How to make a mosaic bowl

Looking for a beautiful way to attract birds to your garden? You can turn a plain terracotta bowl into a stunning birdbath using glass pebbles to make a floral mosaic design.

WATCH: Charlie and Juliet create a fun garden for kids

When you want to change the look of your garden, look at its bones – the things that are holding it together and can be difficult to remove and replace, such as trees, fences, hedges and buildings.

After that it’s just cosmetic surgery, giving your garden a fresh face with a welcoming path, new garden beds for both edibles and ornamentals, and crafty little things such as a delightful mosaic birdbath and a magical fairy place at the bottom of the garden.

When you’re finished, it will look so much younger and fresher – it’s the little things that work the best charms!

Gather your supplies

Terracotta bowl
Mosaic glue
Mosaic glass pebbles
Superfine white grout
Mosaic grout additive, waterproofer/sealer

You’ll also need

Paint stirrer
Grout squeegee
Sponges
Bucket
Lint-free cloth

Here's how

Step 1

Create your design, here flower clusters with a centre and 5 petals in 2 colour combinations, plus infill pebbles in 1 colour and another colour on the rim.

Step 2

Starting from the centre of the bowl, apply a dab of mosaic glue to the back of each pebble and create the design. Work in sections to the bowl edges, then add pebbles to rim. Allow glue to set overnight.

Step 3

Use a paint stirrer to mix grout and grout additive until the consistency of toothpaste. Spread grout mix along squeegee.

Step 4

Spread grout mix over design, working it into all gaps between pebbles with squeegee. Scrape off excess.

Step 5

Leave grout to dry for 20 minutes, then use a sponge and clean water to wash off excess.

Step 6

Keep rinsing and wringing the sponge and washing off grout until only a haze remains.

Step 7

Wait for another 20 minutes, then use a lint-free cloth to buff the grout haze off the mosaic design. Leave bowl for 24 hours before filling with water.

For you to note:

Birdbaths need to be high so drinkers feel safe. To pull it off, insert a narrow pebble-filled Corten steel raised garden bed into a larger one full of flowering plants and top with a mosaic bath. Happy plants, joyous birds!

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