I decided to try a new project. I have way too many plants and I am always looking for a new spot to stick something. I really wanted something unique, and something that would last. So, we (meaning Mike and I) bought some good old fashioned Quik-Crete and made ourselves a few cement planters.
Mike's done some masonry work in his varied career so he didn't even read the directions on the bag. He just mixed us up a bucket load.
Here's the form I bought at the Dollar General for $2. You need to coat the inner and outer forms with vegetable oil so they will slide out easier after the cement has set.
So I covered them up with some oil.
We poured in the concrete. We had to fill the bottles with water because they wanted to float to the top.
In fact we ended up winching them down!
We had a bit left over so I quickly improvised with some plastic bowls and cups I had sitting around.
Alright, very nice. Now to let them cure for 24 to 48 hours.
Interlude: a nice refreshing adult beverage.
Mike couldn't wait. Six hours later the concrete was hard enough to come out of the molds. And we had trouble... The indentations on the bottles made the insides almost impossible to slide out but, with the use of brute force and some pliers, we did it. The green bucket was destroyed! The yellow bucket slid right out.
A little paint for what I now call candle holders.
And the final product!
Nice!
Lessons learned:
Use more oil! (I know: TWSS)
Make sure your inner forms are smooth and flare outward.
Also, there is masonry Quik-Crete, which I understand is easier to work with. Although it costs twice as much I think we will try it next time.
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