• Post Reply Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic
permaculture forums growies critters building homesteading energy monies kitchen purity ungarbage community wilderness fiber arts art permaculture artisans regional education skip experiences global resources cider press projects digital market permies.com pie forums private forums all forums
this forum made possible by our volunteer staff, including ...
master stewards:
  • r ranson
  • Nancy Reading
  • Carla Burke
  • John F Dean
  • Jay Angler
  • paul wheaton
stewards:
  • Nicole Alderman
  • Pearl Sutton
  • Anne Miller
master gardeners:
  • Christopher Weeks
  • Timothy Norton
gardeners:
  • Nina Surya
  • Matt McSpadden
  • thomas rubino

broken tools converted into yard art and other landscape art inspiration

 
author and steward
Posts: 53610
Location: missoula, montana (zone 4)
hugelkultur trees chicken wofati bee woodworking
  • Likes 23
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Once upon a time I bought 80 acres. And just before moving onto the 80 acres, I was struggling with trying to verbally describe different plans at different points on the property.

One day, during this period of time after the purchase and before the move, I was at a little craft fair. So very boring. Except for one spot where a guy had little critters that he had welded up from old tools. He said he would go to auctions and get a pickup truck load of old hand tools and parts for about $50. And then he would weld them together quickly and ....


(source)



(source)



(source)



(source)











I stuck these in spots through the property and then I could refer to things like "near the centipede!"

 
gardener
Posts: 3073
Location: Central Texas zone 8a
819
2
cattle chicken bee sheep
  • Likes 6
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
The craftsman has a good eye. Nice work.
 
steward
Posts: 3743
Location: Moved from south central WI to Portland, OR
996
12
hugelkultur urban chicken food preservation bike bee
  • Likes 2
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I like the Craftsman, um, dinosaur? dragon?
 
Posts: 41
2
  • Likes 8
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Julia call it tyranysaurus wrench! lol
 
pollinator
Posts: 344
Location: New Zealand
28
3
  • Likes 2
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
You just gotta have a way of looking at things. Very cool
 
Sue Rine
pollinator
Posts: 344
Location: New Zealand
28
3
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
There's a plumber in our town who makes creatures too. The starting point is often the copper inner of hot water cylinders. He once made a King Kong which sat atop our picture theatre during the showing of said movie and beyond. The size would be an advantage for farm location ID purposes as they'd be easily seen.
 
Sue Rine
pollinator
Posts: 344
Location: New Zealand
28
3
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Or then there's this... http://www.corrugatedcreations.co.nz/index.html
There's a whole town here in nz where this guy's stuff features. Some of them are huge...whole buildings. But there are more modest ideas too.
 
Sue Rine
pollinator
Posts: 344
Location: New Zealand
28
3
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
http://www.corrugatedcreations.co.nz/album/P-R/Pie%20-%20Putaruru.jpg

This one is especially for you, Paul!
 
gardener
Posts: 1932
Location: Longbranch, WA Mild wet winter dry climate change now hot summer
474
3
goat tiny house rabbit wofati chicken solar
  • Likes 2
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Seems you have roads going to different sections of the property. If you have an icon for a place i.e frog pond, have a routed copy of the icon with an arrow for a direction sign on the road.
 
Posts: 1
Location: Kent, WA
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
LIFE SIZE scrap metal and wood created into art...

Ex-Nihilo Sculpture Park Near Mt. Rainier National Park
Recycled Spirits of Iron Sculpture Park
http://www.danielklennert.com/

"When you first glimpse Dan Klennert's Recycled Spirits of Iron Sculpture Park on your way to Mount Rainier National Park, you might just brake to a stop. And if you don't, we guarantee you will want to when the next opportunity arises.

Peering over the fence you may wonder, "What IS this place?" In Latin "Ex-Nihilo" translates to "something created from nothing." The park is a random collection of animals, monsters, motorcycle riders and structures - all wrought from the imagination and materials found by the artist.

Go ahead, drive in and allow plenty of time for your journey through Spirits of Iron. Klennert has worked for years to create this garden, though he'll tell you that making art seldom feels like work - days pass like hours when he's inspired." copied from: http://www.visitrainier.com/pg/sculpture_park/Ex-Nihilo-Sculpture-Park-Near-Mt-Rainier-National-Park

If you're ever going to Mt Rainier National Park, definitely stop in! Dan is a kick in the pants to talk to.
 
