Stamped copper garden plant markers

Hi guys! I got a lot done today but not a lot of pics taken. These are some stamped copper garden markers I jazzed up. These markers are new(ish). My husband got them from an estate sale but they were too new for me to sell as was on Etsy..there it has to be handmade(altered) vintage(20+ years old) or a supply. So they floated around in my husbands pickup for a month. I decided since I was doing a garden themed show to fix them up for sale. You could probably buy these from a garden or home improvement store. They were bright shiny new copper.

I stamped them with my metal stamps. You can get them at Hobby Lobby. These are thin so don't hammer too many strikes or you will punch through. Ummm..confession time..I have a full sized anvil in my kitchen (and what woman DOESN'T?) but you could also pound these on a concrete step. I also have a trailer hitch piece I use as a mini anvil. If you pound them on something soft like wood, you will get a dent from the punch edges. There is a metal pad you can buy to go with the punches, but I am cheap and would rather use what I already have! I chose phrases over plant names (which you could certainly do!) because I felt it made them more flexible to sell. You could also use these in a potted plant if you didn't have a garden!

After I punched them, I sprayed them with a mix of vinegar with quite a bit of salt dissolved in it. I use an old Fructis spray gel bottle because ..again..it was free and on hand, but you can also buy little spray bottles..or so I hear! I sprinkled on a bit of additional salt and let it dry.It dries to a pretty aqua verdigris finish. I knocked off the excess salt and spritzed it again and let it dry. I wiped up the lettering a bit and darkened it with a fine tip Sharpie. I punched a hole with a nail and added a small acrylic prism that I had floating around in my "save this you might need it for a project some day" bin. They had cheesy white wire jump rings but I didn't like the look so I made some plain galvanized wire ones and swapped them out.

For one of the Secret Garden ones, I couldn't resist adding a small vintage key..also in the bin! The Secret Garden was one of my fav books as a girl ..and still is! Off to the show these go! More pics tomorrow..'til then! Julia