Do-it-yourself figures for giving from plaster. DIY garden figures How to make plaster garden figures

Self-decoration The garden is a real space for creativity and imagination. After all, there can be a great many options for creating garden figurines - animals, people, plants, fairy-tale castles, characters from books, etc. But, as elsewhere, in landscape decoration sense of proportion is important. Do not make too many figures or make images from completely different styles. Color harmony also plays a role. Decide on the style of your garden - will it be Japanese style, Russian folk direction or French elegance, already based on the style, you can choose the right figures and images. In this article, we will tell you step by step how to make garden figures with your own hands, the master class will be simple and understandable to all novice gardeners.

Material for making garden decorations all improvised means can serve - bottles, gypsum, plastic, polyurethane foam, car tires.

from curable materials

Gypsum or alabaster is a very convenient and practical material. Even fairly large figures can be made from gypsum, the material takes any desired shape.

Do not forget that alabaster does not like moisture, it is better to varnish the product on top, and store it under a roof in winter and autumn.

Now you will learn how to make a garden mushroom from alabaster.

First, we will make hats for future mushrooms. Better make them different size, so the figures will look more picturesque. We make them from plasticine, as in the photo.

Dilute the gypsum mortar and fill the molds with them. No prelubrication required. The solution should resemble thick sour cream.

Gypsum hardens quickly, about 20 minutes - and you can remove the blanks.

The blank for the legs can also be made from plasticine or plastic liter bottle. Pour the plaster into the mold.

After 15-20 minutes, the leg is ready.

You can shape it a bit with a spatula. We put to dry all the blanks (hats and legs). When the gypsum becomes a lighter shade, it means that it is dry. Drying may take a couple of days. While the leg is soft, you need to make a hole for future fasteners to the ground. You can pierce the leg with a drill.

Then you need to sand the blanks with an abrasive sponge.

How to fasten a mushroom? This can be done with super glue, after passing through the place of bonding with a primer. It is better to make a small dent in the hat before fasteners.

Acrylic paints can be used to paint mushrooms. Here are your taste preferences.

Be sure to varnish the products at the end for resistance to rain and wind.

And now insert a stick or drill into a previously prepared hole and you can stick the mushroom into the ground. Garden decor is ready.

Polymer clay is also a good and inexpensive material for crafts. You can buy it in special stores for needlework. Today we will make a cute clay turtle.

Pick up a small bowl to create the turtle shell.

It is necessary to roll the clay into a sausage and cut into pieces.

Gently place the pieces of clay into the bowl, pressing them down with your hand. When the form is filled, you need to smooth the surface. You can use the stack.

Separately, you need to sculpt the head and paws, mark places for them on the shell. Blind better pieces soaked in water.

Turn the piece over. Work with a stack - draw outlines on the shell and eyes of the turtle.

You can make a turtle hat.

The completion of the craft depends on the type of clay, there is self-drying clay, and there is clay that requires drying in the oven. Dry usually at a temperature of 110-120 degrees.

old tires

Unnecessary tires or tires live in every garage. They can be used as great material for garden crafts. flowerbeds, garden furniture, sandboxes, decor items - all these are possible products from tires.

The easiest option is a tire flower garden. First, let's mark the tire, as shown in the figure. Then you will need to cut along the line.

Cutting a tire is quite difficult, it is better to entrust this process to a man and use a jigsaw. If there is no jigsaw, you can cut with a knife, lifting the edge of the cut.

The tire can be mounted on a stand. Use the part that was cut off at the very beginning, or turn it over and put the pot inside it.

And for this option, the flower bed does not even need to turn the tire.

We create with papier-mâché

Papier-mâché is a material that was invented back in ancient China. The literal translation of the word is chewed paper. For papier-mâché crafts, old newspapers, sheets, toilet paper will also come in handy.

Today we will make a funny crow. A regular crumpled newspaper will do. Let's make two lumps - the future head and body of the crow.

Wings and a beak can be cut out of cardboard, and legs can be made from bamboo sticks.

Everything is held together with tape.

Then the crow should be covered tile adhesive, then glue to the stand and paint as you wish.

Do not forget that for street figures it is better to use acrylic paints and be sure to cover the product with several layers of varnish.

As you can see, a lot of garden crafts can be easily made with your own hands from improvised materials.

Video on the topic of the article

For a better understanding of the process, we offer several useful videos.

