Hypertufa Hands

by Jacki
(Grand Forks, B.C. Canada)

sweet little Sempervivum species nestle in the hands

sweet little Sempervivum species nestle in the hands

sweet little Sempervivum species nestle in the hands
hypertufa hand with a handful of Sempervivum 'Little Bobo'
Grouping of hypertufa hands, filled with Sempervivum species
hypertufa hands under construction

Well, these are a funny little project - hypertufa hands made from (what else?) surgical gloves and your favorite hypertufa or soil cement mix.

I tried with two, to see if they would work, intending to plant some of my favorite little hardy succulents in them.

I'm thinking they'll be an absolute hit!

Couple of things to keep in mind - make sure there is no air in the fingers of the glove and constantly 'burp' them to get all of it out (I guess you could prick a little hole in the ends of the fingers so the air could escape - something to try next time) and then I lay mine into a pot to curve the fingers.

The other thing to keep in mind is that wherever the fingers touch, it's hard to get the gloves out, so you have to cut them with a razor blade, then carefully pull them loose.

The fingers are fragile, so be careful doing this.

Another option would be to just let the glove weather away in the sun, or carefully burn them off with a propane torch.

The place I got the idea had done them flat, which was cute too. I can see these sticking up out of a garden bed! Don't get too close, or the buried person will grab you...

See a bigger image of this project on Wikimedia.
See more on my projects with a Handful of Hypertufa Hands and a different perspective here.

all images and text on this site are copyrighted
All images and text on this site are copyrighted

Comments for
Hypertufa Hands

Click here to add your own comments

Feb 07, 2012
 tufa fingers
by: gardengirl

I just love these hand tufas------I made 3 of them.The first one which when trying to release the surgical glovewas a failure. Maybe I tried to soon. I broke off (2) fingers (the pinky and then the ring finger. I then made up some pure portland and wet the wounded areas and put them back on-------this did work. I won't be so anxious next time.Please let me know if after a couple of days, should I emerse them in a bucket of water for a week as I read which is what is advised to do with (pinch-pots.Sinserely Gardengirl.
Feb 08, 2012
 tufa hands
by: garden girl

Hey please let me know if you put these little hands in water ---after a few days to cure as they do with the pinch pots. Sincerely garden girl


Hi Garden Girl - yes, you do cure them in exactly the same way by immersing them completely in water. Here is the link to more on that: Curing Hypertufa.
Apr 11, 2012
 help
by: pcmom

I'm having terrible luck with the hands....the fingers are breaking off!!!! I'm using a mix of equal parts portland cement, peat and perlite. Do I need to use a stronger recipe? How long do they need to sit before removing the gloves?
ANY INFO would be appreciated!
Thanks!

These are tricky, that's for sure. I found that you can make them with less peat and perlite, which will make them stronger, and above all, don't mess with them too much until they're thoroughly cured. They take a long time to cure, so don't stint on keeping them wrapped and/or soaking in a water bath.

Others have found that you can make a little bit of mortar (just the portland cement and tiny amount of water mixed until it's like putty) and glue them back on.

I also will be trying using wire inside each finger, to make them a bit stronger. I also found that some gloves are skinnier in the fingers than others, so maybe use a larger size.

Best of luck!
Jacki
Apr 23, 2012
 so creative!!!
by: brenda

love love this!!!
May 01, 2012
 HYPERTUFA HANDS
by: Robbie Frazier

could you use quickcrete to make them with. I think it would be strong enough. Just wondered.

