Graveyard Terrarium
Hey ghouls and creeps! I hope you had a wonderful week! I was super inspired by the graveyard terrariums I was seeing on Pinterest that I had to make one for myself! Any project that is playfully morbid in miniature scale will pique my interest every time. Just a disclaimer: I realize that the moss on the tombstones doesn’t make a lot of sense given that the scene appears to be an arid climate. All this aside, I regret nothing. Pam the botanist, get off my back(JK!). I really like the distressed/weathered look of the tombstones that the shadowed edges and moss provide. These little details provide depth and character in this fictional place. Let’s get started!
I rated the Graveyard Terrarium project as being easy. Skills and techniques covered in the making of this project are laser cutting, painting, and terrarium arranging. You got this!
Step 1: Cutting your Tombstones: Using the JPG or SVG files below, cut your tombstones (two of each style) with your Glowforge or laser cutter.
SVG file: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cIC5j-FjxBo2yBKVY35xgqndtqgD5Mcv/view?usp=sharing
Step 2: Tombstone Prep and Painting: After cutting your tombstones, wood glue the backs of the matching tombstones together. Use chip clips to clamp the layers securely for an even bond.
Once the glue is dry, sand the tombstone edges so that they are even and smooth.
Paint all surfaces including the sides of all your tombstone sets.
Distress your tombstones by adding combinations of watered-down black paint, and darkened light grey paint around the edges of each tombstone. When applying paint I tried to create a seamless ombre, so color changes weren’t abrupt.
After the black paint has dried, dab or blot your chartreuse paint around the tombstone edges. One thing I kept in mind when applying my moss; moss typically grows on north-facing surfaces. This is good to know so that your moss is consistently placed on your tombstones. Another thing to consider, there will probably be varying degrees of moss growth on each tombstone because (hopefully) not everyone was buried at the same time.
Set aside tombstones in a safe place and allow to dry.
Step 3: Terrarium Arranging: Pour all of your tan sand into your glass container. Pour seven eighths of your pebbles into your container with the tan sand. Mix pebbles with sand until evenly distributed. Level your sand and pebble mix.
Pour the black sand over the tan sand and pebbles. Level your black sand layer without mixing.
Stick your air plants toward the back of your container. Then stick your tombstones in the foreground of your container.
I placed the taller headstones in the back and then the three shorter tombstones in the center, closer to the front. Situating the tombstones so that they vary in distance from the front of the container provides depth.
Then take your remaining pebbles and distribute them around the bases of the air plants and tombstones. You can choose to add moss around your terrarium as well! I liked the simplicity of the black sand so ultimately chose to not include the moss.
You’re finished! Congratulations! Place your new terrarium on a shelf or windowsill to view and be adored!
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Ready for your next project? Here are some tutorials on the blog I think you’ll like! Frame Flip tutorial: https://britnijade.com/frame-flip/, Macrame Wall Hanging: https://britnijade.com/macrame-wall-hanging-w-bones/, or the Spider Web Macrame: https://britnijade.com/spider-web-macrame/. Enjoy!
