Alley-oop! Urn Transformation

I almost fell off my bicycle as I was cruising a neighborhood alley

and spotted these two cement urns next to a dumpster.

The generally accepted rule of alley etiquette is if it's by a dumpster, it's OK to take it.

So, while Ron road back to get the car, I guarded my new steals, I mean treasures. 

Here's a Before and After picture!

They were quite heavy and in excellent shape. 

Except someone had painted them a sickly yellow color.

So Ron sprayed them with a graffiti remover and let it work.

Then gave it a good scrape with a stiff brush.

And finally hosed it off.

Wow! They looked brand new!

Actually, Ron did too good of a job.

The urns were bright white with no character.

They needed to be "aged."

I know you can use moss spores to get this look but where the heck do you find them?
I'd read about aging concrete with coffee grounds so I thought I'd give that a try.
Just rub wet grounds across the concrete and let it sit for 15-20 minutes.
You might have to do this a couple of times until you get the color base you want.

The coffee gives it a subtle brownish-gray hue.
Brush off the coffee grounds and throw them in the garden. Worms love coffee!
Then I smudged some brown concrete stain here and there with my finger.

Finally, I took a dab of black acrylic paint and mixed it with the watery brown cement stain.
Using an artist's brush, I outlined some raised features to define them.
I also smudged the darker paint here and there for a mottled look.

It will take years for the urns to become pitted and worn
but at least they don't look brand new anymore.

And you can't beat the price!!

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