It can be installed anywhere: on the porch of the cottage, in the garden or even in the garden. Today, they are popular garden figurines their ceramics, stone (polystone), improvised means and gypsum. In this article, we would like to reveal to you the technology of creating garden figurines from gypsum with your own hands. Gypsum is inexpensive, easy to use and also durable material. In order to make a small plaster figurine yourself, you will need the following materials and tools:

1. Sculptural gypsum (a more durable cement mixture can serve as an alternative to gypsum). The amount of plaster depends on the size of the figurine. per figurine small size it will be enough to purchase half a kilogram of gypsum.
2. Construction adhesive PVA
3. Acrylic paints
4. Waterproof glue for fixation decorative elements garden figurine
5. Decorative elements. Everything here is to your taste, for example, beads.
6. small brush
7. simple pencil
8. Compass
9. Gypsy needle or wood cutters
10. Stationery knife
11. cling film
12. regular soap
13. Sunflower oil)
14. Pure water
15. Gypsum molds (plastic bottles, various cups, etc.)

Once all the materials and tools have been collected, we proceed to create our own homemade plaster figurine.

Step-by-step instructions for creating a plaster garden figurine

In our example, we will consider instructions for creating a gypsum mushroom that will harmoniously fit into a garden of any style.

Step 1 - Create the stem of the mushroom

The mushroom will consist of a stem, cap and base. To create a mushroom stem, it is recommended to use the cut neck of a plastic bottle.

First you need to make sure that the hardened gypsum is well away from the mold. To ensure this, we rub the soap into a separate container and stir it with sunflower oil and water (ratio 2/1/7).

Next, with the help of a brush, grease the mold and proceed to pouring the plaster. Dry gypsum packaging indicates the ratio of gypsum and water to create building mix. We draw your attention to the fact that it is not necessary to immediately “dilute” the entire gypsum, because. he catches on quickly. Use only a part of the gypsum necessary for the mushroom leg, mix thoroughly and pour into the mold. In order to save the amount of gypsum, it is recommended to make the stem of the mushroom hollow (place a small plastic bottle in the mold in advance, as shown in the picture).

So that the bottle does not float out of the plaster, press it down with a heavy object (for example, a stone)

As soon as the gypsum has set (after about half an hour), cut the bottle with a clerical knife and carefully remove the finished mushroom leg.

Step 2 - Making the mushroom cap

A bowl or a deep plate can serve as a mold for a mushroom cap. First, the container must be wrapped in cling film (or lubricated with a mixture of water / soap and sunflower oil), then pour gypsum into it. After the gypsum has set a little (after about 10 minutes), insert a leg in the center of the cap and leave the product to solidify completely.

Step 3 - Creating the Mushroom Base

As soon as the gypsum mushroom hardens, we create a base for a garden figurine. We recommend that you create a removable base for the mushroom, so that there are no obstacles when decorating the mushroom. The mold for the base can be a wider container (as shown in the photo).

As in the case of a hat, we protect the cellophane container cling film and pour gypsum mortar. When the base grabs a little, wrap the stem of the mushroom in a film and insert it in the center of the base.

After the mold has completely solidified, we draw out the gypsum mushroom and proceed to the design of the finished garden figurine.

Step 4 - Mushroom Decoration

As additional elements mushroom decorations can be small gypsum leaves, flowers or bugs.

When all the elements are ready, it is necessary to dry all plaster parts thoroughly. To do this, we lay them out on sunny place(in good weather in a day you can proceed to the final touches). While the homemade gypsum mushroom hardens, consider how you will decorate it (outline on paper).

When the figurine is completely dry, start applying all the details to the mushroom with a simple pencil (as shown in the photo).

After that, it is necessary to process the figure with soil, this will reduce the consumption acrylic paint. As a primer, it is recommended to use a ratio of 1 part construction adhesive to two parts water. The hardening time of the soil is 1.5 - 2 hours.

Here we come to the finish line - mushroom coloring. There is nothing complicated, according to the sketch we paint the gypsum mushroom and, again, we wait until it dries.

In the end, we open the painted garden figurine with colorless varnish (in several layers).

We draw your attention to the fact that when opening the figure with varnish, there should not be unpainted places, otherwise after a season your figure will lose its attractiveness (the colors will be washed out by atmospheric precipitation).

