Let's Make A Gazing Ball


This can be a fun project to make. You can decorate as you like when it's done so I made it using a 300x300 clear background so there's plenty of room to add any other decorations.

Now to begin, find a background to make a globe. It's not that easy to find something that has that glassy look. I tried glass backgrounds but they didn't work out that well. My friend Gloria, who I give credit to this little tidbit said, use a jewel. Well what a gem she is because that's just what I did and liked the results.

P.S. TIP: I found that sometimes when you do a sphere, it makes flat sides so what I do now is go to Decorate after I've resized my background and put in 5x5 - transparent and Border and that will be the part that gets tucked under when sphering and it usually comes out perfectly round.

Step 2. Gifworks - background for post resize 30x130 ffects - Cylinder. (You can use a solid color if you don't want a background) Now save.

Step 3. To Image Magick to begin the process of putting it all together. Bottom base:300x300 clear bg - Draw - Ellipse 150,270 35,15 0,360 Fill Color - White if you are going to fill in with a background. Stroke color - none (unless you are using a solid color then you can use a stroke color of a darker shade of your solid color and Stroke Width 1

Step 4. If you are using a background use Atop (or IN) and Misc to fill in the background color, if using a solid color skip this step.

Step 5. url of post - Composite +0+27 South. At this point make a little base ledge to set the globe on. (Note: when I first made this tute I used ellipse but have since changed it to Round Rectangle) Draw Round Rectangle 120,144 180,144 5,5 Stroke color - whatever you used your post color or something close to it if you used a background to fill in your post. If you want it the same then you would have to make a rectangle piece separately and fill in then comp it on the post Stroke Width 6

Step 6. Now get your globe and up to Composite +0+61 North Transform and Trim unless you intend to add any decorations to it, then trim when done.

For those of you who find it difficult to do something totally from scratch, I'm offering you my silver post which I happen to have saved and a globe.

For printers convenience: http://craftylee.webbywarehouse.com/Gazingballs/silverpost.gif
Silver postYou can use for color for base either the background or a silver color. (my background used was: http://www.wtv-zone.com/MsLee/Bgs/silver.gif
Silver BG Fill - #CCCCCC Stroke #333333
Green globe: http://craftylee.webbywarehouse.com/Jewels/green.gif
Green globe

Hope this will be a fun project for you, it sure was for me. Finished gazing ball sample: Teal gazing ball

Oh BTW, when I was making these, I was comping all the parts together on the background and forgot I didn't have a big enough bg and when I went to put the ball at the top, only half of it showed and it looked like a birdbath so that's what I left it as. Birdbath

Check out my page of Gazing Balls to see what you can do to decorate them.
GazingBall.html

ŠLee's Varieties
published March 8, 2005
Lee's Varieties