Garden Junk Totems from www.gardensandcrafts.com

Last Updated on August 10, 2007

My latest obsession has been putting together glass totems. I found them on some Garden Junk forums and just had to try and make some of my own. When I first saw them a couple of years ago, I thought they were kind of tacky. But then I came across some totems that were put together really well. There really is an art to stacking the pieces together to make them look good. There are no real "rules" to making totems, but here are the basic instructions that I followed:

1. Look for pieces that will stack well, have flat bottoms or edges, with a fairly large gluing surface.
2. Try and glue a plate in between each bowl and vase. I think this gives the totems more stability and the pieces have a firm surface for gluing.
3. Clean all glass well with warm soapy water and make sure they are thoroughly dry and lint free before gluing. I used a microfiber cloth to "polish" the glass before gluing.
4. Use denture cleaning tabs for hard to clean vases (1-4 tabs per vase usually works).
5. Use a clear silicone glue or Lexel for best results. Make sure the adhesive you use is weather resistant.
6. Glue up pieces in sections, letting each section cure before putting them all together as one piece. Try gluing the pieces during low humidity to reduce condensation.

See more pictures of these totems among the plants on the Summer 2007 pages.

Here are two of my latest plants stands. I have another taller one, but it kept getting knocked over and it needs to be re-glued. I am going to see if I can make it a little more sturdier before putting it back outside. I think it would be fine, except a neighborhood cat keeps knocking it over when he stalks the chipmunks. I'm really pleased with these two however.

This may not be their permanent home, but it's the only spot I could fit them in right now.

Here is what these totems looked like in the garden in early summer. I will try and add another picture later in the season.

Early Spring

Late Spring

Early Summer

Glass Mushrooms

Glass Totem

If you are making your totems to fit on top of a rod or pole, I've found that PVC conduit painted to look like copper is fairly inexpensive and holds up very well. See the FUN with PVC page for detailed instructions on how to paint these. Rebar is pounded into the ground first and then the conduit is placed over that. The great thing about conduit as each end is slightly bigger than the remainder of the conduit so you have more flexibility in what you use on the bottom of your totems. I've found the short wide mouth vases that narrow as you get closer to the bottom and toothpick holders work great.

When looking for glass pieces, don't limit yourself to just dishes. Look for vases, lamp pieces, votives, bells, etc. I've found that microwave plates and punch bowls make great bases for free-standing totems. Globes for light fixtures also make great toppers, but one word of caution when choosing lamp parts. The glass may not have a level base, so you may have to grind it to make it level or try to compensate by using more silicone adhesive on one side than another. Or, just place it in an area where it's a little less noticable if the piece is not level.

Choosing cut glass pieces adds a lot of sparkle to the garden and it doesn't show condensation as easily as a clear glass piece would. I choose all clear glass, but colored glasses work great too, just make sure they are true colored glass and not painted as the paint will peal when exposed to the elements for a time.

Though my first intention was to make the tallest totems I could, I found I much prefer the smaller ones I have on the rods.