Wind Chime Re-do

Ahhhhh... The wind. 

I love a good cloudy, windy, drizzly fall day. I know it sounds weird but I love the rain. 

So when my mom told me she found a long forgotten wind chime in her potting shed I thought this would be another great way I could enjoy this windy autumn weather.  

After 

The new charm

 Here you can see the glass beads.

Before

(The Before: covered in rust and hard water buildup from the rain.)

 You can't really tell from this picture but the pipes have stains of hard water, the charms are rusted and the strings are corroded to the point of disintegration. What this wind chime needs is some good TLC. 

Follow along with your own old wind chime that needs a face lift or you can find one at your local thrift store.

Supplies:

-An old wind chime with pipes intact 

-Paint 

-String

-New Charms

- Some Glass Beads 

First I took apart the old wind chime, thew out the old strings and rusted charms, and washed the pipes (they ended up being so full of muck that they made a thud sound instead of a chiming one.) Then I painted the wood top, if the wood had a varnish or paint you would need to sand it first. Make sure not to cover the holes with paint I used a bent straight pin to poke out the paint.  

Next I re-strung the pipes the way it was before with some new string, re-strung the hanging part and added a new charm. 

Then I re-strung the middle string and added the metal disk about half was down the pipes (this piece hits the pipes to make the chiming sound.) After that I added a charm followed by a knot to hold the disk in place.

Next I finished the middle string off with a charm on the bottom to weight the string down and catch the wind, the most important element of a wind chime!

Lastly I added four more strings with glass beads so the wind chime would have a more beautiful sound. 

To keep the beads in place I put a knot before and after each bead.

Here it is.... just in time for the wind and rain my very own melodious chime. Now I can hear the beauty of the fall as well as see it!