It remains only to glue the mushroom to the finished base (using moisture-resistant glue) and install the finished garden figurine in a suitable place!

As you can see, the technology for creating a gypsum mushroom is quite simple and does not take much time! We recommend involving children in this process, this will bring you closer and allow the child to develop his creative thinking! Also check out!

Gypsum is plastic and environmentally friendly, so fakes from it are increasingly becoming fashionable among needleworkers.

The softness and flexibility of the material allow you to make realistic figures, cut out small details and patterns, which makes gypsum crafts great decorations for an apartment, garden, and vegetable garden.

Gypsum crafts attract with their simplicity and accessibility, and master classes in such creativity can be shown to young children.

Moreover, in the process the child improves the skills of working with bulk materials, repeats or studies colors, develops fine motor skills.

Gypsum variety

Hardened gypsum is strong and hard, so crafts made from it are practical and functional. So, gypsum vases, planters, drawers, flower pots are popular.

It is easy to make crafts for the garden from plaster with your own hands, such as figurines of gnomes, mushrooms, flamingos, hares, artificial flowers, decorative hatches.

Step 1 - Turn on the fantasy

Options for plaster crafts for the garden, vegetable garden or home interior there are a lot of them, so you need to focus on a specific area.

For example, if you have a pond, then decorate it with a frog with an arrow in its mouth, a hummock can be supplemented with a miniature window and a gnome, and children and grandchildren will be delighted by those hiding among the flower beds and garden tool favorite fairy tale characters.

Step 2 - Choose a Form

If your choice fell on standard swans or gnomes, then any suitable shape, plastic, wood, metal or silicone, can be purchased at the store. For economical or original craftsmen, there is an opportunity to make the base with their own hands.

To do this, it is necessary to cut out a certain texture from the listed materials or make a mold from gypsum: dilute the solution in a container, lower the object that needs a copy into it, let the gypsum harden and repeat the procedure for the other side of the original figure.

The resulting halves are varnished, glued together and later used for the next pouring of the solution.

True, it is better to use elastic silicone molds that do not require lubrication and do not damage the fake during model separation.

You can make a silicone base yourself in the same way as gypsum.

Step 3 - Prepare the solution

All that is useful for needlework is gypsum bought at a pharmacy, ordinary water, a container for diluting it and a form for casting a figure.

To dilute gypsum for crafts, powder is poured into a medium-sized basin or large bowl, poured with water and stirred. There are no special proportions, but you need to focus on the consistency of liquid sour cream.

If your figure is conceived as one-color, then when making a solution, you can add paint to the water and only then knead the gypsum.

The amount of gypsum must be thought out in advance, as it hardens quickly, and if there is a shortage of material, it will be impossible to make a new batch in time. It is better to dilute more solution and immediately put it into action.

Note!

Step 4 - Decorate the craft

An ordinary gray figurine will not decorate your garden, so it is better to paint it thoroughly. You can look for inspiration and ideas among photos of plaster crafts.

Before applying paint, the product is primed with wood glue or PVA, and then varnished to protect it from rain, wind, snow, sunlight and other external influences.

Step 5 - Decide on a location

You can set the figure of a stork or a cow along garden path or on the sides of the gazebo, the main thing is that they fit well into the general atmosphere.

As a warm-up, you can implement the following idea: make a shape in the form of a large sole, a footprint, or purchase a similar one in a store, cast several dozen of these crafts and lay paths in a garden or vegetable garden with them.

When arranging figures according to personal plot you should avoid their excessive accumulation and be guided by your own taste.

However, it is better to place gnomes and flamingos in open areas, attach animals in bushes or flowers, and identify large figures - houses, fountains, flowerpots - in the middle of flower beds or near the house.

Note!

Creating with plaster is fun, easy, and most importantly, safe. All this makes this type of needlework interesting and exciting for children and adults.

Photo of gypsum crafts

Note!

The beauty of the garden depends on how we take care of it: how exactly the flowers and trees will be planted, what furniture will be in the garden, what kind of fence, what figures will decorate the flower beds and paths.

In this article we will tell you how to make a very simple, but beautiful plaster of paris with your own hands.

