How to Make Homemade Things to Decorate the Yard Outside

Decorating your yard with items you make yourself is an attractive way to add interest to the area. Homemade yard art is uncomplicated to make if you use the right supplies. Making personalized stepping-stones and creating a "living" decorative chair with morning glory vines are not difficult or time-consuming projects. They cost you less than yard art for sale at craft fairs or home supply stores, and make for enjoyable projects the entire family can do together.

Plastic wrap (optional)

Cardboard or plastic container to use as a concrete mold

Plastic or metal bucket

Ready-mix concrete

Sturdy stick or paint mixing stick

Sea glass, broken china, stained glass, bottle caps, shells or beads

Old wooden chair

Exterior paints

Paintbrush

Small craft paintbrushes (optional)

Hoe, cultivation fork or metal rake

Morning glory seed packet

Line the box you are using as a stepping-stone mold with plastic wrap if it is cardboard or sturdy paper. This prevents the wet cement from making the cardboard soggy.

Mix the cement in a plastic or metal bucket, according to the directions on the label. Stir it with a sturdy stick from a tree or a paint-mixing stick.

Pour the prepared cement into the mold. You need a depth of about 2 inches for a sturdy stepping-stone.

Decorate the stepping stone while the cement is wet. Use sea glass, broken china, stained glass, bottle caps, shells or beads. Place them randomly in the stepping-stone, or form a flower or other type of design using the items. Another idea is to write your name or a slogan using the shells, beads, small pieces of sea glass or broken china.

Wait for the cement to dry -- usually 24 hours -- unless the weather is quite humid.

Tear the cardboard or other container away from the stepping-stone once it is dry. Place it in your lawn wherever you desire. Make several stepping-stones to create a path to your flower garden, gazebo, a decorative gate or another area.

Paint a dilapidated wooden chair with one or two coats of exterior paint and allow it to dry between the coats. Use your imagination -- if your home exterior is a pastel color, paint the chair with lavender, peach or any other color that contrasts or coordinates with the exterior. Another idea is to use a deep purple, navy blue or even black if your home has a dark exterior. The chair eventually will be covered with the morning glory vines, so pick whatever color you want to peek out between the foliage.

Place the chair in an area in your yard where the morning glory vines receive full or partial sunlight throughout the day.

Loosen up the soil with a hoe, cultivation fork or a metal rake and stick the legs of the chair into the soil about 2 inches deep. Use the backfill to secure the legs into the ground. This prevents the chair from being blown over in a rainstorm or windy conditions.

Plant the morning glory seeds according to the packet directions. Place three to six seeds about three or four inches from each chair leg. Once the plants start to twine, thin them down to one or two plants per chair leg. Soon, the chair will be covered with attractive flowers and foliage.

Prepare the concrete stepping-stone in a garage, a covered patio or other area to protect it from rain while it is drying.

Add whimsical flowers, pictures of ducks or birds, or other designs to the chair before positioning it into your yard with a small craft paintbrush and additional colors of exterior paint. This is an economical way to use leftover paint. Allow the designs to dry thoroughly before setting the chair legs into the soil.