Easy Uncle Sam garden art
I love to use up bits and pieces of wood. Makes me feel noble! I came up with this Uncle Sam garden piece when we were writing Celebrate Green!
He’s about 18″ tall, but depending on the scraps you have lying around, he could be any size.
This is a project the whole family can enjoy. Why not have each family member make his or her unique creation?
Rather than give exact directions to duplicate mine, I’m going to offer a few pointers so you can assemble yours from materials you have on hand.
For instance, I happened to have a bunch of mini-flower pots that I used for the legs. If you don’t have a stash, use wood scraps, metal lids threaded together, or even pen caps!
Instead of the watch face I attached in the stomach area, you could use a photo, fill with marbles, beads or mini-food made from clay.
How-to
Start by assembling wood scraps, metal lids, mini pots, and anything else you might want to use for body parts.
You’ll also need a supply of screw eyes, a hammer and nail or, thin wire and glue. Paint is optional, but if you use it, red and blue of course work well for this July 4th craft.
Start with a ball shape for the head. You can use an actual ball-tennis or even baseball-or a wood ball. I used a large wooden apple. The reason to start with the head is because once you have the size of the head established, you can choose the other body parts in proportion to it.
Put the head on the table, then start laying down other parts. Match the opposite arm and leg length so the finished piece will balance. I used a couple of small wood finials for the arms, and blocks and the flower pots for the legs with small bells for the feet. If you are going to paint any of the parts, do it now.
For the hat, I sawed a small log that happened to fit inside a wooden letter O. Alternatively, you can take a wood or even metal circle and glue to the bottom of the log to make the hat. If you are using a ball for the head, you will need to saw off the top of the “skull” so you can glue the hat on flat.
Once you have Unc set out as you like him, start screwing in the screw eyes into the end or side of each piece where you want to attach it to another. It’s easiest to start a hole with a hammer and nail or drill, especially if your wood is very, very, very hard as mine was!
Once screw eyes are in, use wire to attach them to each other like this:
After shoulder, stomach, arms and legs are attached to each other, you can glue on other items to decorate. If you’re going to hang Uncle Sam outside, be sure that whatever you attach can withstand heat and rain. Mine hangs in a covered area so I glued on some paper stars and tied a fabric tie.
Finish with an eco-friendlier sealant if you like.
We’d love to see a picture of your Uncle Sam or other eco-friendly 4th of July project. Comment below with a link to pictures!
