smallest solar light we could find.  The one pictured is a bit larger than the one we used but good enough for demo purposes.  A slight twist will separate the top from the base (photo B ).  I covered the little solar panel with masking tape & spray painted the top white.

  Photo C

We then glued the solar disk to a jam/jelly size canning jar with E6000 glue.  (Photo C )  We made sure we removed the tab before glueing so the battery would begin charging.   We didn't paint the jelly jar because it would have cut down on the amount of light.  The jar not only allowed light to escape but added height to the stem.
When it was dry, We glued the jar to the overturned vase & the shade to the top.  Done!

After it was glued we realized what we did wrong.  Next time we'll screw a canning ring to the jar and attach the solar disk to it before adding the shade.  That way we will be able to replace the battery when needed by unscrewing the top.




 

[anderlance]

What a great idea & your recycling as well!  Truly wonderful!

[Subee]

What a cute idea! I'm afraid I'm going to have to steal it for my new garden.

[blackie.sage]

I think one day I'm going to end up being one of those old ladies who has way too many lawn ornaments that don't actually go together... because I see cute things like this everywhere and I just want it all!

So awesome!

[Wulf]

I almost gasped when I saw this, because I realized you've put the solar panel into the opening of the lamp shade, haven't you? It's perfect! I gave away one of those shades just a few weeks ago.

This is brilliant, and your painting is beautiful too. The vase makes a perfect stem.

Wulf

[LizzyEU]

Can't wait for the nighttime pics.

[dreadlady]

I think one day I'm going to end up being one of those old ladies who has way too many lawn ornaments that don't actually go together... because I see cute things like this everywhere and I just want it all!

So awesome!

Me too, I'm doomed to end up the same way.  This is so freaking amazing, I can't even believe it.  I'm sort of in love with mushrooms anyway, so I need to go out and make this right away.  Just need a solar panel    yay!!!

[LizzyEU]

Is it dark there yet, I'm waiting for the glow-in-the-dark pics. 

[seamaiden75]

That is AWESOME!!! Definately gotta make one for my garden! Can't wait for the night pics!

[BlueCherryFaerie]

That is absolutely awesome.  I'm sooo going to have to try this out.  I've got some light covers from a friend of mine, but I don't think they have holes in them.  Hmmm, maybe I'll just make some mushrooms that don't glow as well.

I like the difference between the glossy base and the frosted top, but if you're not happy with it, you can buy frosted glass spray paint at your local home improvement store.  Or you can buy glass etching medium.  But I like what you did just fine. 

I love yard mushrooms, I have some that I've bought and I've been meaning to make some more, but this is so much better than what I had come up with.