That's called PATINA! Some folks actually prefer it. Anyway, there are lots of clear coat finishes for copper and other metals. I'd get one of the spray finishes. Follow the directions for prep. Some of them promise that they'll last for several years outside, but you'll probably need to reapply every couple of years. You'll find these products in any home improvement center. I'll attach a link to just ONE of many such products, but you are likely to have quite a selection to choose from in the stores. Here is a link that might be useful: Click here

Thanks everyone for looking at my photos. If you guys can get there it is so worth it. I have a membership so I try to get there 2 or 3 times a year. See if your library has a member pass. My local library has one so may be other libraries have a pass or it is definitely worth the $7 entrance fee. So runktrun they did have a fence made out of sticks and vines weaved that I liked. I took a close up photo of one of the stick bunches. They used plain old rebar in the middle of the stick bunch to anchor each fence post. I thought this was pretty clever! As an added bonus the nursery still had a good selection of plants and the plants were very healthy compared with other nurseries where the plants are starting to look haggard. Sue

I have thoroughly enjoyed browsing all the photos and reading the stories of your collections here. Such beautiful pieces and wonderful, touching stories. To see most of mine, you'd think my home was full of antiques, which is far from the real deal, but these seem to be most of my most interesting non-art things. However, some of you have given me some ideas for things I could do in the future with things I have stored! This is a small collection of silver vases, albeit in need of some polish right now. My collection of miniature tea sets. This started with my aunt giving me her much-used Mickey Mouse set she had used back in the 30's as a child and a then-new set when I was about 8-years old (the blue and white delft set). The rest is a mix of old and new I picked up along the way as an adult. I also have a lot of old hankies that belonged to my grandmother and great-grandmother, and yes I use them at weddings and funerals. They made some of them, including the tatting on the edges. Gallery hallway of family photos (old and new) To honor our home states (Alabama and Ohio) I started looking for old maps of our states and regions. This is one of Alabama and of the Eastern US in our breakfast room. The next one is an Agricultural map of Ohio. I think I've posted enough. Thanks for viewing. BTW, those clocks are awesome! And I adore that mirror, and I can't say enough about that belly cast!

Image by: Yukon_Gold Yukon_Gold's Wire Art Wire & Copper Art - Adornments, Embellishments and Tools Adornments and Embellishments A variety of objects can be used to decorate your wire art piece such as: * Large or small marbles * Prisms/Crystals (from chandeliers) * Bells, whistles, and baubles * Buttons * Beads * Stones * Charms * Stained glass pieces and/or Beach glass * Broken or unwanted jewelry that still sparkles * Junk from your junk drawer * Doodads from your toolbox * Plastic marbles off the elastic hair tiebacks * Seashells from your last vacation * Suitcase padlocks that lost the key * Childrens metal toy jacks Use what you have and items that will withstand the weather for a time .... It's your art - design it however you'd like and make it personal! What tools to use * Wire cutters, light, medium and heavy duty * Pliers: needle nose, round nosed, and "everyday" (heavy wire cutters come as plier/cutter combo) * Dowels of various sizes -- cheap chopsticks, broom handles, wooden closet bar (check store for scrap ends of closet poles cut for other customers) * Rubber/latex gloves for better grip and less smelly, less green hands The diameter of the rod you use will determine the tightness of the spiral you are after. You can twist the wire by hand but it may help to have a pair of pliers handy. Notes from our members: Yukon_Gold tell us: I bought basket of larger seashells at dollar store for a buck, got other jewelry odds & ends, shiny buttons, brass jingle bells all for a donation at a Humane Society yard sale. The wooden heart was lettered "Bless This Home" by a child's hand, and I loved it. I used a combination of wooden spoon handle, old thread spool, pliers to make the bends in the wire ...... Not a lot of flourish, but I look at this art as having items of interest and something unusual to look at out in the garden areas. The fish copper art could go near a pool or hot tub. Mush adds this about her embellishments: The white thing is a little shell on top of a heart-shaped bead. The glass is beach glass that I have collected on trips to Barbados. And, YES, I am hooked! sonicsink says: I used wire that I got at the hardware store, marbles from the dollar store and crystals from an old chandelier that my parents were throwing out last year. And in another one - a super jumbo marble, one of many my dog found in a field about 5 years ago..even my dog is a junker LOL! ~~~ TIP: To get nice even 3D coils, use wooden dowels: chopsticks, 1/4", 1/2", 3/4" dowels, broomsticks and wooden closet bars. Wrap the wire close but not tightly around the dowel a few turns in one direction, then do a kind of twist to add a kink before continuing with a spiral in the opposite direction; this makes it much more visually interesting, good for a vine-like effect. Don't wrap the wire too tightly around the dowel or you might not get the wire off of the dowel. Once you've removed a 3D wire coil from a dowel, you can tighten or loosen it holding one or both ends of the wire and twisting your hand/hands. Wrap a couple turns of wire around a dowel that's about the diameter of a marble to make a starter socket for the marble; it's easier than trying to wrap the marble free-hand.