Made this using one of my rhubarb leaves. Wish I had the larger plant I left behind in hagerstown. Want to seal with black concrete sealer and then paint.
My First
I think it's awesome!
Really good detail and leaf shape! How will you use it ? What kind of cement did you use to cast it ?
I used a 10 lb bag of Quikcrete from Lowes.
Think I will paint it and just place in my garden. Want to make more especially a few tiny ones with Heuchera leaves for another fountain for my fairy garden.
Wish I had elephant ears as big as the one I had in hagerstown. Would make a great pond don't ya think?
This is so cool! The first time I ever even heard of doing something like this was from a project that Ric and Holly did. I knew there were pictures posted somewhere, so I found a few that Gita took at the fall swap. Holly has pictures posted of the whole project, but they must be buried somewhere harder to find. What a cute picture of your granddaughter? with the elephant ears. Before I opened it up to full size, it almost looks like a fairy in a fairy garden :-)
I thought that was a picture of a doll until I clicked on it. Adorable picture, haighr!
Your leaf project turned out so well! I love Ric and Holly's leaves, too. That color is just perfect.
haighr IS a living doll!
I made some EE leaves last year but wasn't thrilled with my paint job.
I also made one on a huge Castor bean leaf but it was too thin and the points broke off.
So it is finished!
I love what holly and ric did! I want to make some from my EE as I don't have anymore rhubarb leaves big enough. When we moved from hagerstown I jus brought an offshoot from my established plant. Wish now I have the whole enormous thing!
I didn't use any wire in this one but will in the next. Sorry to hear yours broke.
Wow, love the colors you used. That's a real work of art !
heighr--
What kind of paint did you use? Those colors are fantastic.
heighr--
Something must have burped--as my post never went....
In it I said how awesome your leaves look!
Just as if they were antiqued brass or copper...
That shine! Those black veins! sooo pretty!
Where will you be using these? g.
Thanks everyone I am really pleased. Used metallic acrylic paints in layers over an all black base of flat black concrete paint. Thought that would make the veins pop!
Think I will just place this one in the mulch near the rhubarb plant. I'll be making more to put around my downspouts!
Will let this one cure another week and then paint on a coat of clear concrete sealer.
This message was edited Jul 27, 2015 5:18 PM
That's so nice, the Waldorf Astoria would be proud to display it in their lobby. :)
Stunning! I can see you're off and running with another creative endeavor. :-)
The colors remind me of those black/metallic freshwater pearls, very elegant. How long did you let the concrete cure before painting it? Did you leave it damp in a plastic bag, or submerge it like I've done for hypertufa?
Wow, gorgeous colors! It looks like something you'd find in a fancy catalogue. :)
Thanks everyone for the lovely compliments.
Jill I didn't do either. I let it cure one week, then painted with flat black concrete paint and let it set a few days then the acrylics. Will let it sit another 2 weeks and seal with clear coat concrete sealer. My neighbor down here is a stone mason and he gave me a lot of tips. I got some wire concrete mesh to use if I make a larger one. He said this one should hold up well because I used a thick layer of concrete.
Just love the metallic paints you used what a great job. Just beautiful. I may have to try one painted like that. I saw a pic of one done with blue, purple and green metallic paints that was very whimsical. Love the idea of making one for your fairy garden.
I've heard about curing damp or wet in order to increase the strength of the concrete, but I'm the first to admit I don't know much about concrete. Just letting it sit out for a week sounds easier! :-)
I think keeping it camp helps cure it more evenly but not bothered as I have seen a lot of concrete pours and over time they dry thoroughly without damping the surface. I will put a sealer on it in a couple weeks.
Depends on the weather, What you want is for it to cure slower, if you have some overcast and cool days that is good if it is very hot and sunny, then you can sit your piece in the shade or cover with a piece of plastic to keep it damp longer. You don't want it to sit out in the sun on a hot bright day and bake dry quickly.
thx! makes sense
Thanks Holly for explaining. I never tried this in hagerstown cause I had no place to leaf it out of the elements. Down here I have a big covered boathouse, but don't have my big rhubarb plant.
Too bad that the Plant Swap is before our Garden Club picnic or I could cut a bunch of leaves from the portadora and bring them to the swap for people that would like to try casting a big leaf. I was surprised how long those leaves stayed in good shape after I cut them.
Oh darn, Holly!! I'd love to try casting a big leaf!
What is portadora Holly?
Portadora Alocasia
These leaves will be a good 4-5 ft long by the end of summer. I have them growing on the 4 corners of the Gazebo. These are the leaves I used to make the waterfall.
This message was edited Jul 31, 2015 10:54 AM
Sorry I'm so late to this party but, Haighr, WOW what a breath-taking beautiful work of art!!!!!! My goodness, people would pay BIG money for gorgeosity like that!!!
Would love to see and hear how you did the waterfall Holly. You and ric are genius at this stuff. Please share.
Thank you speedie bean for the nice words. It was a lot of fun to make.
Holly I had leaves like that on my Alocasia in Hagerstown, but they aren't getting anywhere close to that down here.
I'll dig it out for you later this afternoon. Heading out to watch Lily & Lucas in a Judo Competition.
Haighr, I found it here in ATP the beginning of the thread shows step to step
from the making of the casts, thru the painting and the building of the waterfall pond and finished
project. You will have to wade thru some comments between the info but it will give you the whole process.
http://allthingsplants.com/thread/view/21811/Cast-Cement-Leaves/?offset=0
Haighr, that is a beauty of a leaf!!!! Stunning!
Thanks for the instructions Holly. Very kind of you to search it for me.
Thanks jan!
I had a friend visiting me this past week that came down from Hagerstown. I ask her to stop by my old house in Hagerstown and asked the new owner if she could have a few more of the rhubarb leaves to bring down with her. Bless her heart Maureen the new owner dug up the entire rhubarb plant pot of it in a pot and send it down here for me. She said that she was so enthralled with the gardens that I had and and maintained in Hagerstown and started from scratch that she didn't mind parting with something that she knew I'd like to have.
I planted them today!
How awesome is that?!!!
wow haighr, that's fabulous!
Thanks more to come now for sure.
Looking forward to seeing them!