getEdited - SELECT
by mycarole ( edited 11 Feb 2014 ) 08 Feb 2014

I thought I would share a picture of our creation. This bowl is made of concrete using a rhubarb leaf. My husband makes them and I paint them. . This little hobby makes us spend a lot of time together. We make them in our garage, (we are retired). I always say my husband is in the production department and I am in the quality control department. (lol) Carole

2423

by teddybear117 15 Jun 2014

I can just imagine a tiered water fountain made from these bowls. Beautiful. Good work.

13287
by decojo 25 May 2014

very beautiful!

23577
by jen15957 25 May 2014

They are Beautiful, It's so nice that your husband and you have a hobby together.

6069
by anssmile 25 May 2014

They are beautiful!

8037
by Shisha 23 May 2014

I have seen these on pinterest and I am hooked! They are definitely on our 'to do' list. When that will happen, I don't know but probably not until next year!
Love the beautiful work you do!!! :)

4384
by majorisette84 12 Feb 2014

je me joins à tous les autres commentaires et je trouve ce travail très beau, dans ma région je ne connais pas de plante avec de si larges feuilles, peut être en plante d'appartement , le travail des couleurs est très réussi , je pense que vous devez finir avec une couche de vernis ou de verni colle, encore merci, j'ai appris une autre forme d'art , marie-josette du Vaucluse en France

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 12 Feb 2014

Merci Marie-Josette. Oui je fini mon projet avec plusieurs couches de vernis. Cela permet de mettre des fruits dans le bol, ou encore de l'eau pour les petits oiseaux. Ma peinture reste toujours belle.

209
by graceandham 11 Feb 2014

They're gorgeous. I especially like the last pic. Good job.

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 11 Feb 2014

thank you

66478
by noah 10 Feb 2014

How thick is the cement ??just runny or???can i see the back??I stock o around our house inside and fool with the basement blocks outside.I like them nice and smooth .Anyways what on top after it dries .??love your idea Carol ===carolyn

2 comments
noah by noah 10 Feb 2014

oh boy i watched utube and 2 hours has gone somewhere lol

mycarole by mycarole 10 Feb 2014

the bowls are about 1/2 thing. When the concrete is put on, it is the consistency of dough. First they are sealed (twice) then I paint them, then, I seal it again, then I put a finish on it.

360344
by Leaha 10 Feb 2014

These are absolutely breathe taking. Very unusual and unique, love the colors and way each of these turns out individual. Do you color wash or is it another technique? Do they have a glaze or a matte finish and finally are they useable for anything or only for inside decorative purposes? Hope you don't mind my asking. I REALLY like them. I also love to eat rhubarb, I have wonderful cream rhubarb pie recipe, unfortunately can't always find the rhubarb. Thanks for sharing this amazing craft!

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 10 Feb 2014

Lea, yes they our bowls have a finish on it. You can even leave them outside and the colour will not fade. Some people use them for bird bath. We have a huge one outside sitting on its side so people driving by can see it. We do not take it in the garage for the winter either.

35301
by gillemmerson 10 Feb 2014

Sorry to be a bit vague but how do you 'concrete' these leaves? What do you use?

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 10 Feb 2014

Your question is very valued. We use a real leaf from our garden, or from the bush. We mix our concrete then put the concrete on the back of the real leaf. We wait a week and voila we have a cement leaf. In our case we produce bowls.

7498
by mycarole 10 Feb 2014

How did this post end up in Community, I don't know.

2423
by carolpountney 09 Feb 2014

Very nice you are clever

21044
by mycarole 09 Feb 2014

Hi Pennifold from Australia. Our daughter-in-law is from Australia. Yes we do have Elephant Ears in Canada. However, the larger leaves are on the west coast of Canada. We lived in Vancouver and here is our version of an elephant ear taken in our back yard. Now we live on the east coast of Canada and the largest leaves we could find are rhubarb leaves.Our first attempt at making concrete leaf bowls, was using the leaves you see in the picture. It was quite an experiment. Carole

2 comments
pennifold by pennifold 10 Feb 2014

This is an impressive looking plant Carole, love Chris - (Pennifold - is my last name). Please call me Chris.

mycarole by mycarole 10 Feb 2014

I wish we could grow them in New Brunswick. In Vancouver, they get that size from nothing to this size in a month. Underneath the pergola we have an overhead fountain and the humidity of the water makes that plant just grow a mile a minute.

2423
by pennifold 08 Feb 2014

Hi Carole, over here in Australia we have a wonderful plant called a Caladium (Elephant's Ear) - where do you live? You may have them in your country. These are huge leaves too, but am not sure if they would be too large for what you do. I'll add a picture for you to see. Love Chris

234247
by mycarole 08 Feb 2014

We don't just use rhubarb leaves, we also use hosta leaves and burdock leaves. The bottom picture shows what they look like before sanding and painting.

2423
by babash 08 Feb 2014

Always knew there must be a use for Rhubarb leaves as they are poison to eat can't even let the hens eat them. Absolutely stunning you are a very clever couple.

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 08 Feb 2014

That's right and you should never put them in your compost.

29723
by bevintex 08 Feb 2014

Do you garden and grow the rhubarb yourselves. It's a great project and a wonderful way to spend time together.
Bev in Texas

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 08 Feb 2014

Hi Bev, when we first started we did not have a garden. People from the community would bring us their leaves and leave them at the door. Now we have a garden just for doing these bowls. Ha, I do make rhubarb pies though.

67271
by joansatx 08 Feb 2014

Gorgeous! I would have to leave it empty and just look at your work!

9536
by jerrib 08 Feb 2014

Absolutely beautiful, you would never know they were cement.
Well Done.
Jerri

30631
by jrob Moderator 08 Feb 2014

They are very pretty! Your painting skill are wonderful.

158548
by hightechgrammy 08 Feb 2014

They are incredible! How beautiful they are and I love the colors you have achieved. It is especially nice that you do them together!

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 08 Feb 2014

I use my little bottles of acrylic paint and a tiny brush.

59592
by spendlove Moderator 08 Feb 2014

What a great idea!

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 08 Feb 2014

Sue, we had seen stepping stone that way, and I thought why not a bowl.

140716
by cj2sew 08 Feb 2014

Oh my. I never thought to appreciate the beauty that comes from a rhubarb leaf. Your painting techniques make it absolutely beautiful. I can't believe it is concrete. Wow.

1 comment
mycarole by mycarole 08 Feb 2014

The process to make one bowl takes one week. What takes the longest is the curing of the cement.

19439
by CymbleneJones 08 Feb 2014

These are great. I like all things of nature, but leaves are beautiful.

1821
by pennifold 08 Feb 2014

Congratulations on making these lovely table decorations together. I can see them being used with lots of different themes. Love and blessings Chris

234247
by karenintw 08 Feb 2014

Wow. They are spectacular. Unique and stunning. Knowing how big rhubarb leaves are, they make a good sized bowl. Great idea. Thanks for sharing.

1744