Donkey made of plastic bottles: step by step instructions

Once upon a time, those days when water and milk were sold in glass containers and empty bottles were carried in shopping bags at the collection point for glass containers or returned to retail outlets were gone. In our time, fragile and expensive glass has replaced a cheaper and more practical material - plastic. In addition to the fact that such utensils are light, they can be used as material for making recyclables, and craftsmen from the people are contriving to create real masterpieces from it that become worthy interior items both inside the house and outside. One of them is a donkey from plastic bottles. This is an incredibly simple but cute craft. She will decorate a personal plot, a flower bed near an apartment building or a courtyard of a kindergarten.

Fine nearby

There are many ideas for creating an original landscape design. For the embodiment of some will require a lot of effort and money, while others are absolutely accessible and simple to implement. The disadvantage of budget decorations for the garden or yard is their rather controversial appearance. Some products, or rather their appearance, often cause an ambiguous opinion among people, but by making a donkey from plastic bottles with their own hands, the author is unlikely to hear criticism, because such an craft can really be relevant and organic, especially when combined with others exposure elements.

Natural flowers, which can not only frame the animal, but also be its burden, will certainly become a wonderful complement to the sculpture. So, if a donkey from plastic bottles pulls an impromptu wagon, strewn with bright flower corollas, or carries miniature baskets with artificial or living vegetation, it will look as profitable and natural as possible.

Funny donkey

Thanks to the wonderful animated film, a donkey is an animal that makes people smile and some kind of sympathy. Needless to say, a donkey from plastic bottles for a garden will primarily appeal to children. To create it, quite accessible materials and tools are needed; more on this can be found in the next section.

The main difference between donkeys from plastic bottles is the finish. Sweet Eeyore is most common, but it’s not necessary to completely copy other people's ideas. A little imagination - and an exclusive craft will decorate your garden. To decorate the sculpture, you can use a water-based paint on an acrylic basis, however, then the burro will need to be opened with an additional layer of fixing varnish. Manufacturers offer not only transparent, but also colored acrylic varnishes, it is easiest to work with.

Enamel paints are also acceptable, but over time they crack and fade, but a color from an aerosol will not only delight the eye for a long time with color saturation, but also simply apply it, easily paint over reliefs on containers and will not require the use of brushes.

How to paint plastic bottles?

The method itself by which crafts from plastic bottles is painted is also different. A donkey can be painted on the outside, or inside the bottles. In this case, the product will not be afraid of weather conditions, however, it will not work to make it multicolor. To apply paint from the inside will not be difficult, but this work requires precision and accuracy, then you will get a really beautiful donkey from plastic bottles. Step-by-step instructions for internal staining are as follows:

• container preparation (remove labels, wash and dry);
• paint preparation - you must first mix the dye with a solvent and mix the solution well until smooth;
• using a syringe, add color to the container and, slowly turning, distribute it along the walls, then turn the bottle upside down and allow excess liquid to drain.

External painting is preferable if opaque bottles are used in the work or the craft needs to be painted in several colors, which is important, because a donkey from plastic bottles will be more realistic with bright eyes, a mouth, a nose, a breast, ears and a tail highlighted in a different color. The technology of work is slightly different:

• containers also need to be prepared by cleaning and washing their surface;
• degrease bottles with alcohol-containing liquids;
• apply paint first from below the vessel, then onto its upper part;
• let the product dry.

What do you need to prepare to create crafts?

Before starting work, you need to prepare everything you need. Craft can be done indoors, but it is preferable to paint the details on the street. So what do you need to create a product?

1. Bottles of different volumes. For the body, this is a capacity of 5-6 liters (you can use large ones), for the legs it is better to pick up the same half-liter bottles of thick and hard plastic, the head and neck will be a pot-bellied container of 2 liters, always with a non-flat bottom, because it is the bottom with four tubercles will become the face of the animal.
2. Decor - ribbons, cords or yarn for ponytails and manes, buttons or beads for the eyes.
3. Paints, as well as brushes, sponges, solvent, syringe (depending on how the donkey from the plastic bottles will be painted). A step-by-step instruction manual is described above.
4. Scissors, clerical knife. For fastening parts, you can use screws, universal glue, adhesive tape, wire. Two wooden slats as long as a bottle under the body, sand to make the structure heavier.

One, two and done

When all the materials and tools are ready, you can begin to create such a craft as a donkey from plastic bottles. The master class (description of the progress) shows that it is not difficult to do it at all, you just need to put together all the pre-painted bottles:

• Using screws, screw caps on bottle legs to the body. To fix them, put rails inside the bottle. Then the legs simply screw onto their own covers.

• The next step is to create the head of the animal. It is important to maintain accuracy and fit the neck and neck cuts to the appropriate details. It is necessary to fasten the structure with screws or duct tape, it is also quite acceptable to use hot glue, it is applied using a special gun and freezes almost instantly.
• Ears are cut from bottles, tail and mane are made of them. These elements are formed from plastic cut into narrow strips. The prepared blanks will most likely be inserted into the slots, and then glue them to the base.
• On the sides, you can make small baskets of bottles and, filling them with soil, plant fresh flowers there.

Donkey Variations

A more laborious, but more durable and aesthetic option is the manufacture of a donkey from bottles with construction foam, decorated with ceramic tiles. In this case, the plastic structure on top is covered with a thin layer of mounting foam from the cylinder. You need to work slowly, carefully covering each area of ​​the bottle, paying special attention to the joints between the elements.

When the foam dries well, its excess is cut, so you need to form the final version of the sculpture and remove excess volumes. Ceramic tiles are taken for decoration, broken and defective can be used. Small pieces are attached to the frame on a cement base, it is better to start from the bottom, it is easier to fit the elements to each other and make a neat picture.

Note to needlewomen

Plastic bottles of different shapes and volumes are a fertile material that, with a bit of imagination, can be turned into completely unusual products. The main thing is not to overdo it with such elements in the garden or in the yard, so as not to oversaturate the exterior with excessive decor. In addition, sculptures periodically need to be changed or updated. After a few years, they lose their appeal. The roasting sun, precipitation and frost do not leave the possibility of crafts from plastic bottles for a long life. In this, however, there is not only a minus, but also a significant plus - the ability to manifest a flight of fantasy again and again.