tutorial :: garden stepping stones

Years ago, when we first bought our house, I made stepping stones for the garden. The old stones are mossy & weathered, and when I told my children I had made them, they decided they wanted to make some, too.  So, a few weeks ago I gathered supplies, invited over a friend of my older son and we got to work.

MATERIALS REQUIRED
An assortment of glass tiles & flattened glass marbles
Clear vinyl pot saucers (we used these)
A bag of cement
A bucket for mixing cement
Rubber gloves and some cleaning rags

STEP 1 :: Scoop several cups of cement into your bucket. Add water and stir. For best results, put on rubber gloves and mix by hand.  Keep adding small amounts of water or cement as needed until the cement is the approximate consistency of thick cake batter.

STEP 2 ::  Scoop cement into your clear vinyl pot saucers until 1 cm below the brim.

STEP 3 ::  Have children add tiles & marbles, etc... to decorate.  Be sure the items are pressed in firmly with the edges slightly submerged or the items might fall out once the cement is dry.

STEP 4 ::  Once the design is completed, use a damp rag to gently wipe any cement smudges off the tops of the tiles and marbles.

STEP 5 ::  Allow to dry several days, remove from the molds and find homes for your beautiful stepping stones in the garden.