Once a Fruit Bowl, Now A Bird Bath

Just when I thought I had no idea what I was going to do this month, I started to think about my garden.  The one thing I love about our yard is the variety of birds that come to visit.  Every year I am looking for ideas to attract different kinds.  So, off to the thrift store I went with DIY birdbath ideas in mind.

Low and behold I found a huge (what I think is a) fruit bowl.  The best part it was on a pedestal.  The really best part was, it wasn’t very attractive as it was so I knew I wouldn’t feel at all bad about painting it!

If this is your first time stopping by the Red Cottage, the last Thursday of every month I partner with some fantastic DIY bloggers for a Thrift Store Upcycle Challenge!

The Rules:

• Upcycle an item(s) from a thrift store, resale store, or garage sale into a new piece of decor.
• There’s no monthly theme.
• There’s no budget to stick to.

Meet the Hosts!

Amanda | The Kolb Corner    Kim | Made in a Day
Maureen | Red Cottage Chronicles    Pili | Sweet Things
Debra | Shoppe No. 5    Marie | DIY Adulation    Sue | A Purdy Little House
Chelsea | Making Manzanita    Ann | Duct Tape and Denim    Karen | Dragonfly and Lily Pads
Kimm | Reinvented    Kathleen | Our Hopeful Home   Megan | C’mon Get Crafty
Victoria | Dazzle While Frazzled    Shirley | Intelligent Domestications    Angela | Simply Beautiful by Angela Chelc | Inside the Fox Den     Michelle | Our Crafty Mom    Jeannee | Shepherds and Chardonnay
Jennifer and Vicki | 2 Bees in a Pod    Michelle | Michelle James Designs
Ali | Home Crafts By Ali    Denise | My Thrifty House 

Make sure you follow our board on Pinterest for more upcycled decor inspiration!

Looks like a fruit bowl to me, but maybe it was a pasta bowl.  No matter, it is a birdbath now!

This is where the beauty of chalk paint comes in.  The bowl had a very smooth painted ceramic surface and the Rustoleum Chalky paint adhered to the bowl with no problems at all.  It took two coats to completely cover the images on the bowl.

I painted this during our kitchen renovation, hence the assortment of sawdust and tools!  In our tiny home, the dining room is very multi-function!

I did two coats on the inside, letting each coat dry in between before during it over and doing two coats on the outside of the entire bowl and pedestal.

I knew I wanted to dress it up a bit with the phrase “Birds of a Feather Flock Together, but I also know my handwriting is pitiful and this was a job for my friend Leslie!  She didn’t let me down!  As awkward as it was to do write freehand inside a bowl, she did a wonderful job as always.  Thanks pal.  What would I do without you!

Finally I gave it 3 coats of Varathane Diamond Wood Finish Outdoor spray.  It is labelled for wood, but it did go on evenly without discoloring the chalk paint.  It has been holding the water really well so far.

Always make sure you paint in a well ventilated area, and follow the directions on whatever paint you are using.  When it came to spraying on the Varathane, I did so outside while protecting the surrounding area.  I am really a safety girl when it comes to using paint.  Especially aerosol paint and never ever use it indoors.  Not even in the garage!

My mom suggested I should put a rock in the centre for the birds to perch on when stopping by for a drink.  I couldn’t find one I liked, so I used an old Bocce ball we had lying around.  

I have a boatload of metal buckets lying around, so I just turned one upside down and placed the birdbath on top to keep it up out of the soil. 

You will have to excuse my naked soil.  The weather is just getting nice enough to work in our gardens and we haven’t got around to mulching yet.  That is just one of many things on the to-do list for this weekend.  

Looking for DIY birdbath ideas?  You will want to ……

If DIY birdbath ideas aren’t on your mind, then check out what my fellow upcyclers created below!

Until next time….

 

 

 

And now for more thrifty goodness!

 

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