Give Your Statuary , Birdbaths Or Fountains A Facelift
By Deborah Barncord
AFTER
BEFORE
STONE GARDEN ORNAMENTS like statues , birdbaths or fountains can last a lifetime but sometimes they need a little repair and refreshing with some stain or paint . Most of these DIY projects are easy to do !
Have a little chip on your garden Gnome or fountain ? All you need to repair it is some auto bondo , medium grade sandpaper , and stain or exterior latex paint of your choice .
• First you want to wash the piece really well and let it dry . If you have some moss growing on it you want to try and remove it with a little bit of bleach and water .
• Make sure to remove all flaking paint .
• Fill in the chipped / cracked area with auto bondo to the best of your abilities , channel your own Donatello , and remember it doesn ’ t have to be perfect . Let dry .
• Once the repair is dry use medium grade sandpaper to smooth the repaired area .
• Wash off any dust or residue and let dry .
Once dry you are ready to apply your stain or paint . If only touching up and finishing up your repair you can use a Q-tip to apply your color to the repaired area . If staining or painting the entire piece you can use a paintbrush . You can find your concrete stain or paint at your local hardware store or you can visit concretenetwork . com / stained-concrete .
Voila , it ’ s that easy ! Now repairing a broken arm on a statue is not as easy , but chips , peeling paint , even a piece that has broken off clearly can be repaired with epoxy . All these repairs you can do yourself .
If you need some extra help just give us a call at 408-846-4555 , we would be happy to walk you through the repairs .
IT ’ S TIME TO
WATER SAVING TIP
Apply CAL-CM / Gypsum to your garden and lawn to loosen up your soil this will maximize the water you apply . o Dead head flowers in your garden o Fertilize with a slow release fertilizer
o Apply 2-3 ” of mulch in your garden if you haven ’ t already . It will also refresh your garden and make it look its best for those summer parties . Make sure to keep the mulch 6-12 ” away from tree trunks .
o Start planting your fall vegetables , like broccoli and cauliflower
Brought to you by Garden Accents
11155 Lena Avenue • 408.846.4555 • garden-accents . net
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