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 8
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Here's something rather purple, yet I love it!

From Fantasywire's Facebook photo..

dancing-with-dandelions-by-fantasywire.jpg
dancing with dandelions wire sculpture by Fantasywire in the UK
dancing with dandelions wire sculpture by Fantasywire in the UK
 
Jocelyn Campbell
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator

Sue Rine wrote:http://www.corrugatedcreations.co.nz/album/P-R/Pie%20-%20Putaruru.jpg

This one is especially for you, Paul!



Here's the pic of that one:


Nice!

Somehow, with "corrugated" I kept thinking cardboard, not steel!
 
Sue Rine
pollinator
Posts: 344
Location: New Zealand
28
3
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I'm not usually into fairies but that is stunningly beautiful. The delicacy of the seeds wafting away, yet made from something that could be seen as harsh. Love the Mt Rainier sculptures too.
 
Jocelyn Campbell
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator

Sue Rine wrote:I'm not usually into fairies but that is stunningly beautiful. The delicacy of the seeds wafting away, yet made from something that could be seen as harsh. Love the Mt Rainier sculptures too.


Me too.

The Fantasywire guy also makes dandelions, 6 ft tall, without fairies. His wire isn't exactly a recycled thing, but I imagine there are ways to upcycle used materials into a similar design.

 
Sue Rine
pollinator
Posts: 344
Location: New Zealand
28
3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
WOW!
Just nip over to the dandelion paddock will you...
 
Jocelyn Campbell
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 5
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
We have lots of stone at base camp. Just sayin'.

 
Posts: 9199
Location: Ozarks zone 7 alluvial, clay/loam with few rocks 50" yearly rain
2594
4
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I love what I'm seeing in this thread, especially the dandy lion fluff fairies and now this video of balancing rocks......years ago, we were taking a long walk back into Monteray on the beach (after taking the bus out of town towards Carmel) and started seeing stacks of rocks and then more and more and then suddenly we surprised the guy as he was stacking.
We felt really bad because he had been off in his own world for who knows how long and just looked totally in a trance....
We end up stacking/balancing small rocks anywhere there are some with the grandkids........some last awhile and point directions, etc. This guy in the video has just set the bar really high!
 
Jocelyn Campbell
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 6
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Found this on the Repurposed Things FaceBook page.

As others commented, it seems a bit of a waste of what could be fairly decent shovel heads, but kind of a cool design, nonetheless.

Old shovels arranged into clever conifer cone sculptures. By artist Patrick Plourde


fbyardart.jpg
sculpture by Patrick Plourde
sculpture by Patrick Plourde
 
Jocelyn Campbell
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 2
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
We're dreaming of more stone art here.

One example is this Kickstarter for a truck made out of dry stack stone.

From the artist Chris Miller's website:



See also the gorgeous stone art at Devine Escapes. This is just one photo.



 
Judith Browning
Posts: 9199
Location: Ozarks zone 7 alluvial, clay/loam with few rocks 50" yearly rain
2594
4
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
This guy!  


Sculptor John Lopez is a product of a place. His people’s ranches are scattered along the Grand River in northwestern South Dakota.


John’s own forte lies in gentling colts and perfecting their bloodlines—and he started his celebration of them by sculpting in clay. Capturing every nuance, every muscle, in this land where business is still conducted over a cup of coffee and “neighboring” is a way of life. Somehow that way of life—where times seems to have stood still—has seen the transition from horsepower to vehicles. The rusted carcasses of discarded equipment stand testament to generations of labor. And the man who knows blood lines has picked through them, choosing the elements of the past—the actual implements that plowed the soil or cut the grain or dug the dinosaur—and created the curve of a jaw, the twitch of a tail, the power of a shoulder.


