Introduction: Sculpt a Star Powered Water Fountain

Small outside area? No outdoor electricity? No Job. You ass realise yourself a small star powered water feature carving using oven broil clay.

I love water features! Tenner years ago I created a whisky barrel piss feature for my small flat balcony. It was AWESOME! I honey the soothing sound. I loved the tiny plants swirling around in the water. And I loved the unusual plants that I could grow in the boggy environment, equivalent the carnivorous venus fly trap and cobra lily. I also had a few friendly goldfish jubilantly swimming about. I love, love, loved information technology!

When I touched halfway across the commonwealth I had to give it away, and after I finally settled into my house, I found I didn't own any outside electricity to recreate it. Bummer.

Years past.

I was thinking about it the another twenty-four hour period and I realized I could run the water pump off solar. Why hadn't I thought of it sooner?!?

So I researched solar pumps and found out they sole run when the sun is shinning. Harkat ul-Mujahedeen...I like the sound of the water running in the evening. The solution was a system with a battery. Unfortunately, all the pre-ready-made solar ticker systems I researched would only run few hours after dark. I wanted mine to run all nighttime and recognise ME in the dark mornings when I leave of absence for work before daylight. Soh with trepidation, I researched the components for a system and ordered them off Amazon River. I imagine my system should personify sinewy enough to escape some lights too.

Step 1: Materials

Pump System

If you have outdoor electrical energy (lucky you), you can just bribe a pump for less than $10, and hop this segment.

  • 12 Volt Solar Panel, 10 Watt (Amazon $27.90)
  • 12 Volt Solar Controller, 20 Amp (Virago $10.99)
  • 12 V Battery, 7 AMP 20 Hour Rechargeable Sealed Lead Acid Battery (Amazon $16.99)
  • 12 V DC Ticker (Amazon River $9.99)
  • Cables Kit, with manly connector for heart and cable system for controller to battery (Harbor Freight $9.99)
  • Plastic Tubing, approx. 2 ft The heart has an 8mm outlet, I just took the pump in the store to see what fit (Ace Hardware $1.00)

Armature

  • PVC Pipe , 4-5 ft, 1/2 inch diameter
  • 2-Polyvinyl chloride 90 degree elbows
  • 2-PVC Teeing ground
  • 1-Premature ventricular contraction Cross
  • Black Flavorless/Matte Spray Paint (black flat volition absorb light best to make it less visible)
  • Weight (I in the beginning witting to use a stepping stone, but I ended rising using a bag of black rocks from the Clam Tree)

Bog Creature

  • Sculpey Oven Bake Cadaver - I bought the 3.75 lb box but I single used half of it. Most craft chain stores carry this. Put on't forget to use your 40% away coupon (Falco subbuteo Hall $26.99)
  • Acrylic fiber Paint - I used 3 colors: Real Green, Black, and Pure Gold.

Water Garden

  • Tub - I used a 20 gallon whiskey barrelful lining (Lowe's $19.98)
  • Plants

Tools and Miscellaneous

  • Aluminum Foil (to cover baking sheet, and to support clay during baking)
  • Baking Sheet
  • Paint Sweep
  • Paint Sponge
  • Sculpting Tools (improvise with a plastic spoon or whatever you got)
  • Disposable paint mixture container
  • Something to cut the Polyvinyl chloride pipage (I secondhand my garden loppers)
  • Wire for mounting small plant pots to tub (I used 16 Gauge)
  • Wire Cutter for cutting wire
  • Scissors grip for striping plastic off telegram
  • Screw Driver for attaching cables to restrainer
  • Mucilage for climbing the feet and top dog to armature. I had trouble gluing, only third time was a charm. The succeeder was a excitable setting epoxy resin, the kind in the double push syringe.
  • Polymer Clay Crimper if you've got it (information technology makes conditioning the Henry Clay super cushy)

Step 2: Prep Exercise

Condition the clay to make water it pliable

I happen to have a dedicated polymer clay rolling machine (fyi - it is recommended to non use polymer clay with things you enjoyment for food). I cranked it done the machine about 3 times per clump, kneading it into a ball between each pass. If you don't have a machine, just use your muscles and work the clay until IT is sleek. You can see the forward motion of the the Great Compromiser in the photo.

Once the clay was sinuate and workable, I formed an oblong pinch pot and nestled two balls of rolled up aluminum foil in the openings. The Clay should not be thicker than a half an inch anywhere, so this technique reduces bulk and supports the head while baking. The large ball is the upper mind and the inferior ball is for the jaw.

HINT: Don't wrap the clay around the foil! The scotch will follow far later and you don't require it difficult to get taboo. I would periodically remove and replace information technology to wee sure.

Step 3: Sculpting the Peat bog Fauna School principal

This is the general appendage I used, but I unbroken adding and removing things a zillion times, so I wear't get a wad of advancement photos that add up. I recommend watching a few time-backslide videos on YouTube of people sculpting faces.

  1. Flip the unsubdivided abstract pot over
  2. Mark the eye location
  3. Shape a warm nose and place
  4. Coil two logs and bend them into the upper and frown lips of the utter
  5. Roll two more arched logs for the brow ridgeline
  6. Blend the features into the clay to attach
  7. Smooth, Smooth, Smooth and Regulate, Chassis, Shape
  8. At this guide I kept referencing photos to help with the problem areas (eyelids are large corneous!)
  9. Cut down backtalk hole and place plastic tube in hole
  10. Make general Yoda like ear shapes
  11. Attach ears (I supported them with more crumpled up aluminum foil)
  12. Smooth, Smooth, Smooth and Shape, Material body, Shape
  13. Call information technology quits. At around point you just feature to enunciat enough is sufficient.
  14. Gently replace tubing with a roll of aluminum thwart
  15. Use many cross to support and corral the head

Step 4: Sculpting the Feet

This is the broad process I used for the feet.

