Kat you crack me up for sure!!! Sylvia - are you going to try this??? I'm sure we'd all like to hear your result!!

I got to see David's creations today. Awesome. ((Wonder if he will miss the 1 I snuck in the car while his back was turned!!!!!))! I am inspired to try some, the next day I have a few free hours.

I'm so jealous, Jean. Oh, do you need my address so you can send me the one you snuck out for me?

Oh, Jean and Sharon:

It was great seeing you seeing my pots Jean ,... and these are something You, Cinta (the Muse who brought this concept to our attention) Sharon, Bev, Kat, Greg, Cheryl, Bill, Sylvia, and Lynn, and all others who are interested can definitely DO!!!

It works; albeit true;..................... I was hugely skeptical of the strength of these draped cloth in concrete things. I am now a FAN and they are worth the effort. The effect can be like original art as well as a pot.

Try It!!! Keep the mixture thick and goopy and WORK it into that Dam'p fabric!.......................... but seriously!

David

I agree with David. I failed the first time, because I was so stuck on "tea" although my brain kept telling me it wasn't thick enough. When David succeeded and suggested the cement water should be the consistency of cake batter, I knew I would give it another go. And when I tried again, I knew I wouldn't fail. So, if I can do it, when I have nearly no creativity and am slow as molasses in the winter, I know that others can do it also.

But I'm fighting with myself over which plants will get to go in the new pots first. So, I want to make even more for all the plants I have to pot or move to other pots. And a few more pots to have hanging around empty because I love the way they look. And even more for planting some seeds. And...

Well, I just know I won't be done making these even after I use up all the cement in the bag. I just keep looking at a bunch of things and wondering if I can use that for a different shape. I even have five things in my room I want to use, so I better stop looking around. But this might be an interesting winter project also. If I can figure out how to keep from making a big mess when making these inside.

And I have to admit I want other people to join in the fun because I know others will probably discern some other useful tips and experiments. The experimenting and creativity can make it even more fun.

Now to see how they survive in weather.. Think I will wait till next year to try This but will do so if you find
they last out in the winter weather.

Thanks for sharing all your progress and projects with us David. and Ckat.
And thanks to Cinta and all who are working on this project too.
We all learn together.

Sharon just know you will get creative. Fell asleep thinking about creating one out of a scalloped table topper.
Just think petals built in.
Also adding color to the batch would be fun.

DavidofDeLand said:...and these are something You, Cinta (the Muse who brought this concept to our attention) Sharon, Bev, Kat, Greg, Cheryl, Bill, Sylvia, and Lynn, and all others who are interested can definitely DO!!!
Try It!!!

David, just to let you know that having never dealt with cement of any kind, I did take the first step to this interesting project by "starring" the posts where you gave your project tips on how-to-do-it-successfully as you were working out the future steps to be done! Now I know where to go for these tips when I am ready...!!! I hope you all live long enough to see my pictures when I get a draped pot going...

How did I miss this?! This is a useful project that even I could do, I think...well, maybe.

I did finally make it through the entire thread, but I'm not sure of the timeline. About a week of daily misting to properly and fully cure, or longer? Leave to dry in shade for how long? Is Portland Cement the same as Quikrete? Sorry, but other than setting posts I'm a cement novice. I do like to get messy though!

chelle said:How did I miss this?! This is a useful project that even I could do, I think...well, maybe.

I did finally make it through the entire thread, but I'm not sure of the timeline. About a week of daily misting to properly and fully cure, or longer? Leave to dry in shade for how long? Is Portland Cement the same as Quikrete? Sorry, but other than setting posts I'm a cement novice. I do like to get messy though!

If I was smart I would start now. We have been raining for 3 wks almost every day. No need to mist. Just saw the weather forecast and surprise surprise. Looks like I should be building a boat instead of planters because we are going to have rain every day the rest of this week and 7 dys down the road.

