A C-ment pond for birds

I don't know if it's the same where you live, but here it's been hot as hades. The man and I thought it would be nice to craft another little bird bath for the winged lovelies that visit our yard.

I was retro-meandering the first time I talked about homemade cement birdbaths. Click the highlight if you'd like to see the original post. It's one of those projects that didn't take long to make but twenty years have gone by, and it still holds water.


We used the inside of a trash can lid for a form. The handle of the lid has an indentation which would leave a bump on the bottom of the casting. So we covered it with a piece of cardboard. This gives the birdbath a flat bottom on which to rest.

Next, we covered the lid with a trash bag. This bag will make it easier for the finished product to pop out of the lid, albeit with a little wiggling.

We cut a piece of chicken wire that fits inside the form. This will be used to reinforce the cement to keep it from cracking.

The decorating part is totally your own taste. You can use just about anything to embellish. The first time we used polished rocks. This time we used pieces of colored glass.

We bought a bag of concrete and mixed according to the directions on the bag. It took about half of an 80 pound bag.

Since the trash can lid has a handle, it will not sit flat. So we set it on top of another plastic trash can to use as a base on which to work. We filled the can most of the way with water to stiffen it to support the lid's weight. Then we scooped wet concrete into the lined lid to about half its depth.

Pressing the piece of chicken wire onto the surface of the wet concrete.

We mixed a second batch...

...and added a half inch to cover the chicken wire reinforcement.

We wanted a similar shape to make an impression. To create it, we covered the lid of a picnic cooler with a plastic bag and placed it in the concrete, pressing it in slightly. Then we shoveled in the rest of the concrete to fill the sides, and smoothed with a trowel.

After that we pressed pieces of colored glass into the still-wet cement. We let it set for about an hour, then removed the cooler lid.

In two days, it was completely dry, set, and ready to use. Now that's what I call trash to treasure--literally.

I have in mind to make another one and decorate it with broken china pieces.