To make a garden figurine from plaster, we need:

• Gypsum sculpture not less than 500g (it can be replaced cement mixture, with it will be even more durable)
• PVA building glue
• acrylic paints for glass and ceramics
• brushes
• compass
• pencil
• a set of cutters for woodcarving (can be replaced with a large needle, or a clerical knife)
• cellophane food wrap
• stationery knife
• empty plastic bottle, suitable shape
• 2 cups: one for pouring the base, the other for the mushroom cap
• decorative elements for decoration: figurines, beads, artificial decorative flowers or leaves, molds for creating plaster figurines
• waterproof adhesive for secure fixing of decorative elements
• sunflower oil

Making a leg for a garden figure

From an empty plastic bottle, for example from milk, we cut off the neck, which will serve as a form for us to create a mushroom leg.

To make it easier to remove the hardened sculptural plaster from the mold, the walls of the bottle can be covered with a solution of grated soap, vegetable oil and water in the ratio: 2:1:7, respectively.

We rub the soap on a fine grater, pour it into a jar.

Pour vegetable oil and water there. We mix everything well and apply the emulsion to the walls of the bottle with a brush.

Then we dilute the sculptural plaster (not all, but only a part necessary for the manufacture of the legs) in the ratio indicated on the package.

Pour the gypsum solution into the mold and leave to harden. To reduce the cost of gypsum, the leg can be made hollow. To do this, we select a plastic bottle that is suitable in size and shape and insert it into the hardening plaster. It is important that the diameter of the neck of the inserted bottle is much smaller than the diameter of the neck of the mold.

To prevent the bottle from floating in liquid plaster, press down on it with any convenient press.

Gypsum sets quickly. After 4-6 minutes, hardening will be noticeable, after 30-40 minutes it is already possible to work with the figure further.

Cut the mold with a clerical knife and take out the plaster blank from there. We cut off the excess part of the plastic bottle that we inserted to reduce the consumption of gypsum.

Making a hat for a garden figure

To make a mushroom cap, we take a suitable cup and cover its surface with food-grade plastic wrap. We try to attach the film as tightly as possible to the cup and leave as few wrinkles as possible.

We dilute the next portion of gypsum needed to create a hat, and pour it into a cup. We insert the leg into the hardening plaster of the cap and leave it for 30-40 minutes.

We make a platform-base for a garden figure

When the mushroom hardens, we make a platform-base for the figure. To do this, we select a cup that is suitable in shape and size, cover it with cling film or lubrication emulsion.

Dilute gypsum and pour it into a cup. The stem of the mushroom can also be immersed there, but we advise you to make it removable, so it will be more convenient to work with the decoration of the mushroom. To do this, cover the leg of the mushroom with plastic wrap and immerse it in plaster in a cup.

After 30-40 minutes, we pull everything out.

If you want to use flowers, leaves, figurines, also made of gypsum, in the design, fill them in the same way and leave to harden.

The finished plaster figure must be dried well before painting. We put it in warm place for a day or even two.

The moment of registration can be spontaneous and born right during the process, or it can be thought out and drawn on paper. It is not necessary to draw everything in detail, you can sketch the key points.

When the sketch is ready, we proceed to the design of the figure.

With a simple pencil, draw everything that you want to see on the mushroom.

Then we add volume to the sketch with the help of wood cutting tools or a sharp large needle.

In order for the paint to lay down better and be spent less, the fungus needs to be primed. This can be done with special primer mixtures, or you can simply dilute PVA construction adhesive with water in a ratio of 1 to 2. One part of PVA and two parts of water.

We apply a primer to the figure with a brush and wait a couple of hours until the mixture dries well.

Then we paint the fungus with paints according to the outlined and cut out pattern.

Let the paints dry well and securely cover with varnish on top. We put the varnish in several layers, leaving not a single unpainted place. After applying each layer, let the varnish dry well. The design details are fixed on right places with moisture resistant adhesive.

The figurine is ready. Now you can fill your garden with mushrooms for every taste and color!

Most of us have a craving for beauty and comfort. In the courtyard own house, in the country house and in the garden, we strive to surround ourselves with charming flower beds, lay paths that invite you to walk, and we cannot do without unusual and funny figures. Gypsum is one of those materials that can easily be turned into a wonderful garden decoration by industrious hands.

Material Features

Gypsum or alabaster has a number of properties that predetermined its use in construction and medicine. It is also great for making garden figurines with your own hands. Even large sculptures are created from alabaster. The use of forms allows you to accurately copy the most complex three-dimensional figures. Working with the material is not physically difficult, so many women are addicted to plaster art. Professionals have already made a considerable number of alabaster crafts for the garden.

