With all of the madness going on in the world, ironically a vast majority of us are actually spending more time at home with family. As a result, we are all getting very creative in our day to day activities. Especially those of us with small children.
What better way to get creative than with old recycled tires. Yes, Tires.
Cheap, fun, unique and beautiful once the project is fully complete. Most importantly, kids absolutely love it. Taking an old dusty tire, cleaning it, painting it and turning it into something beautiful is an amazing and much needed experience of value & creativity.
So… how do we do it? How do we create a beautiful tire garden?
Well, there are a few different ways you can create your tire garden but the most important item you will need regardless of technique will be a…. (drumroll…….)
Mask…..
That’s right. Being that we will be spray painting our little hearts out, it is extremely important to have the proper mask on while doing so. And no, being outside and down wind is not an excuse not to wear a mask while spray painting. Ok, now that we have that covered, the next important item you will need is spray paint :-). Be sure to wash the tire with a hose really well, sit in the sun and let dry completely before spray painting.
Cool Idea: Have the kids make cut outs on poster boards. Spray paint the tire any color you desire. Once the first coating is dry, use your cut outs to spray characters, dots, flower designs etc… Even taking a paint brush and splattering paint over the first coat will make for some really cool designs.
Basic Tire Garden: If you plan on just placing your new colorful tire in the grass and filling it with soil to plant, then you of course do not need any other materials other than your mask & spray paint. After the paint dries, simply place the tire at the desired location in your garden, fill with soil and plant some beautiful flowers inside. This is of course the easiest way to utilize the tire as a garden.
Hanging Tire Garden: There are of course a few different ways to go about this. We found that the easiest and fastest method is utilizing medium sized rope. You will need a power drill to make a hole at the top of the tire. Once you drill a large enough hole in the tire, feed rope through the top. Once the rope is through, tie a very large knot on the other side of the rope. From there, you can plant flowers in the bottom half of the tire however you desire to plant them. If you would like to hang your tire garden on the side of your house, garage etc, either use a drill and large screws to screw the tire in or use larger brackets to hang the tire as you would a picture frame. Just be sure you utilize a large enough screw and bracket so that the weight of the tire is fully supported & secure.
Important: If using soil, be sure that the tire is not too heavy. If you are utilizing a fairly large tire, we recommend purchasing a very large washer to feed the rope through in order to better secure the rope. In addition to that, we recommend placing brackets inside with screws to assist in fortifying the rope as well. Again, this is only for very large heavy tires. Once this is complete, use the rope to hang your beautiful tire garden. Be sure that the hook is strong and secure enough to hold the weight of the tire & soil.
Mobile Tire Garden: If you would like to place your tire garden on any hard surface, you will need to secure the hole in the bottom of the tire. You will need a few planks of wood, a burlap sack and glue. Strong plastic will do as well. First, you must drill several holes on the bottom outside of the tire so that water will drain. Then , simply place the planks of wood inside the bottom of the tire. Be sure the planks are long enough to exceed the inside edges of the tire and wide enough so that you have minimal spaces in between each plank. Once planks are inside and in place, use glue atop of each plank. Then simply cut your burlap sack or plastic to size and place atop of wooden planks (inside the tire). Once this is secure, you will then gradually fill the tire with soil. From there, you may plant your garden and move your garden onto any hard surface. Hence: The Mobile Tire Garden. If you would like to create the type of design you see in the photo, all you will need is a large wooden bored to place behind the tire. Paint the wooden board a desired color and then use a drill to screw the board in the bottom of the tire. Simply stand the tire upright and insert your plants as shown in the photo.
From fun lawn chairs, swings, to DIY tire climbing trails for kids, there are many fun, creative activities you can conduct with an old set of tires.
Thank you very much for reading!
Author: Darren McDuffie
It's always an honor and a pleasure to share my thoughts, knowledge & expertise with the world! As a marketing expert & business consultant, article writing is by far a treat and enjoyable experience. Thank you for reading.