In need of an inexpensive but truly memorable (in a good way) gift? What about a concrete garden bench with children’s hand prints on the seat?
Many of our customers have created concrete benches to use for personalized gifts. A favorite technique is to have children press their hands into acrylic paint then stamp the hand print on the seat.
You will need:
- History Stones bench mold set
- Ready mix concrete – one 80 lb bag and 1/4 of a 40 lb bag
- Bucket and garden hoe for mixing concrete with water (mix water so consistency is like crunchy peanut butter, not runny but well mixed)
- Vegetable oil cooking spray
- Paper plate for each color to be used
- DecoArt Patio Paints in you choice of colors (normally about $2 per small bottle, which goes a long way). These paints are formulated for concrete, for all types of weather and hold up wonderfully, not to mention super easy clean up.
- DecoArt Clear Coat Sealant
- Painting shirt/apron
- A few sheets of paper for practicing
- Pointed paint brush (to print name/date on bench if desired)
Follow the directions with your bench molds to create the bench. Also be sure to watch the instructional video at http://www.historystones.com/instructional_videos#bench
After creating your concrete bench or stepping stone get ready to paint!
- Lay out your choice of paint colors on paper or foam plates
- Cover children’s clothes with big painting shirt or apron and roll up their sleeves just in case!
- Practice laying child’s hand in paint and applying it to a sheet of paper until you’ve got the technique down smoothly. If child allows, and you prefer, guide child’s hand into paint then help him/her press onto the paper then the bench itself when ready.
- Let the paint dry for at least a few hours then apply the clear coat sealant
The bench mold sets will make many benches for you!
Links:
Bench Molds: http://www.historystones.com/benches.html
Bench Making Instructions: http://www.historystones.com/skin/frontend/default/default/images/media/pdf/Bench.pdf