  1. Create two longish rounded triangles for the feet (indent the arches)
  2. Straighten 4 toes for each foot, making for each one progressively little. I found IT helpful to cut larger balls of clay in half, that way each corresponding toed would be approximately the same size.
  3. Roll each ball between your palms softly to elongate it slightly, past inhere in foot
  4. Flip each foot over (this will make up the top of the foot) and smooth the clay across the attachment crease. Leave the crease on the bottomland of the foot, as information technology makes the toes look attractive and stubby.
  5. Smooth, Smooth, Smooth and Shape, Shape, Shape (Don't worry to much about the appearance of the top of the foot other than the toes. It will be affixed and angled back so it won't be seen)
  6. Press in a toenail shape
  7. Imperativeness in/cut a shallow line accross the exceed of each toe for for each one toenail
  8. Make linear striations for joint wrinkles
  9. Work in balls and logs of clay for the heel and aggrandise of the foot
  10. Smooth, Smooth, Smooth and Forge, Shape, Shape
  11. Woof a stopping point

Step 5: Baking the Clay

Bake accordant to package directions (275 degrees, 15 mins for each 1/4 in)

I baked the head and the feet in separate batches. I left them in the oven for an hour each, as I know there were some thickened-ish parts that exceeded the recommended 1/2 inch thickness.

Tone 6: Painting the Bog Creature

  1. Mix rouge in a disposable container. (Make sure to mix enough to cover all surface at to the lowest degree once and to have supererogatory for the fantas coat. It can be troublesome to recreate the corresponding color and acrylic is cheap, so work a trifle more than you think). I mixed about 50% green, 30% black, and 20% golden.
  2. Apply over uncastrated surface (I did the bottoms and inside the heading, let them dry, flipped them complete and painted the tops, let them dry, and then touched functioning any spots I missed.)
  3. I used the left over paint in my container and added an extra squeeze of black to make a darker shade of the same color.
  4. Apply darker shade or shadow in all the recesses, cracks, depressions, and crevasses, making sure to blend thoroughly. I applied it on the lashes, in the ears, between the toes, the arch of the animal foot, subordinate the chew out, down the mouth, and under his cheeks. I used a sponge along a hold fast help blend.
  5. Add a little of gold key to a separate disposable container and thin information technology with a little water.
  6. Apply as highlights to the protruding areas. I applied it to the eyelids, the bridgework of the nose, the chin, the lips, the forehead, the cheeks, and ran it along the outer ear. I also added it to the easy labialize parts of the feet and the toenails.

HINT: Don't blank out to cover your paint and wash out your paintbrush betwixt applications.

Step 7: Assembling the Armature

To make the armature that the nou and feet will embody glued to, I started past slip 4- 6 inch segments of pipe up and attaching them to the cross. I then added the elbow joint joints across from each else. I so inserted the pipe into the height elbow joint, and hovering the head artificial it, eyeballed about where I wanted the head to pillow while thinking about the irrigate equal. I marked the spot and cut information technology, and then attached a golf tee joint. I attached the pipe into the opposite articulatio cubiti joint and repeated the eyeballing dance step for the feet.

I then spray multicolour the slant and all the PVC pipe segments and joints.

I found the head balanced quite healthy happening the upper of the tee oriented vertically, so I didn't have to glue it. As I mentioned earliest, I had trouble gluing the feet. In the end, I removed the tee joint and its PVC tube. I placed the feet upside down, applied the glue, and so rested the tee joint and pipe on top at a 45 degree-ish angle, propping the pipe with a garden pot.

I also restrung the plastic tube up through with the mouth and added a little E6000 to hold it in place.

When altogether the glue has had time to cure and parched, add the weight and fill'er up with piddle.

* In the end, I ended up shortening the horizontal segment of pipe releas to the feet by an inch or 2. It ready-made the bog creature tally advisable, and I ground information technology more esthetically pleasing, as IT made the creature seem shorter and cuter.

Ill-trea 8: Connecting the Ticker Organisation

I was super nervous about this part.

I fain my cables for copulative to the controller by lightly removing the plastic covering with a duet of scissors. I had to remove any of the connectors on the Harbor Cargo cables inaugural, as they weren't compatible with my scheme. I fitting snipped them off.

My controller book of instructions specified conjunctive the stamp battery first, then the solar panel, and finally the load up (pump). The controller had labels indicating where the positive and negative cable for each of the element should go. I screwed down the metal contact plates that hold the wires in range As I slowly connected each telegraph.

I married the ticker connector and it was ALIVE!!!

Step 9: Water Gardening

Primal MESSAGE ABOUT AQUATIC PLANTS

A few of the plants I have listed here are on the noxious weed lists for various states, as they throw done enormous ecological damage in various places in the ma. Check your express or counties noxious weeds list and be responsible. I survive in Colorado and two of these are on the watch list. It is believe to cost too cold hither for them to survive, but they are keeping an eye exterior in case. As I active a big distance from whatsoever bodies of water, there is no chance for them to escape.

I added floating water hyacinth, duck's egg pot, and water lettuce. I love they just float around.

I attached two corkscrew rush to the sidelong of the bathtub, placing the top of the pot at about water level. I poked a formed pig wire up and through the holes in the bottom of the sens and then wrapped it around the edge of the tub. Believe attaching it near or o'er the heart cord for camouflage.

I unsuccessful a manful waterlily in the bottom of the tub.

I think I will lend some goldfish soon.

Glucinium the First to Dea

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