Spring has arrived and with it the desire to head outdoors to enjoy fresh air, sunshine and the tiny green shoots popping up outside your home. While you were spreading mulch this weekend you may have noticed a few bare spots in your garden beds and landscaping, or maybe someone else is pointing them out to you.
This is a great opportunity to head to your shop and create something practical, whimsical or just plain cool to grace your garden and give your landscape character. As you peruse these projects, keep in mind that metal garden art is an in-demand product and could be a welding project that brings in added income via local boutiques or the internet.
Silverware Sculpture Welding Project
Discarded silverware isn't hard to come by and as luck would have it, it is a versatile and cheap welding material. To easily add a little color and style to your garden, try welding silverware into flowers and mounting them on a rebar stem. The best way to go about this is to start with your center and add petals as you go. Finish with spray paint or leave it raw for a rustic, unfinished look.
Garden Gate Welding Project
If you’re looking for a more challenging outdoor project, consider welding a gate for your garden. Garden gates run the gamut and can be a simple, wrought-iron or something more quirky and ornamental. Iron is the typical choice for this project, but in the end, gates can be painted so when it comes to materials, sturdiness is king. If you are feeling overwhelmed by this project, you can always start simple and add ornamental details as you go.
Yard Animals
Who doesn’t love a huge metal chicken? Okay, maybe not everyone, but some people are in the market for a funky animal sculpture for their garden or front porch. These scrappy sculptures are often made from sheet metal or even discarded cans. Assemble the body with tack welds and finish with colorful enamel.
Garden Arch Welding Project
The great thing about garden arches is that they can be as simple or decorative as you want them to be. Not only do they add ornamental detail, they provide support for your climbing plants such as tomato and ivy. Mother’s day is coming up, so consider Arc welding her a trellis out of metal tubing or even leftover rebar.
Bird Bath
No more dirty birds in your yard. Using metal sheeting or scraps, create a bird bath for your backyard. Keep in mind that older steel can crack at heat affected zone so you may want to normalize it (heat to cherry red and then air cool) or use a stainless steel or silicone bronze to join dissimilar materials. The great thing about metal bird baths is that the more they rust and age, the better they look in your garden. If you don’t like the finish of your metal, when all is said and done you can always paint it.