Try it, and post back here if you have success - I don't see why you can't use other ingredients and methods - I'm big on innovation and figuring things out. Luckily, with Hypertufa, there are no rules!
Aug 08, 2012
 soourgical gloves
by: randy

They make a fiberglass strand product you can add, I found some at a cement co.
Aug 25, 2012
 Support for the fingers
by: Robin

As a sculptor, fragile pieces need interior structure. Try making a hand shape out of a long piece of bendable wire. You'll need to bend it into the final shape you want your hand. Put the cement mixture into the fingers before putting in the wire, then slip the wire shape in place. Make sure there's cement on all sides of the wire. Fill the rest of the glove. Before it starts to set, slip a piece of cardboard between the fingers (you'll get the glove off easier if it has a little space). Hope this helps, I can't wait to try my own, and make a head with a plantable "hair" top to go with them!

Good tip, Robin - I hope you'll post your project here!
Aug 26, 2012
 Boo
by: Kathy

These hands are wonderful, I will give it a try.
I pinned the photo and so glad I found your site.
Thanks for sharing. I see tons of hypertufa projects in my future.
Aug 26, 2012
 using concrete fortifier
by: Anonymous

I tried one set and broke fingers off, right and left. Literally. So this next time I am going to mix 1 part portland cement and 2 parts sand and use a liquid concrete fortifier. It is supposed to make the concrete flow nicer and gives it strength and a smooth finish. Also I may throw them into a bucket after 24 hrs and not try to rush getting the gloves off. I think that there will be enough room for water to leak down into the glove and around the concrete and allow a good cure. I may after a day or so, start to gently tear away what will come away easily and wait til later to get the stuck stuff.

If you use the non-latex surgical gloves, they pretty much rot into nothing once they are exposed to direct sunlight - no need to wreck the hands getting them off!
Aug 30, 2012
 More on Hand-e-work
by: Connie

Love, love, love these! I did one and it turned out ok. At least no fingers broke off! Next time I`m going to twist five pipe cleaners together and stick them in each finger before I add the hypertufa. Hopefully that will work! Next week I`m going to try and do two hands together like a person holding their two hands together to hold something in the palms of their hands. I`m going to try a bolt stuck through both of them to hold them together. Maybe slice the side of the gloves so they cure attached together as they dry. What do you think?

I will be waiting to see what happens with this - way to take it to the next level!
Aug 31, 2012
 Love it!
by: Sue Green

I can't wait to try these this weekend. Thanks for the tip about a pin hole in the finger tips, that will make filling them so much easier. Just a very, very cute idea!! And I was looking for something eye catching for my soon to be planted succulent garden, this is it.
Sep 05, 2012
 Try Mortar Mix
by: Barbie Car Girl

I used mortar mix, it sets quickly but it is strong and gives a smooth finish. Also, try forming the gloved fingers in a bed of wet play sand they stay propped until they are set and lift right out. Add acrylic paint to make it more interesting.
Feb 13, 2013
 Love this project!
by: sandy P

I made a pair of these last year (well, I made three, but I dropped one before it was completely cured and you can imagine what happened to that!). I used Quickcrete Vinyl Concrete Patch. The vinyl additive seems to make the concrete stronger. Lots of good tips on how to make them here. If I make them again I will use bigger gloves, mine were a little small to hold the soil very well, it kept washing out when I watered them. So I made small cups of fine screen, put them in the hands to hold the soil and plants, and put some moss around the edges of the screen to hide it. Worked great! Now I have other plans to make more hands in different poses!

Hi Sandy, great tips for using the larger size gloves, and the screen to hold the soil in place. You'll enjoy my next project - promise to share it with you; it will be part of the Rustic Crafts E-Course; stay tuned!

Jacki
Apr 22, 2013
 gloves
by: Anonymous

I am very much inspired by your post and all of these comments. I would like to try using long kitchen gloves as opposed to the surgical ones. Has anyone tried these?

The only issue I can think of with these is that being so much thicker, they won't bend as easily. The risk there is that they cut off the fingers or make where they're attached so thin that they are easily broken.

They also will be incredibly difficult to get off the hands; the surgical gloves do eventually break down and shred, so even if you can't get all of the vinyl off, it does come off by itself. The thicker gloves will need to be cut off with a razor blade. Give it a try, and let us know!
Jacki

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