I have all the supplies, I just do not want to be out in the rain playing. When we get a break I hurry out and hop on the tractor and mow the lawn. I hardly have time to play in the garden.

chelle, Quikcrete is a brand name and yes, they carry Portland Cement.

You are so right about that rain Cinta! Thats what I do too.

It only takes about 6 hours or so for the pots to be hardening well overnight they are hard enough to handle and at this time they still need to be covered in plastic anyway. I only keep mine under plastic the day its made and 2 days after.

Kats idea of using the paintbrush and water to wet is great too and still use that method for some of my regular hypertufa. Actually I am one of those who will tell you that your pots will be ready to stain or paint after only one week. There are sites out their that will tell us they have to cure 1-3 months. Not so for me. I have pots 5 years old that I started using a week aftr being made that still look great.

Heck after their planted they are going to get watered regularly anyway. If extra lime is a consideration at the beginning for some plants, The pots can be soaked overnight in white vinegar and water for a day, rinsed well and will be neutralized and ready to go. I've never had plant problems and in fact plants love these type pots! (I'm talking about my past regular style hypertufa of course, but these draped ones are the same material and I 'll treat them the same.

Mine are well ready to stain now,......just haven't gotten to it and haven't decided what I want them to look like

Thank you!

Next time I'm in the city (on a dry day) I'll pick up the cement and some new dish washing gloves. Sounds like a fun summer break project for me...and my son. Something messy and fun that we can do together.

Okay! I've got some cement. I don't have a clue if it's the right kind, but it came in 10# bags instead of 40#, so it's easy enough to give it a try. If not, we'll just have fun playing in it.

Wow Chelle!! Can't wait to hear how it goes!!

One of my planters got busted yesterday. Apparently, the manager got nosy when he came over to fix the swamp cooler. It just happened to be my favorite one. Lucky for him, I was too hot to get all hot about it. I was gonna take a picture of it all broken up, but decided against it. It was a larger one than the others I made, so it was really taking a while to make. I am hoping, but not at all sure, I can extract the cloth from it easily, so I can re-use it with the same mold. Don't want to lose my good strong cloth that I already know works.

I have to look at it as an opportunity to improve upon some problems I didn't like about it that was taking time for me to work out. This time will be different starting out.

chelle said:Okay! I've got some cement. I don't have a clue if it's the right kind, but it came in 10# bags instead of 40#, so it's easy enough to give it a try. If not, we'll just have fun playing in it.

Wishing you the best of Luck in your first pots Chelle!

I'm sorry to hear of your Manager mishap Kat. You may be able to use the parts as accents though!
***************************
I've been playing with the ideas of layering pots in pots for dimension by just setting little potted plants in to get ideas for tiered gardens;... I'm liking the look a lot!

Thanks David. Not sure if we'll start today or tomorrow, but I'm looking forward to it.

That last combo is absolutely divine.

Awww David ypu are such an artist. You are so talented at picking just the right plants to make your pots pop.

Kat you have more control than me. I had a guy cutting trees down a couple years ago and he broke one of my pots. When he said it was not a big deal. I picked up a sledge hammer and told him "I guess it would not be a big deal if I put a dent in his brand new Red truck". He tackled me and we were rolling around on the ground as he was trying to get the hammer out of my hand. It was a pot my daughter had given me for my birthday and it was a large expensive hand painted Talavera pot.

In the end he did apologize and pay for the pot and said he had never seen a woman with my strength and asked if I would go to dinner with him. Idiot like I would go out with someone that did not care about my pots.

@Cinta, that was funny. I would not go out with a guy that showed a complete lack of respect for something that was important and meaningful to me, either. But, I bet it would have felt nice to put a dent in his truck. Even replacing the pot, it doesn't restore all of the sentimental value, does it? What did your daughter say about the incident?

@DavidofDeLand, Great idea David. I have a similar idea in mind for some of the pots I have planned in my head. That's why I want to make several planters at a time, for some of the ideas I have that will require more than one planter to pull off. Instead of making really huge pots.