Hey everyone. I just wanted to share how I made this windmill decor because I love the way it turned out and it was so easy!
A little back-story… Earlier this year my husband and I set out to make ourselves a little garden out of as many recycled materials as possible. A work friend gave us some old and rusty roofing tin that was so perfect for the job. The last touch I added to the garden was the sign above the entrance that read “Martin Family Farm, Welcome to the Garden” with a chicken and a windmill decal that I cut out of vinyl with my Cricut. I love that thing.
I liked the rustic, farmhouse look of the garden, and I liked the windmill decal, and I had an empty space on the wall in our short-term rental home. It was one of those “The stars just aligned” scenarios.
I made a fan blade-shaped stencil out of printer paper and traced it onto the scrapes of tin with a Sharpie. My husband let me use his neutral-direction metal shears to cut out the shapes. Four blisters, two puncture wounds, and one tetanus scare later, I had 12 blades and two tail pieces in front of me. I just eye-balled the shape of the tail pieces.
A month or so prior, our neighbor asked if we could use a massive metal spool of sorts for scrap metal and my husband can’t turn down anything free… He cut off the round end piece and let me use it for the windmill. I cut a slit into each blade and fit them all evenly around the circle. Then I attached the tail pieces to the frame with handy wire.
If I remember correctly, I took a break around this time to wrap my wounds and get a cold beer to hold against my aching hands. See! I’m getting double uses out of all sorts of materials today! #goinggreen
Lastly, I used a hammer and nail to make a hole in the middle of the narrow ends of the blades. Then I laced handy wire through the holes and when I made it back around to the first blade, I twisted the ends of the wire together and tucked the twist out of sight.
Boom! I had myself a damn good-looking piece of art, straight from the farm, to fill the empty space on the wall.
We hung it up high, out of reach of children and with a shit ton 3-inch screws because the sharp edges would be like a guillotine if it fell onto an unsuspecting person or pet. We can’t have that!
As you can see we still have a few items to cross off our to-do list: crown molding above pantry, paint touch-up above the stairs, dry wall.
Thanks for reading. I hope it has inspired you to build something beautiful with recycled materials. Share your ideas below!
One last thing! Should I write a post about building the garden?
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