Painted Garden Stepping Stone

Create a little fun and whimsy in your Garden with a Bloom Garden Stepping Stone.

My garden stone was recently featured in Craft Ideas Magazine's 2017 Garden Issue.


Materials and Supplies:                                          (*affiliate links)

Directions:

1. Cover the sides and bottom of an old cake pan with Petroleum Jelly for easy removal.


2. Mix Rapid Set Concrete Mix according to manufacturer’s instructions. Fill pan with cement approx. 1″ thick. Shake pan a little to fill in the gaps and smooth. Allow a couple hours for cement to set before removing from the pan. Let the cement stone dry for a day or two before painting.

3. To create a better surface for painting and stenciling, paint cement stone first with Multi-Purpose Sealer. 


4. Mix together Night Sky and Cotton Ball acrylic paint and basecoat the top and sides of the stone.

5. Tear a piece of white cardstock with an irregular edge as shown to create a mask stencil for  cloud background.

6.  Place cloud mask stencil onto stone and paint with an upward motion.

Move mask stencil around stone to paint additional clouds and let dry.

7. Stencil bloom flower using a mixture of Watermelon Slice and Marigold and stencil “bloom” with Night Sky as shown. Paint leaves Woodland Green and let dry.


8. Apply varnish using paintbrush over stone to help protect the stone from the outdoor elements.

Sue's Creative Workshop
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
3 of 7 questions
  • Karen Karen on Jun 01, 2017

    Do you think it would be possible to maybe put something in the pan first like glass stones or shells and then pour the concrete over?

  • Rosanna Scarola Rosanna Scarola on Jun 03, 2017

    Could these be used as stepping stones if the pan were bigger? Or would they be to thin? I can't find bigger round stepping stones and I'm considering making them myself!

  • Robin Robin on Jun 07, 2017

    I tried using the petroleum jelly for your project and it didn't work. The pan got real hot after pouring the cement in and it's like it melted all of it. I had to break the pan just to get the stone out. Next, I even tried WD-40 and it still stuck to a new pan and had to break the pan to get out. So, I'm asking, what am I doing wrong? How much jelly do you use? Also, what do you use to smooth the top of the cement when it's still in the pan wet?

Comments
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3 of 34 comments
  • Linda Linda on Jun 16, 2017

    I made stepping stones like this using those large plastic saucers that you put under plants to catch the water. Cheap and you can throw away. You can get several to make all at one time.

  • Caesi Caesi on May 25, 2022

    Wouldn't this also be a great safety device - using glow in dark paint- and use these to go from a gate fo backyard "in-law suite" for the rental? Often house lighting just isn't bright enough coming home after dark. Lit up paving stones could save someone, especially seniors, from a sprained or broken ankle.

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