Recommended Supplies for Garden Art-Making

Craft and Art Supplies

These are the basic supplies I always have on hand for making decorative items for the garden.

1. Glass Gems / Flat Bottom Marbles

If you’d like an idea of the projects you could make with these flat-bottom marbles, see Glass Gem DIY Craft Ideas.

2. Acrylic Craft Paints
I use acrylic craft paints constantly for various craft projects. The quality these days is very good including the Martha Stewart brand.

3. Acrylic Paint Brushes
Wash and dry your brushes immediately after use! My mom was an artist with a healthy respect for good art supplies (and taking care of what you have). Good brushes can last a lifetime with proper care.

Safety Gear

4. Safety Glasses
Don’t monkey around when using power tools and equipment. Always use safety equipment.

5. Work Apron
A good work apron is a great idea. I do not want to confess the number of times I have wrecked favourite clothes because I was too eager to work on a project instead of covering up first.

6. Paint and Pesticide Respirator
If you paint or spray paint, protect your lungs! A good respirator is a smart investment.

Tools and Supplies

7. 16 gauge wire
I buy this stuff by the roll and use it for all sorts of things including supporting plants on trellis to garden art making.  The lower the gauge number, the thicker the wire.

8. Needle Nose Pliers
A good pair of needle nose pliers and wire cutters go hand in hand with my constant use of wire in projects.

9. Work Gloves
Protect your eyes, lungs, clothes, and hands when working. Always try gloves on before buying them. It’s essential to get a good fit so you can handle materials easily and have a good grip. So many work gloves are made for giant man hands = not good!

10. GE Silicone II
This is my first choice adhesive for garden art projects. Make sure you get GE Silicone II for gutters and flashing (clear drying, waterproof). It’s much less expensive to buy it in cartridge form and use a caulking gun than it is to buy handy tubes.

• Projects using this product include garden art balls and garden treasure jars.
• Here’s more tips on making sure things stick.

For more options see Glue Resource Guide | Choosing adhesives for outdoor garden art projects

11. Cordless Drill
My first electric drill was quite good and that was a shame because I like to use things up before buying something new! When it finally died, after many years of hard work, I got a good quality cordless drill and it’s so much easier to not have to mess with extension cords. In hindsight, I wish I had purchased two at once because the sale price I got was cheaper for a drill and battery than it is to now buy the battery on its own, so consider this if you’re buying one: it’s great to have a backup battery.

12. Masonary Drill Bit set
There’s really no way around it: you need different types of drill bits for different surfaces: metal, wood, masonary, and ceramics (diamond drill bit).

13. Diamond Drill Bit
This is the key to drilling through items like ceramic plates: diamond drill bits. I have found that some surfaces are fairly easy to drill, others will not budge, so it’s hit and miss when creating garden art flowers. You can see instructions with a short video of how I drill through plates here:

• How to make flowers from dishes and plates and drill through glass.

~Melissa the Empress of Dirt ♛