STEPPING STONES—FOSSIL FORMS AND FUN WITH FUZZY FEATURES LIKE FEATHERS AND FERNS. A fossil is an indentation or an image on an old stone that is the outline and impression of something that came to rest there and stayed for a long time as stone continued to form around it. It could be something living that died there, like a flower or an animal or an insect; or just a stick, a stone, or a shell.
Ferns can make quite an impression.
Fossils are records of the world’s living past and are always exciting to discover.
Here’s a way you can make your own fossil forms and create stepping stones and decorations for your gardens at the same time.
Stepping stones can be of any size and style. They can be made of concrete or plaster. The fossil impressions can be anything you’d like: pinecones, sticks, flowers, stones, or your own hand imprint. With a fossil impression, all you see is the texture (the pattern of the outside) of a thing. Pine cones leave an interesting image. There are seeds and berries and even hairy fruits or peach pits that can be used to decorate your stone. Try using those cast-off sunflower seed shells to add some texture.
Sponges have interesting textures that you can press into the surface of the plaster or concrete as it dries.
Feathers make beautifully delicate images when pressed into your plaster or concrete. If you’ve been encouraging the visits of birds, you’ll find a few feathers in the garden that you can add as well.
Jeweled Garden Stone
Embed shiny stones in the plaster. Use these to make a design or spell words.
Plaster Collage
You can leave stones, marbles, and sticks right in the form, and you’ll have a work of art or a really interesting stepping stone.
How to Make Your Stepping Stone
Plaster Stepping Stones
1. Creating the mold. Use a small pizza box, or save a heart-shaped candy box from Valentine’s Day. Or save a cereal box … when all the cereal is gone (small boxes are best). Line the bottom of the box with wax paper or aluminum foil. Or you can make any shapes you want out of cardboard strips 2–3” wide. You’ll need to set them on wax paper or foil before you pour your plaster. These boxes will be used to form the shape of the stone.
Sticks and stones can find a home.
2. Pouring the plaster. You can either buy dry plaster of paris that you mix with water or you can make your own with white glue and water, flour, and strips of paper. Add food coloring or tempera paint to color the plaster. When the mixture is ready, simply pour it into your form.
3. Creating fossils and decorations. Give the plaster a little while to begin to set or harden, and then you can begin to “fossilize” by pressing your stones or marbles or feathers or even your own handprint into the surface of the plaster. Do it gently and hold it just long enough to make an impression in the plaster. Or you can leave the objects in place (unless it’s your hand) to become a part of your stone. When you’re done, let it dry overnight. The next morning, you should be able to pull the cardboard away and be left with your own fossilized garden stone.
4. Making circular stones. You can create simple circles by pouring the plaster into an aluminum pie plate. Circles make nice yellow suns or moons or flowers.
How to Make Plaster of Paris
Warm water (about 2 cups)
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons white glue
1” strips of newspaper
Tempera paint or food coloring (optional)
Large bowl and a wooden spoon or a wire whisk to mix well.
1. Put all of the flour into a bowl and whisk it so it’s not lumpy. Add the water as you stir. Add the paper slowly and continue to mix. Add the glue.
2. Keep mixing as you add food coloring or tempura paint.
3. Pour slowly into your form.
Stone Wreath
To make a plaster wreath you will need to find a mold. An aluminum pie plate with a cup in the center works. Hold the center cup down as you pour the plaster into the mold so it doesn’t move. A Jell-O mold works well too. Before the plaster sets, but when it is firm enough, simply press colorful or interesting stones or shells into the plaster. You’ll end up with great textures and colors and a cool thing to hang in the yard or even use as a centerpiece on a picnic table.
Stone pile
THE ART OF STONE PILING. Stone pilings were used to mark the burial grounds of the Native Americans and other cultures. They were used to mark trails by the same Native Americans as well as the trail blazers who followed. We can still find stone pilings on the Appalachian Trail and others in the United States.
Stone piling is art in its simplest form. It’s not far from using simple building blocks to experiment with construction. It may be about looking closely at and appreciating the inherent beauty and wonder of the natural world. And the best part is that it can be a lot of fun.
