Toadstool Table and Chairs

• 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 (figure C).
• 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 (figure D). Let dry overnight.

7. Coat the base several times until it is fairly thick, especially where it will touch the ground (figure F). 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.