Garden gnomes are funny little things. Although they're most commonly found in your kooky old neighbor's backyard, they have developed a bit of street cred in recent years and are now a bit of a kitsch addition to the hipster's garden. I got quite excited when I came across this post on how to make your own garden gnomes, little mini versions. They're so cute. You could create a whole colony of them in the afternoon and let them rule your garden.



They're easy to make and you can find all the materials in your local craft shop.

What You Need

• craft plaster
• toilet paper tubes
• water cooler cones
• acrylic craft paint, polyurethane
• dimensional fabric paint

Instructions
1. Put a toilet paper tube on top of a water cooler cone. Draw a circle on the cone where they meet.



2. Cut out the cone.

3. Stick the small cone point side down into the toilet paper tube. Push it all the way down so that the tip of the cone touches your work surface.



4. Mix plaster according to the manufacturer's directions and pour into the mold.

5. Allow plaster to fully set. Peel away all the cardboard and paper.



6. Decorate your gnome with acrylic paint and use a Sharpie to draw the eyes. The beards are dimensional fabric paint. You can go to town with the decoration and completely personalize your gnomes. Brush a layer of polyurethane over the gnome to seal it.



(There are some other great DIY apartment ideas on the same website so check them out at the source below. For my next project, I'm going to make a chyrsanthemum mirror out of spoons : http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-make-a-chrysanthemum-mirror-from-spoons-addicted-2-decorating--170879