Bowling Ball Decorating Ideas for the Yard

Bowling balls are an unexpected decorative accent in a garden or yard, but with a little creativity, you can transform them into eye-catching features in your landscape.

Turn an old bowling ball into an amusing ladybug decoration. Paint the entire ball with black spray paint and flip it so that the holes are facing down. Paint wings on the back of the bowling ball. Red paint is the traditional color for a ladybug, though you can use any color you wish to add to the whimsy of this decorative accents. Put dots on the wings with black paint and use black and white paint to create eyes and antennae for this friendly insect. Create a single ladybug or several, and set them out to appear as if walking across your lawn.

You can purchase reflecting balls at a garden center, but they can be costly. Instead, create your own from an old bowling ball. Simply paint the surface of the ball with a reflective glass paint, giving the ball a mirrorlike surface. Paint the ball one solid color, or use several colors to create a pattern or a picture. When the paint dries, set it on a wrought iron plant stand.

Print out an image of a map of suitable size and cut out the continents. Paint the bowling ball blue and once the paint dries, tape the cutouts of the continents onto their proper locations on the ball. Trace around the continent stencils with a fine-tipped green marker, remove the cutouts and fill in the shapes with green paint.

Use a bowling ball as a surface to display an artistic mosaic. Break tiles that you may have left over from a home improvement project or break old plates and cups. You can also purchase inexpensive tiles, cups and plates to break, if you don't have any on hand. Cover the surface of the ball with a craft concrete compound and while the compound is still wet, arrange the broken pieces of tile, plates or cups onto the surface of the ball. Once dry, you can place the ball on a short plant stand and use it as decorative globe on a patio table.