Make A DIY Mushroom For Your Garden For A Home Security Hack

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Finding ways to make home decor functional is one of those little joys in life that always feels like a big win. This is often easier inside, where paintings cover unsightly fuse boxes and sculptures double as coat racks, than it is in outdoor living areas. And when you do find something that works to beautify and make life easier, it often comes with a hefty price tag. Fortunately, a little DIY ingenuity can cut costs and give you a trendy mushroom garden feature with a hidden purpose — it adds secret security for your spare key.

This hack involves hollowing out a piece of branch to use as the trunk of the toadstool and fashioning the cap from ready-to-use concrete mix. A small canister is nestled inside to keep the key. The decorating part of the activity is the most fun and brings a whimsical woodland vibe to your property. If you're nervous about the safety aspect of leaving a key outside, this project is also a neat way to hide treasures for a children's pirate hunt or even a geocaching item. Just remember that a geocache is accessible to many participants, so this should be placed on the outskirts of your property where you don't mind people coming to play. As far as DIY garden ornaments to enhance your outdoor space go, this one is the perfect mix of style and utility that won't break the bank.

To begin your new garden decor, you'll need concrete powder like Quikrete (which is affordable at Home Depot), cling film, a drill with a spade bit, paint, a thick branch from your yard, and a small bottle. If you don't have a canister on hand, you can buy vintage-style film containers, such as the Lasenersm 10-Pack Camera Reel Canisters. Any hollow tube similar to Ventral's PVC Pipe will also work as a stem if you want to avoid the drill. Now you have everything to craft a quick and easy mushroom DIY that will look so adorable in your yard for a key or your geocaching treasure.

Form the cement mushroom cap with some cling film and a shallow bowl, and insert the lid of the canister. Take a branch that's wide enough to accommodate the key canister, cut it to your desired length, and hollow it out with the spade bit. Again, you can skip this step and use another hollow cylindrical item that fits your bottle. Insert the tube end first, and screw it onto the cap. Paint the toadstool red with white spots, or use neutral tones to help it blend into its surroundings. Note: Hiding your mushroom among other garden ornaments can improve your front door security and keep your key hiding spot well-camouflaged. You can also use stickers, stencils, or use a flower mold for the concrete top, and paint the base green. Finally, seal everything to keep it watertight, and add stones or cement to the base so it stays put during high winds.