Home and Garden

Ideas For DIY

Driftwood Horses

by

Earlier this week I posted about email images I had received, pictures of the amazing pencil lead sculptures of Dalton Ghetti. Today I’m sharing with you some more mouth dropping art, this time from sculptor Heather Jansch. Heather makes life size horses from bits and pieces of driftwood.

I first heard about Heather from one of my favorite blogs, Funky Junk Interiors, where you can read an interview with the talented sculptor. Since then I’ve seen her work on Stumble Upon and it has been passed to me via email. So if you see any emails containing her amazing work, be sure to reply to your friends and make sure they give credit and refer to her website. She’s written a book too, in which you will see some of her drawings and read about her early work.

When I was in school, I drew… horses. All the time. It was fun to read that this talented driftwood sculptor did the same. In fact in her profile she explains that she had trouble in school and wanted only to draw and be artistic. If you like the images you see here, be sure to visit her website and browse all the gallery images.

Visit the website of Heather Jansch and read the interview at Funky Junk Interiors.

 

 

Comments

  2. cool, we have a set of these built on the dry lake bed not far from us. They are gorgeous. A farmer also built some cows from metal rod sculpture, with one nursing and placed them out in the fields, very fun to see.

  3. I saw one of these yesterday on campus at Pasadena City College. I wanted to plant myself and just take it in… but I had a deadline.

Trackbacks

Have you read?

DIY Giant Eyeball Lanterns – Creepy Halloween Decoration

When it comes to Halloween, bigger is always better—and these giant eyeball lanterns prove it! With nothing more than plain white paper lanterns, a little paint, and some imagination, you can create huge, spooky eyes that look like they’ve popped right out of a monster movie.

They’re perfect for hanging from ceilings, displaying on porches, or grouping together in a corner for an eerie effect. Best of all, paper lanterns are super inexpensive (you can grab them on eBay, Amazon, or even your local dollar store), which makes this a great budget-friendly craft for big impact Halloween décor.

Supplies You’ll Need

  • Large round white paper lanterns (various sizes look best) 
  • Acrylic paints or craft paints in black, brown, green, red, orange, or blue (for irises) 
  • Wide paintbrush for background color 
  • Small paintbrush for details 
  • Black construction paper or cardstock (optional for spiky “lashes” or accents) 
  • Hot glue gun or strong craft glue 
  • String or fishing line (if you want to hang them) 

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Prep the Lanterns

  1. Assemble your white paper lanterns according to the package directions. 
  2. Make sure they’re fully open and the wire insert is in place so the surface is taut for painting. 

Step 2: Paint the Iris

  1. Using a wide brush, paint a large circle in the center of the lantern to create the iris. 
  2. Choose spooky colors—green, red, orange, or blue work wonderfully. 
  3. Don’t worry about making it perfectly smooth; streaks and uneven textures add to the eerie, organic look. 

Step 3: Add the Pupil

  1. Once the iris paint is dry, use black paint to fill in the pupil at the very center. 
  2. Make it large enough to stand out against the iris. 

Step 4: Detail the Eye

  • Use a smaller brush to add darker or lighter streaks in the iris for a more realistic effect. 
  • You can even add thin vein lines in red around the iris to give it that bloodshot look. 

Step 5: Optional Spiky Lashes

  1. Cut long triangles from black construction paper or cardstock. 
  2. Glue them around one side of the lantern so they stick out like sharp monster eyelashes. 
  3. This makes the eyeballs look even more monstrous and stylized. 

Step 6: Display Your Giant Eyeballs

  • Hanging: Use string or fishing line to suspend them from ceilings, trees, or porch rafters so they look like floating eyeballs. 
  • Stacked: Place them in corners, along stairs, or even grouped on your lawn for a spooky display. 
  • Tabletop: Use them as oversized Halloween party props. 

Tips & Variations

  • Glowing Eyes: Insert battery-powered LED lights into the lanterns so they glow from the inside. 
  • Rainbow Eyes: Mix up the colors and make a whole rainbow of creepy eyes. 
  • Monster Cluster: Group multiple eyeballs together in different sizes for a scarier effect. 

This DIY Giant Eyeball Lantern craft is quick, cheap, and gives you maximum Halloween spook factor with minimal effort. Whether you make one or a whole creepy collection, your haunted house setup will definitely be eye-catching!