Some people I know get the styrofoam fish boxes from grocery stores. They are small window box size. Then you can deform it to round the edges and look like stone using a heat gun. The idea is faux stone look after you deform then paint. Very stinky bad chemicals when you heat styrofoam tho. I tried it and it bothered me to heat the stuff. My dh was insulating our foundation and then covering the insulation with stucco. He stuccoed my fish box and now its a very light weight planter that looks "real". I want to add some paint cuz I don't love the stucco color but it works very well as a planter is light and free. If you do try to melt styrofoam, do it outside and even then it is nasty. Also want to share hint from another thread of using garden perennials and wild plants in containers. I'm trying it this year in 2 of my pots. Kathy

Your gazebo is absolutely amazing - it is truly superb. I agree you need some good special insurance and an appraisal from your insurer to be sure they dont wiggle out of paying if anything goes wrong. I was going to suggest that since you are so sad it has lost it's original shine you might try cleaning it with copper polish and then giving it a good coat of automotive clearcoat. I use it on my cast iron furniture to keep it from staining clothes. It sprays on almost too clear to see and you can overspray onto the trim without too much worry. The formulas for wheels might work best since they are aluminum compatible.

Well thanks to you ladies I drug DH to the thrift stores Saturday. Bored to death after a while he went outside to the car to listen to tunes. I didn't mind I kept on looking to find a metal coffee pot. I found not 1 but 2! One is aluminum with a short style nose and the other is silver and has a long curved nose style. I was thrilled! I now will need to find some glass items to make her body with. I did find some of the 'hair' wire type pieces but didn't buy any but will go back Monday and grab at least one of the 3 that were there. I also while looking gathered up enough glass for 4 plate flowers and got them all 4 glued up. I need some dark colored center stones though. I looked at the hobby shop and at Wally World and neither had any dark colors. They only had pale colors that don't show well on my pieces. Grrrr! I want to thank you ladies for making a great weekend for me with you ideas!,,,,Debbie

Ok~I got my second box from Alison, and WOW I had to pick my jaw up off the floor when I opened it! I hope you got my email Alison the day I received it in the mail. I sent you a very Big Thank You email because I didn't have time to post that day. I wanted to make sure I had the time to do a proper posting on the wonderful goodies I received. Sometimes my emails don't get thru to gardenwebbers. Hope it did get to you, because I am one happy camper-as we used to say in the day-not sure if people still say that, but that's what I am! Where to begin.....let's see....well I have been searching everywhere for these blue bottles. I saw this article in one of my magazines of these gorgeous blue bottles on the ends of bamboo poles stuck in the ground all around a flower bed. I have been wanting to do this to my Son's sensory garden. Thought it would nmake a good sight addition to it. Well I have searched and searched with no luck. The only one I came across was at an antique store and they wanted 12 for one bottle-yeouch! Well when I opened that box there sat not 1 but 6 bottles! Perfect for what I would like to do. I can't wait to set this up. I will have to post pics on our site when everything is grown in around them. She also sent me these fabulous vegetarian cookbooks. I have already enjoyed bookmarking ones that I can't wait to try. I didn't have any of them. I sat down that night with the wonderful coffee you sent from England-very good by the way-I love it-the flavor is so rich-and the yummy chocolates you sent(2 bags of lindors truffles-one dark and one milk-love em). I sat on my backporch and drank coffee and browsed recipes. Very relaxing after a day working. Alison also sent me a book to go with the mosaic supplies she sent before, and she also sent more plates. I really can't wait to get this project rolling. The book is great and will be very useful, as I wasn't sure how to get started. Alison also sent some christmas pudding from England which I am going to try tonight with some more of the coffee-on the backporch of course. She also sent one of my favorite things-garden lions! I love love love garden lions and these are so cool. They are little pot feet sitters. I have the perfect pot to put on them too. It is a large pot I keep my tree rose in. With the rose and old pot it is in, it is the perfect combination with how these little guys look. I will have to get a pic of that too to post on our new site. And she even remembered my kitties. She sent a bag of cat toys. My cats went hog wild over those. My one kitty plays fetch like a dog and he has taken a liking to the dog shaped one. Too funny. Now they can leave me alone after coming in from working in the garden smelling of catnip. Does anyone else's cats do that? Mine are all over me when I come in from outside. I really hope I didn't leave anything out. This box was just so fabulous. Alison you are the best!!! I can't wait to repay your kindness when I have you as my partner to send to. Thank you Thank you Thank you-you truly made my day.~Heather