John Lopez Studio





 
steward
Posts: 21811
Location: Pacific Northwest
12407
11
homeschooling hugelkultur kids art duck forest garden foraging fiber arts sheep wood heat homestead
  • Likes 13
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I just kind of feel the need to brag about my parents. They've created so much garden art out of antique, old, and family heirloom pieces of metal. Here's just some of their art.
rake-owl.jpg
Owl made from old rakes, bicycle chains, shovel, and more!
Owl made from old rakes, bicycle chains, shovel, and more!
dale-duck-snail.jpg
We named this guy Dale the Duck-Snail
We named this guy Dale the Duck-Snail
dale-snail.jpg
Dale from another angle!
Dale from another angle!
christmas-tree.jpg
A Christmas tree (there's also leafy rebar art in the background)
A Christmas tree (there's also leafy rebar art in the background)
praying-mantis.jpg
A praying mantis with a shovel for a head
A praying mantis with a shovel for a head
fishing-pole.jpg
A gigantic fishing pole that's caught a spinning 'ball' made from old barrel rings
A gigantic fishing pole that's caught a spinning 'ball' made from old barrel rings
heart-gate.jpg
Heart gate made from--I think--old auto parts and other scrap metal. It closes with a horse shoe.
Heart gate made from--I think--old auto parts and other scrap metal. It closes with a horse shoe.
flower-gate.jpg
Flower gate
Flower gate
shoe-last-bench.jpg
A bench they made with my great-grandfather (who was a shoe maker)'s shoe lasts, and maple wood from a tree on their property
A bench they made with my great-grandfather (who was a shoe maker)'s shoe lasts, and maple wood from a tree on their property
 
pollinator
Posts: 3173
Location: Meppel (Drenthe, the Netherlands)
1059
dog forest garden urban cooking bike fiber arts
  • Likes 5
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
And there's Yubi Kirindongo, famous artist of Curaçao. His work is all over the island. Most is made of car parts.
https://yubikirindongo.org/museum/  
https://yubikirindongo.org/portfolio/art-in-public-space/
https://yubikirindongo.org/portfolio/car-parts/

Some of his art is made of natural materials
https://yubikirindongo.org/portfolio/natural-materials/

And so he inspireded the other Curaçaoan artist, Herman van Bergen, who mostly uses thorns ... https://cathedralofthorns.com/thornart/  


 
Nicole Alderman
steward
Posts: 21811
Location: Pacific Northwest
12407
11
homeschooling hugelkultur kids art duck forest garden foraging fiber arts sheep wood heat homestead
  • Likes 10
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I found some more pictures of my parents yard art!

I call this fellow the space ship (it used to have little antique glass power pole insulators underneath it, that looked like aliens disembarking from a space ship :D )

rebar yard art with illuminated glass orb
lit up at night
welded yard art with glass ball
in daylight


Some non-snowy pictures of Draco the Dragon. I love his spiky collar!

welded rebar and shovel dragon
from the front
metal dragon yard art
and from the side


Shovels make such perfectly cute heads!

metal praying mantis sculpture
Manty the Praying Mantis
rebar and shovel yard art
another cute shovel creature


Here's the flower gate, as well as a flower fence, all installed. A lot of it is rebar and sheet metal, but accents were from old bits of semitrucks and other metal odds and ends.

woven metal gate with flowers
I love the metal wattling!
welded flower fence with jesus fish and cross
the large front fence


Here's some more fun ones. The cattail one curves up to hold a windchime.

recycled metal yard art
a metal tree!
welded cattail yard art
I think it's an old truck spring for the cattail?


I'm pretty sure this guy is what started it all, a little over 20 years ago. My brother designed and made him in high school metalworking. I need to get a picture where he's not covered in snow!

welded soldier yard art
This guy used to face off against Draco the Dragon
a bit too much snow to see his pipe-y smile!
 
Nicole Alderman
steward
Posts: 21811
Location: Pacific Northwest
12407
11
homeschooling hugelkultur kids art duck forest garden foraging fiber arts sheep wood heat homestead
  • Likes 9
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
These aren't quite repurposed tool yard art, but I think they're fun to share!

welded floral arbor
rebar arbor for shady seeting
welded hanging egg over nest with metal bird
This little birdy laid a GIANT egg!


I love the use of lighting on these ones!

rebar star of Bethlehem lit up with LED lights
Christmas star
rebar heart lit up with green LED lights
Glowing green heart


I'm pretty sure this fish's eye is a giant bolt...

sheet-metal welded fish yard art
I'm glad it can't bite!


This one is inside, but I could see someone hanging something like it outside, too. I love the use of gears and barn wood from the old family barn ♥

steampunk rustic clock made from gears and barnwood
gear clock
 
gardener
Posts: 1799
Location: N. California
852
2
hugelkultur kids cat dog fungi trees books chicken cooking medical herbs ungarbage
  • Likes 6
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I love this kind of stuff, makes me want to give it a try.  Though it's not as easy as it appears.  I showed my husband, because he can weld, a I could see him making stuff like this before his neck injury.  I had to laugh. He liked it, but was upset ruining a couple of perfectly good pipe wrenches.  That's my Horder.  Thanks for sharing, so cool.
 
