Toadstool Table and Chairs

Materials and Tools:

14-gauge wire or 3 tomato cages
22-gauge wire
1/4" wire mesh
wire cutters
2 pairs of pliers
surface bonding cement*
trowel
rubber gloves**
large waterproof vessel for mixing cement (wheelbarrow, large bucket, or mixing trough)
hand aerator (small gardening implement with a handle and claw)
garden hose with nozzle
level work surface
concrete or masonry paint
level
old carpet - optional
silicone glue - optional
utility knife - optional
*Quikwall and Surewall are two common brands of surface bonding cement.

**Caution: Prolonged exposure to unmixed cement or wet cement will burn your skin. Always wear gloves when working with cement.

Note: This process takes about two weeks to complete from beginning to end, but only requires a small amount of time each day to apply cement.

Tips: The most time consuming part of the process is building the frame.

• Be careful not to cut yourself on the sharp bits of wire while applying the wire mesh.
• Avoid physical contact with unmixed and wet cement to protect your skin.
• Caution: Do not breath in the dust while you are mixing and pouring dry unmixed cement.

Steps:

1. Build the frame for the table by turning a tomato cage upside down and bending the spikes perpendicular to the base to form the table. Construct the frame for each stool from another tomato cage by cutting the top of the cage off and using the long spikes to form the seat. This completes the toadstool table and chair frames.

2. Cover the entire frame with 1/4-inch wire mesh. Cut pieces of wire mesh off the roll. The size and shape of the pieces doesn't matter as long as they fit snuggly when tied down with twisted pieces of 22-gauge wire. Clip pieces of mesh off to keep them from sticking up too far. Create ribs of wire mesh on the underside of the mushroom. These ribs should be hollow and should form large cavities under the mushroom cap. The table should have a minimum of four ribs and a stool should have two or three depending on the diameter. The ribs make the top stronger and help to make its attachment to the base cover a larger area.

Tip: An extremely small diameter stool doesn't require ribs.

3. Mix the cement wearing rubber gloves and following the manufacturer's directions. Add water to the cement powder and mix with the trowel until the powder is wet, but will not drip out of your hand while holding a blob. Break up any globs of dry cement with the hand aerator and further mix the cement until it is uniform in consistency. The mix should have a thick pudding consistency. Mix the cement in very small batches because it will dry quickly.

Tips:

• Water cannot be added to the cement once it has begun to harden.
• Wash off gloves and tools frequently.
• The trough should be washed out between mixes to keep hardened chunks of cement out of future cement mixes.

4. Begin coating the mushrooms with cement.

• Apply cement in thin coats starting with the underside.
• Turn the mushroom over and rest it on its tabletop.
• Coat the underside of the tabletop with cement. Apply cement with the trowel or your gloved hand.
• Push the cement through the mesh to grip it.

5. Continue to mix new batches of cement and apply to the base until it has been covered from the underside of the cap, inside the base and outside the base. Let dry overnight.

6. Before coating the underside and base (inside and out) again, lightly spray it with water (water hose) and let it soak in for a few minutes. This will prevent the dried cement from leaching the moisture out of your application of wet cement and causing it to cure to quickly and therefore weakly. Repeat this each time a new coat is applied to any dried cement.

7. Coat the base several times until it is fairly thick, especially where it will touch the ground. The cement should be no thinner than 1/2 inch in any spot. Ensure that the rim of the base is level with a leveling tool. Add cement where needed to make it level and where needed to beef up a thin spot or to cover sharp pieces of wire sticking out. Mix a soupy mixture of cement and smooth it all over the base with gloved hands to create a finished coat. Tips: Add texture with your hands by swirling hands from the bottom of the base up or to make this coat as smooth as possible. Remember, the bottom of the base is up in the air and the top is at the bottom at this point. Let dry overnight.

8. Flip the mushroom over. Coat the top of the mushroom (the table surface) in the same manner as the base.

• Keep the top as flat and level as possible. A slight variation can be corrected by sitting the finished product on a sand bed.
• The flat surface should be large and flat almost to the edge, where you slope it down to the rim of the cap.
• With each coat, be sure that the rim of the cap has no sharp edges and that the cement is blended with the finished underside.
• Run your cupped hand around the rim to ensure that there are no sharp edges and the underside is smooth.
• Finish with a finishing coat after at least three coats have been applied and the coats are thick enough.
• Add a swirled texture to the top, starting in the center or smooth the coat as desired.

9. Allow the mushrooms to dry for two days before painting. Lightly spray it with water several times during this drying period to slow the curing time. This builds a stronger table. Paint the mushroom as desired. Put it up on a table (with help) or paint it on the ground! Paint spots, swirls or stripes to create a whimsical-looking mushroom with a coat or two of paint. Your imagination is the limit.

Tip: Painting the mushroom is really not required if you desire a natural look.

10. Optional tips: For indoor use, cover the foot of the toadstool table and chairs with carpet and silicone glue.

• Place a piece of old carpet upside down under the table and use a utility knife to cut a circle using the foot of the mushroom base as the size guide.
• Remove the excess and the circle from under the mushroom.
• Apply silicone-based glue around the edge of the underside of the carpet (you want the pile of the carpet to be the part touching the floor) and place the mushroom onto it, gluing the carpet to the foot.
• Repeat for the stools.
• Place your toadstool set on the finest hardwood surface and it will not leave a scratch.
• It also makes it easier to move as the table can weigh up to 175 pounds or more and with carpet under it; you can slide it into place when moving it.

11. For placing outdoors, it can be placed anywhere, but will be easier to create a level place for it by creating a sand bed just under the table. If your base is 16 inches in diameter, create a sand bed 18 inches in diameter. Dig a hole 18 inches around and two or three inches deep and fill it with sand. Tamp it down a bit and place your table, using a level. Rock it slightly in the sand bed to make it level.