Vine Ball Rescue with Wire!

Back in 2014 I made this vine ball for cheap, because I didn't want to buy

 one this size for $24!

It looked perfect in this aged, chipped urn planter for several years.

I made a base framework with wooden embroidery hoops and a thrift store grapevine garland. I soaked it in hot water and gently took it apart to make this ball.

I LOVED how it looked!

But now, 6 years later the vines are breaking down and the ball is looking really sad.

 Even spray painting it blue last year didn't save it.

So this year I decided to revamp it with WIRE, not vines,

 and I couldn't be happier with the results!

Hardware stores and building supplies have this roll of wire and 

even at our small town hardware it was only $4. 

It is called "tie wire" and is used to hold rebar together for cement projects.

 It is super easy to work with and did I mention CHEAP?

Here is that sad vine ball with about 20 wraps of tie wire. 

I cut the wire into four foot lengths to make it manageable.

 It took less than an hour to return the sad orb to an awesome ball once again.

I decided to spray paint the ball with the colors I had on hand...both sort of turquoise blue.

Then I made two more balls and painted them, too!

Then I stacked them into this awesome tower trellis The Welding Man made.

Ooooh! I like this alot!

And then I took a few lengths of wire and made this 

little tennis  ball size orb and painted it blue....

It's just perfect with those hot pink cosmos!

This was a pleasant afternoon's work, sitting in the sunshine. 

I'm getting more tire wire and see what else I can come up with!!

DIY Vine Decor Ball Garden Art

Do you know how much a 12" vine ball costs? I know how much it costs because I decided I wanted a big vine ball for my urn planter. So I started shopping for one.

A foot across, made from dried vines, how expensive could it be? 

Hey, locally the price was $28! Online the price was $22. Plus shipping!

Well, shoot, that's not going to stop me from getting a big ol' vine ball for my empty urn planter.

Time to DIY.

Pink Panther theme music goes here....

Ta da! 

And it didn't cost anywhere near the twenty dollars plus.  

Here's how I worked it out.

I already had the totally plastic but painted and repainted urn planter that looks like a priceless iron antique. But it's really just plastic from Kmart and cost $2.50 on clearance. It was a bronzey tan and it now has so many layers of spray paint and outdoor craft paint that it looks like an old old metal planter. Every year it gets more beat up and vintage looking. I love it!

Ahem.

I shopped in my stash for the embroidery hoops and the spray paint AND the wire, so no new dollars spent there.

I found the bundle of twisted vines at a thrift store for $1.99.

I wired two painted embroidery hoops to make a good base for my sphere. Then I unraveled the vines into smaller strands. Note-soaking them in water overnight would have made them much more pliable to work with but I persevered and made them work for me. Even though they were stiff and brittle and seemed determined to try my patience. 

So, here's the start. And the middle. And basically the finish.

I wrapped those vines round and round the hoops. And then wrapped some more. And then added more. 

You see where this is going.

I used short lengths of fine floral wire at many different places to hold the vines in the round shape and basically make the whole shebang look like a rustic globe.

Lordy Lordy I love the way this came out!

So of course I had to take pictures and gaze at it and add the creeping jenny birdhouse and then take more pictures and make The Welding Man come out and look at it and then take more pictures.

Be very glad I'm only posting these few.

Oooh aaah!

With the plastic urn that totally does NOT look like a plastic urn but looks like a vintage iron planter. And the tiny curly tendrils of dried vines. And the extremely low cost of my new garden vine ball...

I love everything about this little DIY.

Extreme close up! 

I should just start saying that the urn is a vintage iron thrift shop find that cost me an arm and a leg. But nah. Plastic and paint and more paint and some weather and then the big ol' decorative vine ball on top.

It hits all the bases for my favorite projects...it has color, texture, age and low cost. Plus, it went together in no time, about an hour.

I have other urns with plants in them...and more of those twisted vines....and embroidery hoops...and wire, and spray paint. I see more gorgeous vine balls in my garden future!

http://akadesign.ca/weekend-retreat-link-party-135/

http://www.funkyjunkinteriors.net/2015/09/pj-297-an-upcycled-link-party

http://www.skiptomylou.org/made-by-you-monday-256/