Gypsum figurines for the garden for every taste

At the same time, one should not forget that alabaster is a rather fragile material that is afraid of moisture. Alabaster products are best not tested for strength. They must be protected with paints and varnishes from water. In the autumn-winter period, gypsum figurines are stored in a dry room.

The most important thing is that molds are needed to make figurines from such material.

Most often, garden figurines of animals and people are cast from alabaster. Less often - objects of inanimate nature. We offer to evaluate the photo of the animals that you can make from plaster. Of course, they will have to come up with, purchase or make forms.

A successful composition makes a squirrel alive

Another squirrel got carried away with mushrooms

There are foxes, hedgehogs and mushrooms in this forest.

The bear is made of plaster, but is the honey real?

The pig is bored alone in the paddock

Gypsum pots should be well insulated from moisture

Some are just getting acquainted, others already have an heir

In order not to make a mistake with the choice of an alabaster figurine that you are ready to make with your own hands, it is useful to find a place in the garden for the future figurine and present the general plot of the composition. We advise you to start with a simpler figure.

According to this scheme, you can make any figurine from alabaster

First of all, for casting plaster crafts, you need a mold. A budget option- usage plastic bottles, old toys, dishes and more. Of course, the list of possible is limited and you have to break your head over the search suitable material. It is much easier to use ready-made children's molds for plaster or sand. Large silicone molds that are used in production are too expensive. At great desire, you can make a silicone mold yourself, as described in the following video.

The material has limited strength and relatively large crafts are reinforced with mesh or wire. To save material and reduce weight, plastic containers are placed inside the figure. Special gypsum, designed for casting sculptures, is stronger than alabaster and building plaster. To increase strength, PVA glue can be added to ordinary alabaster.

For ease of manufacture and coloring, figures are often made in the form individual parts. Parts of the craft are fastened together with glue or alabaster solution.

In order to make it easier to remove the finished figure from the mold, it can be covered with an aqueous solution liquid soap and vegetable oil. Soap should be twice as much as oil. The resulting mixture is diluted with five portions of water.

Dry material is diluted to the state of liquid sour cream and poured into a mold. The solution hardens within minutes. Chemical reaction accompanied by the release of heat. During casting, air voids may form. In production conditions, the issue is solved by using a vibration stand. While working with your own hands, you need to carefully pour the solution, and the voids can be corrected with putty or alabaster solution.

With such a figure will have to work for a long time

A small figurine will be ready for further work in half an hour already. A large casting should dry for several days in a dry place and out of the sun. You can work with the craft further when the hand does not feel moisture. It is easy to make drawings on the surface of the figure. For these purposes, use a knife, awl, needle.

To protect against moisture and improve adhesion with paint, the craft is primed. You can use building primer or half-diluted PVA glue. Professionals cover plaster sculptures with several layers of drying oil heated in a water bath. After the surface brightens, you can work on.

The surface of the figure is successively decorated with paints. Water-based paints do not adhere to the surface covered with drying oil. Suitable oil, pentaphthalic, alkyd enamels. The final treatment is carried out with drying oil, wax or varnish. The figurine can be decorated with all sorts of decorative elements: buttons, glass, acorns, cones and more.

In practice, using the same technology, you can cast figures from cement mortar. They will turn out durable and will not be afraid of moisture. However, the cement-based mortar hardens slowly, it will be difficult to make relief patterns on the surface.

So molded from plaster pots in the form of a swan

Gypsum crafts can not only be cast, but also sculpted. In this case, it is necessary to make a frame, on which parts of the craft are gradually applied. Prepare and apply the gypsum mortar in small portions. Work is best done with gloves. It is convenient to use a plaster medical bandage. Bandage pieces are soaked in water and applied to the figure. It is necessary to smooth uneven areas. The sinks are sealed with alabaster solution.

Note that stucco figures are often made from cement mortar, including with the addition of gypsum. This is a separate article.

Master class for making a charming mushroom

The fungus seemed to me the most suitable craft for decorating the site, which can be cast from plaster. It is easy to provide forms for it. The mushroom will do great in the garden. To make it, you need a very short list of tools.

Consider step by step the master class for making figurines:

At the end of the work, I came to the conclusion: it is easy and simple to work with the material. The most important thing is to choose the right shape. I recommend that you try to build your own garden figurine. Let the video help.