How To Diy Soup Can Metal Garden Art

Turn empty food cans into sweet garden art robots and pets with these ideas. It's a favorite old-fashioned garden junk project.

And why not make a rubber boot dog to go with it?

Make a Tin Can Robot

Tin can garden art repurposes all sorts of used household items and turns them into fun garden decorations.

How to make tin can garden art robots and more

Ready to turn some old food cans into garden art? This tutorial will give you ideas for making a tin can robot, person, or pet, as well as how to connect the parts—because that's all there is to it.

To prepare, you will want to start collecting parts such as empty food cans, paint cans, lids, and random other metal items including kitchen utensils (knives, forks, spoons), metal dog leashes, old tools, belt buckles, saw blades…. Really, anything that will be durable outdoors will work.

Ideas For Materials

Empty food cans and lids in various shapes and sizes.
Empty paint cans and lids.
Bottle caps (for design elements and/or joins).
Metal chains (old dog leashes).
Metal kitchen gadgets (funnels, strainers, cutlery-knives, forks, spoons, sieves, etc.).
Metal belt buckles.
Nuts, bolts, screws, nails, washers….

Tools & Other Supplies

Power drill and metal drill bits (unless you can punch through the metal with a hammer and awl)
or hammer and hole puncher /awl
Needle-nose pliers for twisting metal wire
Wire for joining part (I use 16 gauge wire for many garden art projects).
Wire cutter
Tin snips or metal cutters
Screwdriver
Epoxy or other adhesive suitable for outdoor metal projects
Duct tape
Paint suitable for tin/metal. I use spray paint. Read the label to see if a primer is required
Primer (if required for your paint product)

Safety Protection

Beware of sharp edges and take precautions with glove and safety glasses as needed.

Protective gloves and glasses

Tin Can Project Ideas

I suggest doing a Google image search fortin can garden art first to gather ideas you like. You could make:

Robots, people, scarecrow, aliens
Animals: dog, cat, snake, lizard…

Planning

Plan your project first and decide all parts you will be using.

Decide how you want to join the parts together. Options include creating holes through parts and joining them with:

Nuts and bolts.
Wire wrapped around a nut or washer at either end.

If you want moving joints:

Use washers or bottle caps between the parts, threading the joining wire or bolts through.

Also pre-plan what you'll need to hang your creation up, for example, a wire through the top of the head or a rebar post to stand it on.

Preparation

Wash and remove labels from all cans.
Cut any parts you will need – think about eyes, ears, mouth, hands, feet, and, the best part—unique decorations such as belt, heart, necklace, headdress, earings…
Drill holes for all joins and joints. Make sure the hole is large enough to fit the bolts or wire you are using.
Paint parts that will be easier to access before assembly. Allow to dry according to product label.

Assembly

Assemble in sections, completing the head, body, and limbs before putting it all together.

Tip

If you're attaching any parts with adhesive, it can help to secure them in place with tape while you're waiting for the adhesive to dry.

This project is included in this Empress of Dirt ebook:

25 Garden Art Projects & Ideas

by Melissa J. Will

Grab the top garden art DIY projects and tips from Empress of Dirt

This ebook is a digital file you save to your device.

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PDF Format | About Ebook

~Melissa the Empress of Dirt ♛

Garden art robot made from tin cans.

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