Jocelyn Campbell
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 8
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Found a perfect example for this thread!



From here
 
Jocelyn Campbell
steward
Posts: 6596
Location: Everett, WA (Western Washington State / Cascadia / Pacific NW)
2180
8
hugelkultur purity forest garden books food preservation
  • Likes 7
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Actually, I think I want my screwdriver storage to look like this.

Jocelyn Campbell wrote:



Wouldn't that make putting away screwdrivers (or other tools) more fun?

It would take some welding engineering (perhaps) to figure out the best rings or receptacles for the screwdrivers though. And the ones on the bottom half of the flower might need to be permanent and not removable.

Reminds me of this for zombie attacks...or gardening idea:


It just makes you want to have all the tools lined up on that wall, doesn't it?

 
Posts: 11
6
personal care chicken medical herbs
  • Likes 5
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
These are so inspiring!! I love repurposing myself, and love seeing others and their creative works.
 
Nicole Alderman
steward
Posts: 21811
Location: Pacific Northwest
12407
11
homeschooling hugelkultur kids art duck forest garden foraging fiber arts sheep wood heat homestead
  • Likes 12
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
My parents have continued making more yard art since my last post. Here's some of their more recent work. I love how they turn these rusty bits of metal into beautiful works of art ♥
image_2025-04-12_164840156.png
The handle actually turns (though it doesn't spin the chains)
The handle actually turns (though it doesn't spin the chains)
image_2025-04-12_164853767.png
I believe the top of this spins!
I believe the top of this spins!
image_2025-04-12_164915166.png
My grandfather once made a giant tire swing built a lot like this. I wonder if I can find a picture of it!
My grandfather once made a giant tire swing built a lot like this. I wonder if I can find a picture of it!
image_2025-04-12_165033801.png
Wind digger
Wind digger. It actually spins when the wind is strong enough!
image_2025-04-12_165113936.png
Gives new meaning to 'spring flower'!
Gives new meaning to 'spring flower'!
image_2025-04-12_165132359.png
Kitty made from springs!
Kitty made from springs!
image_2025-04-12_165144617.png
[Thumbnail for image_2025-04-12_165144617.png]
Springy kitty's face
image_2025-04-12_165202287.png
Kitty made from sheet metal
Kitty made from sheet metal
image_2025-04-12_165226036.png
Springy fishy!
Springy fishy!
image_2025-04-12_165245321.png
[Thumbnail for image_2025-04-12_165245321.png]
image_2025-04-12_165304375.png
Wind chime made from keys <3
Wind chime made from keys <3
image_2025-04-12_165335257.png
I love all the ways my parents have housed and cradled these glass balls.
I love all the ways my parents have housed and cradled these glass balls.
image_2025-04-12_165347042.png
The glass ball has turned into a flower, with leaves made from rode iron and a stem made from scrap metal.
The glass ball has turned into a flower, with leaves made from rode iron and a stem made from scrap metal.
image_2025-04-12_165410458.png
Cables, barrel rungs, and chains formed into circular art. There's also a butterfly in the background, and I think a heart formed out of log grabbers in the foreground.
Cables, barrel rungs, and chains formed into circular art. There's also a butterfly in the background, and I think a heart formed out of log grabbers in the foreground.
image_2025-04-12_165426195.png
My dad made this fountain from gears, wheels and chains
My dad made this fountain from gears, wheels and chains
 
Laura Field
Posts: 11
6
personal care chicken medical herbs
  • Likes 9
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Nicole, those are so cool. The key wind chime reminded me of one my husband and I made together. I continue to collect keys as I prepare to make another.

This was made from a collection of keys, the top was from a bird feeder a bear brought down that I used to hang the keys from, the copper was from what we had on hand to make the chimes, the wood piece for the weight was something David found among his wood working scraps. My most favorite wind chime.
Image-61.jpeg
[beautiful_windchime.jpeg]
 
This cake looks terrible, but it tastes great! Now take a bite out of this tiny ad:
Free Seed Starting ebook!
https://permies.com/t/274152/Orta-Guide-Seed-Starting-Free
reply
    Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic