2010 Concrete Rhubarb Leaves

So after two years of checking these out in magazines and online - I finally got around to making them!  Last fall some coworkers and I got together and made enough to fill our sandbox - but this is a learning process....

First attempt - we patted the concrete out to the edge of the leaves - it slopped over the edge and the finished product and no imprint of the leaf around the edges because of the overslop.  Other mistake - we waited a week to peel the leaves off the concrete - almost impossible to remove dried crackling leaves at this point.

Second attempt - last Friday by myself - I mixed the concrete WAAAAY to runny - it was slidding down the leaf - not good - also they ended up much to thin so all of the GIANT leaves broke in half :-(.  I did get several good smaller leaves that I'm really happy with.  I peeled the leaves out two days after casting - piece of cake - and at that time the concrete was still soft enough that I could kind of sand the edges and break off any rough spots.

So here's my results.....

 

(this one someone else casted last fall and I painted)