Stone walls are a form of stone piling. When I first moved to New England I couldn’t believe how beautiful some of the old stone walls were. These were made from stone pulled from fields and gardens and built as stone fences. What a lot of effort! Hundreds of years later they are still standing. They’re a record of human ingenuity and expression.
Be a Rock Artist
To make your own “rock art,” find a location where a stone pile might look nice. You might already have a collection of stones from clearing your garden or helping in the yard.
Stone piling is little more than a balancing act. Take the nice stones you select and see how you can create shapes and forms. The more you try this, the better you’ll get at it. Once you think you’re finished, step back and take a look. Don’t worry if it falls—you can rebuild. And you probably learned something in the process.
Take a picture of your stone pile because these creations don’t last forever. Wind or rain or your little brother or sister might knock it down.
If it lasts in the yard, check it out at different times of the day. Watch the changing shadows it casts as the sunlight moves across it from morning to night. Imagine how stone piles were used in ancient times and other cultures. They are often referred to as cairns. If you work at it, you can measure the shadows and have a good idea of the time of day.
Start weaving and see what you come up with. Then you can decorate with things like berries or pinecones or feathers.
I recently came across this piling left on the shore of Six Mile Island on Lake Winnepasaukee in New Hampshire.
The Art of Stick Weaving
Stick weaving is another ancient art. You can do this in your own yard by collecting thin sticks, about a 1/4 “thick and a few feet long. Collect sticks that have recently fallen and aren’t completely dry. Fall is a good season for it. Slightly moist sticks are much easier to bend without breaking. If your sticks snap easily, soak them in warm water to make them easier to bend without breaking. You can make fences out of sticks or artwork to hang on the wall or out in the garden or screened porch. You can make a small border for your garden. Or just have fun trying. This is also a great way to pick up all the sticks out of the lawn.
Grapevine Wreaths
Grapevine wreathes are simple to make. Look for thin vines stems in trees. They are wild and invasive. The best time to gather the stems is in autumn, when the plants are dormant. It’s as simple as cutting vine stems and twisting them into circles (about 30” in diameter). When you get the knack of twisting and tucking the vines into themselves you’ll find it pretty easy. Once you like the thickness or mass of the twisted vine, you can decorate it with pinecones or dried flowers.
Simple grapevine wreath
“A shelter of sticks” at the Desert Botanical Garden in Scottsdale, Arizona.
In nature, sticks form their own art.
If you want a great example of this process, take a closer look at birds’ nests. There’s a picture of a blue jay’s nest in Chapter 8.
Painting on Slate or Bluestone
You’ll need an old broken piece of blue-stone or slate. Wash it off. With chalk, draw a light outline of the simple image you want to paint. The chalk will wash right off when you’re finished. And then paint. Try acrylics. Stone art doesn’t have to be perfect. It only has to be fun.
Painting on bluestone
Painting on Wood
Have an unsightly side of the house? Or a barn? Or a storage shed? How about the big side of a garage where nothing will grow? That’s the perfect place for your first art show. Outdoor paintings won’t last forever, but should last for years and can be a great way to brighten up some dull places in the yard. Look to see if there’s a good place to display your talent. If it’s a big space you can create a few small paintings like I did on the previous page. Share a big piece (a 4’ x 4’ piece of plywood, for instance) with a family or friends. Don’t be surprised if everyone wants to get involved. We’re all artists at heart, after all.
Start small. Take a piece of scrap wood or plywood, or buy a small piece of wood. The ones in the photos are 2’ x 2’ squares. It’s best to lightly sand the edges and put a primer coat on the bare wood before you start to paint. Prime the edges too, especially for plywood because it’s made in layers and can peel apart when it’s exposed to bad weather. If you prime both sides and the edges, your wood paintings should last several years.
A simple beginner set of acrylic paints or even some leftover house paint will work. Sketch lightly with pencil or chalk, or better yet, do a separate sketch on a piece of paper before you start on the wood. Get a paintbrush or two and a small container of water to wash the brushes off. And then get started and see what you can do. Bright colors show up great in summer and light colors still stand out in the winter.
Wood painting